Happy Homesteading: The first thing I needed was an Apron

If I’m going to be doing some things like my ancestors did the first thing I need is an apron. I had a few aprons hanging around my house but they were totally falling apart.  I decided to spend the time sewing one to learn how and to prepare for the other “simply living” projects ahead of me. One of my main goals is also to decide whether making an apron homemade is cost effective versus to buy one.

History

The apron…what a wonderful article of clothing.  In the early 1900’s people didn’t always have a lot of clothes like we do today, so they wanted to keep their clothes lasting longer and from getting dirty. Washing and drying clothing was a big task so it was much easier to just wash the apron every couple of days instead of tons of clothes.

Here are a couple of pictures I found in my really old photo albums with some of my family members wearing aprons in the early 1920’s-1940’s.  PS – I have tons of old photos and it is HARD to find pictures of folks wearing their old aprons. They always took them off before a picture (which I can understand..I mean, who wants a dirty apron in the picture?)

Look at my ancestors…these ladies were fun, I can tell! And who has the biggest grin in this picture? Yep, that is my Great Grandmother Lilly!  Often in older pictures you don’t see a whole lot of smiling since they had to hold still a lot longer, but in my family there are tons of fun happy folk. Wish I could have known them.

Here is a picture of my great Uncle Emil Olsen and his wife wearing her apron along with some other friends or family.  As time went on aprons became more of a decorating and fashion statement like they are today. Shorter, and with prettier patterns.

Making My Own Apron

As I was thinking about what kind of apron I would be making, I considered making a homestead style apron..with vintage material. Instead I wanted one that I could use outside of this series, something cute to wear to church functions or at home.

So I ventured on down to Hobby Lobby with my 40% off coupon in hand to find some material and a pattern. I came home with this lot of goods:

I have sewed a few times before long long ago, and if I am being honest I will tell you I hated sewing then and I hate it still. I made a few dresses for my daughter and a beautiful quilt some 10 years ago. Despite my dislike for the sewing craft I was determined to have my own apron I made myself.

So.. I began cutting out the pattern. Then I tried reading that crazy hard sewing language on the directions. Seriously..it’s so hard for a beginner to get! I mean, what the heck is a bias? And those pictures in the directions don’t help much either.

After cutting out all the fabric pieces (which I did upside down by the way – found that out later when it was too late)  it said to start with putting the pockets on the apron. But to fold, press and sew and fold and press… what?  I scratched my head, then sat down frustrated and confused. What in the heck were these directions talking about?   I put it all away and figured I would come back to it in a few days.

{Insert hysterical laughter here}

Okay, so a year later I saw that bag of cut out material looking at me again. I knew it was time – I had to conquer this.  So I took it out, and I am not sure what happened but it was a sewing miracle. It seemed to make sense to me this time!  I knew what to do so I got to work.

By the way, after a year sometimes things change. I was like – What was I thinking with the colors I chose? They were really strange and bold but I wasn’t about to start over.

The cool thing was that it didn’t even take too long. Just about 5-6 hours of non-stop child neglect dad watchin’ kids time.

And then…. it was finished!

My only mistake: I realized I probably should have chosen to make the pattern a medium instead of large because this thing was huge. It is supposed to probably end at your waist, but goes to the back on me, which makes me look like 300 lbs overweight. Oh well, lesson learned and I still LOVE this thing. It will serve it’s purpose well.

Finally, it was time to sit down on my front porch, and sip some lemon water. All in a good days work. Ahhhhh.

 

It feels really good to have finished this apron. Now I can dirty it all up with my upcoming adventures!

WAS IT WORTH IT?

WORTH THE COST FOR QUALITY: YES – If you already own a sewing machine.

CAN YOU FIND LESS EXPENSIVE APRONS TO BUY: YES, but the quality might be less.

WORTH THE TIME? YES if you enjoy sewing,  NO if you would rather someone pull out your nails one by one than sew something. 🙂 I think I would pay the $30 for a quality one in stores next time.

Price Breakdown:

• Pattern $2.99 ($1.79 after 40% off coupon)
• Buttons $1.80
• Thread $2.19
• Fabric 2 yards @4.99 yard (+ 30% off) was $6.98
• Grand total of: $12.76

I already have a sewing machine, pins and scissors. If you didn’t have these it would be pretty expensive to get started. Maybe borrow someone’s machine for a project to see if you love sewing enough to want to do a lot of it first.

To answer if it’s worth the cost I am going to say this. Today you can find a pre-made Apron for under $15 sometimes, but the quality of fabric is probably not going to be great – they are usually made of thinner materials.  Usually you can buy a quality apron for around $30 online or in stores with really cute designs.  For the $12 spent, I was able to pick nice thick material out from the craft store and I feel like my apron will last me a long time. Plus I got to pick out the colors/pattern I wanted as well. If you just want something to wear for that one time Christmas event, perhaps a store bought one would save you a lot of time. Will I be making another one? Probably not, as I really hate sewing.  But if you find that sewing is something you enjoy this can be a real satisfying project and you will be saving money too!

 

Let me finish off this post with this poem that brings back really wonderful, warm fond memories of my Grandma. And one of the reasons I knew making an apron was my first step in this series of getting back to my roots.

Grandma’s Apron
written by Tina Trivett

The strings were tied, It was freshly washed, and maybe even pressed.
For Grandma, it was everyday to choose one when she dressed.
The simple apron that it was, you would never think about;
the things she used it for, that made it look worn out.

She may have used it to hold, some wildflowers that she’d found.
Or to hide a crying child’s face, when a stranger came around.
Imagine all the little tears that were wiped with just that cloth.
Or it became a potholder to serve some chicken broth.

She probably carried kindling to stoke the kitchen fire.
To hold a load of laundry, or to wipe the clothesline wire.
When canning all her vegetables, it was used to wipe her brow.
You never know, she might have used it to shoo flies from the cow.

She might have carried eggs in from the chicken coop outside.
Whatever chore she used it for, she did them all with pride.
When Grandma went to heaven, God said she now could rest.
I’m sure the apron that she chose, was her Sunday best.

Do you buy or sew your aprons at home? Have you ever sewn your own before?