Day 22 - Purple and Yellow

Ok - so, it's been really busy around my house. We started home school for the year, and the girls are in a play in a town about 45 minutes from home. I have been helping with the costumes and just have not been in the sewing room as much as I should be to complete this challenge. If I was a different kind of person, I'd get up early, work on the apron of the day in the morning before I got other things done....but I'm just not that kind of girl! I am not creative in the morning....let's face it, I'm barely functional!! After I've had my coffee and something to eat and gotten the kids going on their school work and started some laundry and done some dishes, then I can get creative. Generally, that happens around 2 or 3 - but when we are on a theater schedule, we have to leave around 3. Oops!! We don't get home till after 9 usually so that doesn't leave much time for sewing. Anyway - I finally got an apron done today. It's from the Sassy Little Apron pattern (remind me that I don't like this pattern because I have to do button holes and both my mom's and my machines hate doing them.) Other than the buttons, I love this pattern. It's cute, sassy, flirty and just fun! I took it to the theater hoping to get a victim...I mean model for it. Luckily my daughter's friend Elisha was sweet enough to comply when I asked if she'd like to model it for me. She's a really sweet girl is playing Peter Pan in the current play. It's a big role and I know she's doing a great job with it. Here it is:

Not the best pictures, but well, you know.

Isn't she the cutest?? She's going to make a great Peter Pan.

This apron is available for purchase - $20.00 (plus postage).

Here is a closeup of the fabric - it's really cute. I added the rickrack to make it a bit more fun.

The back is pretty basic. Just a cute bow! I think the straps are long enough to wrap around and tie in front.

Day 21 - Brown Half Apron

Today's apron is an original design, using elements of another pattern. I'm sure you will recognize the waistband and basic shape, but I added the ruffles at the bottom just for fun! I loved the combination of the fabric, but didn't have enough for a full length apron so I decided on the half apron.

My model today is my daughter's friend Alexa - she's a theater friend and was such a great model! She's a very fun girl with a fabulous personality. Such a good friend for my girl! Thanks Alexa!

I mentioned that she's theatrical, right?

I taught my daughter the right way to tie a bow - nice job!

Alexa is playing a pirate in their current play.....I think it's going to her head.

A cute apron on a cute girl!!

Such a goof ball!

The brown fabric has red polka dots and the other fabric is brown paisley like pattern. They are very complimentary and look really cute together.

This apron is for sale - $15 (plus postage) and would make a darling hostess gift. It's size L, but Alexa is probably a S to M and it fit her just fine!

Day 20 - A very strange piece of fabric....

Today I made an apron out of a very strange piece of fabric that I bought at IKEA. It was in the clearance section and was really marked down. The colors were great and I thought, why not? It wasn't till I got it home that I figured out what the print was....mouths....yes, that's right, mouths!!

Here is the fabric:

Weird, eh??

I knew I had to do something interesting with it....something that would change the look of it and not have it be a bunch of mouths.....on an apron. Too funny. I decided to cut it down the middle and rework it into something else. I flipped things around and reattached them - added some trim and made a cute apron!

My friend Karen agreed to model it for me - our kids are in the theater together and they all had rehearsal today. I spent most of the evening in the costume shop, my favorite place to be! When I picked up the kids, Karen was there picking up her kids too! I asked if she'd be my model and she agreed.....as long as I didn't show her face! So, here's Karen wearing my weird apron!

I think the weird print looks a lot like petals now....don't you think? I added the rick rack as a little extra embellishment. This apron is available for purchase - just $15!!

Day 19 - Strawberries and another sweet little one!

The days are going by so fast!! Today's apron is similar to the one I made yesterday - except it's strawberries instead of cherries! I love the way the yellow gingham matches the strawberry print so well. This apron will make any little girl smile, it sure made McKenna smile today!!

Here are the pictures - I think you'll like them!

McKenna is such a sweetie - she's in kindergarten and loves it!!

Kenna and Logan played all day - Dads were watching football.

The tree house made a great backdrop for these pictures, what a fabulous model!!

 This apron is being held for someone special - but there are so many options with colors and even a couple of sizes. Let me know if you have a special little girl or boy who needs an apron.

Such a cutie pie. Thanks Kenna!!!

Day 18 - Cherries for a sweet little one

Aren't kids adorable?? Kids are so much fun, they are fun to sew for, fun to talk to, fun to spend time with, fun to watch. They are just fun!! Today I made an apron for a kiddo - another one. It's done with cherry fabric - cherries on black gingham. It matches the solid red fabric perfectly!I've already talked about how much I love gingham....it's just so fun!! 

I live in a cherry producing area - there are cherry orchards all over the place and they produce the most delicious cherries. Every year we have a cherry festival to celebrate the cherry harvest. It's a fun time, lots of cherry related stuff and just good family fun! Here is the super fun fabric:

 The apron is reversible - cherries on one side with red accents, red on the other side with cherry accents. 

Here is the apron, and the little cutie who agreed to model for me!

Cute little friend - what a fabulous model!

Either side is super cute. Pick a side and go for it!

 


Such a simple pattern, and so many possibilities - tomorrow I'm going to show some simple ways to embellish aprons to make them special! 

Day 17 - An apron and a boy....and some bread!

Today was a busy day - lot's of projects going on in my house. I dried fruit, made bread, did laundry and, of course, made an apron.

My son is a very helpful kid - he loves doing projects with me around the house - cooking, baking, laundry, etc. Today he helped me make bread. We even ground some flour from our Einkorn berries. Einkorn is an ancient, non-hybridized wheat. It is much healthier for our bodies....look it up! Anyway - that's for another blog - I'm here to talk about the apron that Logan is wearing today. This is a reversible kids' apron in a size M. It's from a pattern that I've had for a while - called The Hometown Cafe apron.

I made this one with denim and plaid. I love denim on an apron, it's sturdy, durable, easy to clean and really nice looking. Denim goes really well with plaid, it's like blue jeans and a comfy shirt!

Checking out his handy work.

One side is denim with plaid trim and a pocket.
Logan helped a lot with the bread, he's such a great helper! 

Ready to go in the oven!

He's so careful with the hot oven.

The other side of the apron is plaid with denim trim and pocket.

He decided to use the oven mitts to put the bread IN the oven.

An apron in action, what's better?

His job is done - the bread is in. Good job Logan, you are an awesome baker... and you look good too!

The mitts are a little large....

The finished product - nice looking bread!! It tastes really, really good too!

Tomorrow I will feature another kid size apron - they are fun to make and don't use a lot of fabric. Be sure to check in and see it! I am going to be doing a giveaway in a couple of days - share my posts to enter. More details coming soon! Who wants an apron??

Day 16 - A Patiotic Stip Apron

Yesterday marked the halfway point in my little journey. I thought it would be fitting to post a picture of all of them. Two of them have been sent on their way, but the other 13 are still here  - except the one I sent off today. Got the pictures before I sent it off. Here's two weeks worth of work:

I'm sure having fun, I hope you are too!

 
I started today with putting away my bits and pieces from yesterday - and found some pieced fabric that I'd used several years ago to make an apron - I found several more pieces and started putting them together. Once I had a large piece to work with, I made a sweet little half apron.

My friends Emily and Anna helped today with the modeling and photography - I so appreciate their help! They are creative and know how to have fun with a camera. Thanks girls!

Emily turned her shirt around so the pattern wouldn't compete with the apron. What a good sport!!

 This is my friend Emily - isn't she cute?? She is a fabulous model! The apron is red, white and blue - different fabric pieced together. It is fully reversible.

Totally reversible!! You can switch it around if it gets dirty and keep going!

Emily had to turn her shirt back around to get the back of the apron.

This apron is available for purchase - it is $15 (plus postage). Stay tuned - I have some fun stuff planned for the next few days.

Day 15 - Half Way There! A Strip Apron

The apron I made today is made of fabric that I pieced together. I had a bunch of strips of fabric that were left over from a quilting project. My Aunt Susie is a very, very good quilter. She had to stop quilting for a while and gave us a bunch or her fabric - pieces that she had left from projects and things like that. I LOVE getting bits and bobs - free stuff is always the best! I was totally winging it today, no pattern, no real idea of where I was going to go with it. The result turned out better than I could have imagined. Here it is:

 I LOVE the fabrics that I used for the top - love the colors. I think they are just so lovely.

The skirt is done in many different directions - I had fun piecing it all together. Each side is different,

The whole thing is lined with a fine wale corduroy  - it's very, very soft. Since I didn't use a pattern, it's hard to say what size this apron is. It would fit a variety of sizes and can be tied in the front or back.

This apron is available for sale for $25 (plus postage). I think it would make a great gift.

Day 14 - The 1/2 Apron that almost didn't get done

The main objective for today's apron was that it had to be quick and easy - I got a late start and had places to be today!! I got mostly done before I had to take off and almost didn't finish it tonight. I got home a little late and didn't feel like finishing....but I HAD TO!! Back to the sewing room I went and I got it done! I think it turned out really cute, I hope you agree!

 I didn't use a pattern for this one - I made it up! One of my fabulous daughters picked the fabric - they are so good with combining different fabric. I added the rick rack as an extra little touch,

This apron is not really sized, it could fit just about anyone. I'm so glad I finished it, I think it turned out really, really nice.

If you are interested in this apron, let me know - it's $15 (plus postage).

That's it, short and simple today! See you tomorrow!

Day 13 - The French Cafe Apron

Today's apron is another one made from the More Retro Aprons pattern book written by Cindy Taylor Oates. I used view B today in a size small. You can see the pattern by looking here or here.

The fabric that I used today is from a small quilt shop in Kansas - I probably got it on their clearance table....since I rarely pay full price for fabric, that's the likely story. The fabric has a yellow background and depicts several French cafe scenes. I dream of going to France one day and sitting at a cafe, sipping coffee and eating a croissant. Doesn't that sound divine?

Here is the fabric:

I love the bright colors in the fabric - it is so cheerful and lively. I thought the perfect accent colors would be turquoise and orange. The Turquoise was leftover from another project and the orange piping was some I had on hand. I really like how the colors worked together to create a really fun apron!

Anya was my model again today - this apron actually fits her!

I love the ruffle on this apron - it's so cute! The chicken really thought it was nice looking. :)

Nice pose my little ballerina.

 Anya is getting ready to teach some ballet classes and she's been doing lot's of practicing!!

 Here is a bit closer view - you can see the orange piping around the hem and on the pocket.  The apron is a size Small (2-4).

The ties of the apron can be tied in back, or wrapped around to the front as pictured. The apron is fully lined with plain yellow fabric, but is not reversible.

The French Cafe apron is for sale - $20 (plus postage) - let me know in the comments or by some other means if you are interested in purchasing it. Carrier pigeons accepted. ;)

Thanks for looking!! I'll see you tomorrow.

Day 12 - The One for the Raider Nation (actually, for John Corley)

Several years ago I promised our friend, John Corley, that I would make him a Raider's apron....SEVERAL years ago....that's right, I'm pathetic! Anyway - I finally got around to it! Today I finished the infamous Raiders apron. I didn't really have a lot of the Raider fabric, so I had to get creative. I used the Raider fabric as an accent to the black and white base fabrics. John is not a small man and I wanted to make sure that the apron fit, so I took my basic pattern and added several inches to width. I hope it fits, I didn't have any measurements.

John likes to make hot wings and I wanted to make sure he'd be adequately covered and protected. If he wears the black, he can just wipe his hands on it....not so much on the white.....it is washable, but I don't know if it could handle hot wing sauce stains.

I didn't have a model since John doesn't live here, so I got creative there too!! My lovely daughters are game for almost anything I throw at them.....even wearing a large apron....together... Anyway - here's the apron:

Two tiny girls equal 1 large man, right??

I made the back a little different - used loops instead of waist ties

I told them that they'd have to wear the apron to do dishes if they couldn't get along...

It's reversible.

Day 11 - A "Great" Grandma Apron

When I started this little endeavor, my favorite cousin Suanne sent me a copy of this:

Grandma's Apron

I don't think our kids know what an apron is.
The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath, because she only had a few, it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.
It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears…
From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.
When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.
And when the weather was cold grandma wrapped it around her arms.
Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.
Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.
From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables.
After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.
In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.
When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.
When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men-folk knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.
It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.

REMEMBER:

Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool.
Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.
They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron.
I never caught anything from an apron…But Love. (Author Unknown)

This is my Great Grandmother Una Thomas when she was young

My Great Grandmother was a farm girl - born and raised, married and delivered most of her children in her farm house in eastern Kansas. I've been to that house, visited the barn, wandered through the wheat fields, and saw the water pump where she accessed the well. It's a wonderful place and I LOVED being there. When I read this poem/essay/whatever, I pictured my great grandma and even her mother, in a kitchen in Kansas wearing a giant white apron. That was my inspiration for today's apron. I hope you like it!

The whole apron front - it's long and full...to cover your whole dress!

 Today's apron is a big, giant, great-grandma apron! I re-purposed a beautiful white duvet cover that I bought at a yard sale awhile back (I think my grandma would approve). The lace was part of the cover, but it was in the wrong place so I had to pull it all off and reattach it. I made up this pattern based on what I thought a farm girl would have worn 150 years ago.

The top of the apron - a little lace to add some style.

 The apron is designed to be very "covered" so that you don't take the chance of spilling anything on your dress. :)

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this apron....I don't know if I can part with it....If you MUST have it, let me know and we'll see what we can work out.