go ahead and complain,I hate basting,but you don’t want the collar to slip out of place. With the hand basting,I did three rows horizantal across and as big as I can get away with. You can see the threads after it is pleated,how they bubble up? Well,go ahead and remove them if you want before you start smocking. Now,with the final step the machine basting. Begin at the left and baste the back of the collar to the back of the dress,then across the top of the dress and collar. When you come to the armhole baste vertical down through the collar,right to the end of the armhole. This line of stitching in the armhole will help you when you finish the arm area. You will wrap the armhole with a bias binding. You will just need to keep the machine basting next to the edges._________________