Instructions for Sewing the Altar Set
for the Orthodox Christian
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd church school curriculum
Making this set will enhance the objectives in the "Altar" lesson and give the children an almost identical representation of the real fabric pieces they see in church. This set is designed to fit the CGS Store's Orthodox Christian Altar Set. This is a "confident beginner" sewing project to outfit your church or school's atrium with a set of chalice covers, aer, communion cloth, and simplified antimension. If you do not already have the kit to make this set, you can find here. If you are looking for a brass asterisk (star) for the diskos that comes in the CGS Store's Altar Set, then please contact us via the Contact Us link below.
Kit Materials Included
- Storage box
- Aer & Chalice Covers pre-printed fabric
- Gold satin backing fabric
- Gold braid trim (16")
- Gold fringe trim (3 yds 9")
- Gold satin ribbon (40")
- Gold thread
- Stiff interfacing (two 2" squares)
- Antimension pre-printed fabric
- Red cotton fabric cut to size
- Red thread
Supplies Needed
- Iron
- Sewing machine
- Basic sewing tools
- Turning tool
- Hand sewing needle
Sewing Instructions
Prep the Aer & Chalice Covers
- Iron the satin fabric on “wool” setting and no steam.
- Lay the satin backing fabric right side up, then lay the printed cut and sew panel right side down on the satin. Pin the layers together in the area inside where your seams will be, marking a turning hole at the bottom of the aer and the two chalice covers.
- Cut along the lines bordering the aer and two chalice covers as you see them through the back side of the printed fabric (dashed circle around the covers) so that the layers are already matched up, pinned, and ready for sewing. Pinking shears are best to prevent fraying on the satin fabric.
Sew the Aer
1. Cut the 3/8” gold satin ribbon in half, and singe all four raw edges to prevent fraying. Pin the ribbon “wrong side up” between the two layers of fabric near the top left and right corners (about ½” in from from the sides). Let a little bit of the ribbon stick out of the top, and make sure the rest of the ribbon is laying straight down from the top, and bunched up in the middle of the aer away from the sides where you’ll sew the fabric together.
2. As you start sewing check your tension: you might need to reduce tension down to 3.0 or lower to prevent the satin from puckering. A new, sharp needle will help too. You can use the gold thread provided, or a light-colored all-purpose thread. Use a 3/8” seam allowance and sew from the left side of the turning hole all the way around the aer back to the right side of the turning hole.
3. Cut the corners off the aer in the seam allowance just above the stitching.
4. Turn right side out, gently poke the corners so they have a square look, smooth the seams so they lay straight, and iron carefully on wool setting. Make sure the turning hole is ironed smooth to match the sewn edges.
5. Consider jumping ahead to step 1 of the chalice covers and then coming back to step 6 for the aer when it’s time to attach trim.
6. Change your tension back to normal, or even a little higher than usual (up to 4.6), change your stitch to a zig-zag about 2.0 width and 2.5 length, and your thread to the gold that came with the kit.
7. Attach the fringe trim along the outside edges of the aer so that the loops hang off the side of the fabric to give it a fringe look. Don’t measure and cut the trim, just start attaching it and when you get around to a few inches from where you started, cut the trim so there is a little overlap, not more than ½”. Backstitch over the edge to secure it. If you have a short section of trim that isn’t long enough for an entire edge length, you can patch it in as you go by sewing a slight overlap and backstitching to secure it.
8. You can sew the ends of the ribbons with a rolled hem and a zig-zag stitch to keep them from fraying when handled a lot by little children.
Sew the Chalice and Diskos Covers
1. Reset tension, thread, and stitch settings to step 2 of the aer instructions above.
2. Starting at the left side of the turning hole at the bottom of one of the arms, sew just inside the black line around each arm of the covers, pivoting in the armpits, and coming all the way back around to the right side of the turning hole.
3. Cut the triangles out between each arm, then cut the corners off and cut a snip into the seam allowance in each of the armpits.
4. Turn right side out, gently poke the corners so they have a square look, smooth the seams so they are crisp, and iron carefully on wool setting. Make sure the turning hole is ironed smooth to match the sewn edges.
5. Insert the square piece of stiff white interfacing into the center of the covers, through the turning hole.
6. Using a straight or zig-zag stitch with gold thread, attach the gold braid to the center of the covers, following the edge of the stiff interfacing. Smooth the fabric as you go so that the center doesn’t pucker. Cut the trim after attaching it to the cover.
7. Attach the fringe just as in step 6 of the aer instructions above. When you come to the armpit leave the needle down and bend the fringe around the corner so that it lies straight on the next arm of the cover.
Sew the Communion Cloth
1. Iron the fabric on cotton setting.
2. Use red thread and a straight stitch to sew a ¼” rolled hem on all four sides.
3. Fold the cloth in thirds and then in thirds again and press the folds with your fingers so that there are pre-folded lines on the cloth.
Sew the Antimension
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Cut out the red rectangle (backing) and the off-white rectangle (icon) along the edge of the color. Note the four black lines on each side of both rectangles.
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Lay the icon on the backing, centered and with right sides together. Match up the black lines and pin the fabric together on all four sides. Continue pinning around the icon so that the fabrics are secure enough to sew together. Leave a turning hole about 2" along the bottom edge. The excess backing fabric will make a point on each corner.
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Sew the front and back together:
a. Starting on the left side of the turning hole, sew along the edge of the icon fabric with a 1/2" seam allowance, keeping the backing fabric smooth as you go, backstitching at the beginning and end of each seam.
b. Sew along the side until you are about 1/2" from the corner, then backstitch and cut the thread. Turn the fabric 90*, flip the backing fabric out of the way, and start the next side seam where your last stitches stopped.
c. Continue around the icon until all 4 sides are secure and you have a 2" turning hole in the center of the bottom of the icon.
4. Sew the mitered corners:
a. Very important note: if step (b) below is not done correctly you will end up with a boxy seat cushion shape instead of a flat antimension. You do not want a 3D shape like this photo:
b. With the antimension sides sewn and the fabric still wrong-side-out, take the fabric at one of the corners and fold it so the corner makes a point and the layers are smooth and flat, with the folded edge on the vertical axis and the raw edge at a 45 degree angle. Lay a ruler horizontally across the point from the edge of the stitches to the folded edge of the backing and mark a horizontal line. This line must be perpendicular to the folded edge and at a 45 degree angle from the stitches (not a 90 degree angle).
c. Sew along the line, backstitching at beginning and end. Repeat for the remaining 3 corners.
d. You might turn it right side out real quick just to check your corners are sewn so that the antimension lies flat, then turn it back wrong-side-out...before you trim the corners and make it so that you can't rip out your stitches and do the corner correctly. (Speaking from experience!)
5. Trim the corners to reduce bulk at the points. Cut the top off the corner about 1/2" from the stitches (large triangle), and then make a diagonal cut at the end of the stitches where they meet the folded edge of the fabric (small triangle).
6. Turn the cloth right side out. Use a turning tool to gently poke out the corners to make them nice, and run the tool along the seams on the inside to push out all the fabric and make a straight rectangle.
7. Iron flat. Ensure the turning hole is ironed straight to match the rest of the seam on that side.
8. Close the turning hole by hand-sewing a ladder stitch just inside the turning hole. Be careful not to sew the icon to the back of the antimension.
