Saturday's Apron: Playing Catch Up

You want to know my favorite kind of blog contest? - The kind where I win, of course! I have been on a real winning streak lately. I haven't told you about all of them, and it's time to catch up. Plus since most of the prizes were aprons, I'll combine this with a Saturday's Apron post.

First of all, I won this cutie pie from Christine of Pies & Aprons. A cute, diamond-shaped half apron with a tulip print and lots of pretty yellow rickrack trim.

Next, I won Michael's blogversary contest, the one I linked for you here. See, it all comes out in the wash.

As did these pretty aprons that he sent. A wash, starch and session on the clothesline, then a touch-up with an iron, and they are all ready for another few years helping out in the kitchen. First is this cobbler's smock style apron. I'm not normally a big fan of them, and this one looks silly on the dress form, but it looks unusually cute on ME.

 

Next is this full apron with a cute heart-shaped pocket decorated with rickrack. Love, love, love.

But wait, there's more! Here's my favorite of the aprons from Michael:

It was made of a blue and white border print. It fits so cute, and I feel gorgeous in it. I need to make more just like it. Where are my border prints, anyway? :)

Michael also sent more goodies:

Fabric trims, rickrack and gift wrap ribbons:

And a cute little souvenir plate for Missouri, about 4 inches across:

That's all the prizes. I also bought this little half apron with big comfy useful pockets at a garage sale. It's not pretty, it's just a hard workin' little apron.

The print fabric is all pockets. See what I mean?

And finally, I have to show off a really beautiful apron that I bought from Cate's Vintage Linens in Arizona. She has closed her blogs and so I can't link for you. I miss her! Anyway, this appears to be an unused cotton apron. I love it so much. I plan to make more just like it. I think there would be quite a demand for them.

I don't have any really handy ways to store and show off full aprons. Any thoughts, anyone?

Saturday's Apron: Houston County (MN) Fair Winners

I entered 2 aprons in the Houston County Fair this year. One you have seen before, and one I made specifically for the fair. Here they are:


The purple and green one is a clothespin apron. Both are blue ribbon winners, as you can see, but don't get too excited; for some reason, nobody else put any aprons in the fair this year! So they not only got first place, they also got last.

The family did well this year!

Lil Miss A entered black cherry jam, the first time she has ever made it. Our friends Carol and Fred Reese stopped by on their way back home after a vacation in Glacier National Park and brought us a bunch of black cherries that they had picked at a pick-your-own orchard. Lil Miss A made some of them into jam.

A blue ribbon! And she had PLENTY of competition, unlike her mama. I'm very proud.

Here is the Shelf of Fame for the preserved foods category:

Kieffer (he told me to quit messing around and just use his name, he uses it on the Internet all the time anyway) dried cherry tomatoes as his entry in the Preserved Foods category. He cut them in half, scooped out the guts with a watermelon baller, and then dried them on racks on the back porch for a couple of days. We got this idea from Judy Laquidara's blog. And look at that: Second place! I knew he faced stiff competition, because there was a jar of lovely dried morel mushrooms there when I dropped off his cherry tomatoes.

Good job, son!

I entered my red currant jelly but it didn't win any prizes. I'm not really surprised. My jelly is usually cloudy.

And now (drumroll please) comes BARRY STAHL who entered two categories with his ceramics: A woodfired piece (which won a first prize) and two of his bottles (which won a giant purple ribbon)!

He looked around at the photography, scoffed at the judging, and then wondered where the professional photography exhibits were. There weren't any at all this year. Next year we mean to fix that.

Now a little show of some of the other exhibits that I thought were great:

Floral arrangements

Woven rugs. The tan colored one was made of jute twine.

Vikings Stadium depicted as an afghan.

This awesome handbag embellished with tons of old Bakelite and other early plastic buttons and doojobbers. Want.

We didn't stay very long. I am not feeling very well today (I'm supposed to be driving to the Twin Cities right now for my 30th high school reunion, and I'm staying home feeling sorry for myself instead), so it stopped being fun pretty quickly. We didn't even check out the 4-H sheep and they are normally a must see. Maybe tomorrow afternoon I'll feel better.

Saturday's Apron: Apron hooks!

No new aprons, but Barry put hooks up for me to hang a few aprons in the kitchen. He also hung that vintage GE clock.

The Return of Saturday's Apron: A repro of a cute homemade vintage apron

This apron is made of vintage and new fabric and is from the design of an apron one of the women of our church brought one Sunday when she would be working in the kitchen. She said her grandmother had made it. She kindly allowed me to bring it home to write down the design. It's made of two fabrics, a cotton print and a cotton organdy underneath. I reproduced it using pieces of a pretty polished cotton chintz (vintage) and new white cotton organdy bought on eBay from seller Exclusive Silks.  I used vintage bias edging, too.  It turned out so pretty that if I don't come up with something I like better, it's going to be my fair entry apron this year.

Saturday's Apron: Simplicity 4868 from 1943

This Saturday's apron is just a pattern. But oh, what a pattern. I bought it on eBay at a very tiny price. So it was a tiny splurge. I'm really looking forward to the chance to sew it up pretty.

Dig the seamed stockings. We all dress like that to do housework. Right?

Saturday's Apron: A Dressy Floral Apron

This was a Way Station find: A homemade chiffon apron with pansy motifs added, possibly from an old tablecloth. It's very cute, but I don't wear these (I need something more substantial for my messes). Not sure yet if I'll put it in Lulu's or not; it has some issues, and I like to list things are perfect.

Saturday's Apron: A Little Yellow Gingham Apron for E

I made this child-sized apron out of a piece of yellow gingham plaid that I had in my stash, plus some vintage yellow rick-rack that my mother had given me a long time ago. I have been happily drawing on Mom's stash of vintage rick-rack for several years now -- it's so much fun! This little apron with pocket was a gift for my niece, E. The family got to see her last month and hand delivered it to her.

I used an inset of rickrack to hold the body of the apron to the hem section. It looks like perforated paper but should be sturdy enough for a little girl to wear to play. My niece is a great one for pretending.

Saturday's Apron: A One-Hour Apron for Mrs. Mac

I haven't posted a Saturday's Apron in ages. This one was made as a present for Mrs. Mac. It's from Jona's one-hour apron pattern, only I made it reversible again, and added a pocket to each side.

I chose all the fabric from my stash. I hope it works in her kitchen.

Saturday's Apron: Lotsa Fruit!

I made this little apron out of two different bolt ends, the cherries and the lemons, from my favorite quilt shop, Yellow Bird Art in Lansing, Iowa.

They have this wonderful barrel full of scraps and bits and you can get all that you can cram into a little baggie for $4.75. And with a little effort and careful folding, i can cram a LOT of pretties into that baggie!

The red and white is one of the Zoomin by Clothworks line. I love that fabric. It's so hard to find a true red and a true white.


I love those pockets! I found that pattern here. They're a little tedious but they come out so cute with a contrast lining.

It's reversible, sort of, with a lining but no pockets on the inside.


This baby is on eBay this week. I have never tried to sell one of my own homemade aprons before, just vintage ones from estate sales. I'm anxiously watching to see how it goes.

Saturday's Apron: My Pressie from V

Isn't this pretty?

It's a new apron made from an old pattern and repro fabrics, evidently by Simplicity itself. My sister-in-law V sent it to me for Christmas. It's very crisp and pretty and nice and big, too, for good coverage. And it has pockets. And I'm wearing it right now.

Can't wait to show you - but I have to!

I'll bide my time and post on Saturday... but I have something wonderful to show you. Something apron-related. Okay, it's an apron. And I am not supposed to know about it but I preopened my Christmas present from my sister-in-law V and it's AN APRON!! Does she know me or not? Anyway I put it away again and will officially open it later this week. And then I'll take a picture.

Apronapronapronjoyjoyjoyapronapronapron!

Saturday's Apron: A One-Hour Apron for Jane

Jona posted directions for a One-Hour Apron on her blog. Of course I had to make it more complicated, so it took longer than an hour, but I am in love with it and don't want to give it away now. :o) I will anyway. Tomorrow is the Sunday School Christmas play and traditionally that's when everybody gives little gifts to our children's Sunday School teachers. So this apron will go to Jane. She is a bright, sunshiny kind of person and the apron will go right along with her personality.

The original pattern calls for a fat quarter of fabric to make up the main front piece and a half yard of something else for the waistband/tie and the hem piece. I pieced the front (it ended up a little bigger than a fat quarter) and then I backed it with a solid piece of fabric to hide all the seam allowances. This apron would actually be reversible. The back is an orange print that coordinates nicely with the waistband fabric.



And then the other teacher, who happens to be Miss B, will get these pot holders.



Used up a lot of scraps on these and had fun! These are not colors I usually work with.