Upcycled Vintage Aprons

An apron brings a certain charm to everyday work. Something happens when I tie my apron strings, my mind clears and I feel like I can accomplish everything on my endless to-do list . 

I used to barter for aprons with a friend but she has put off sewing for a while with twin toddlers and a new baby needing her attention. I was inspired to try making a few upcycled aprons from vintage linens I found at the thrift store. I whipped these half aprons up quickly and I have some pretty full aprons in the works.

I found a set of curtains with pretty vintage trim

This is what it looked like after I cut it,

and this is all that was leftover.

 

I made two aprons from the curtains, one to keep and one to sell or barter.

 I also bought a few vintage pillow cases which make very pretty aprons.

Grandma's Apron

Author Unknown

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.