Chintz and an Indian Print Shirt

I wore my Punjabi Kurta tunic that I made from a vintage sari – posted here!

     One of the highlights of 2022 for me was having my town’s Art Museum hosting the acclaimed exhibition Global Threads: The Art and Fashion of Indian Chintz, which is produced and circulated by the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).  I considered visiting Canada just for this exhibit when it opened in Ontario in September of 2020…unbelievably, however, it subsequently came to me!  We attended all the presentations, curator talks, and related events, as well as even joining our Art Museum as a member just to have unlimited free access to the Chintz exhibit.  Nevertheless, it had a shortened opening time, and is now closed for visiting by the time I am getting around to posting about the exhibit – sorry!  As I have said before, I am still catching up on so many things from last year!  Nevertheless, as a replacement, I highly recommend purchasing the ROM’s exhibit book as well as following my posts about the outfits I made for the event’s occasions!  I say “outfits” in plural because I sewed something related and appropriate for our exhibit visits not just for me (to be shared in a follow up post) but for my man! 

Kalam bamboo pens as shown in my picture from the Chintz exhibit.

     A rich red is for auspicious and joyful festivities, so I thought the opening day for the Chintz exhibit was celebratory enough to merit hubby wearing the vibrant color.  Often, gold (in the form of embroidery or jewelry) is paired with the color red, but that is when the fabric worn is silk, such as for weddings and festivities.  Since this is an everyday cotton blend fabric, the beige and tan tones stamped into the blank spaces left from the resist mordant calms the red down and keeps this shirt more casual.  I realized that the exhibit featured chintz prints and my hubby’s shirt fabric vaguely fit into the exhibit’s definition of chintz, but that is a blurry, controversial topic.  The exhibit presented the distinction between the two (at the manufacturing level) as being that chintz has its prints individually hand drawn with a kalam bamboo pen, not just primarily stamped or resist dyed as is done to a block print.  However, many chintz prints utilize blocks or resist mordant to supplement (in some degree) the kalamkari handiwork.  Both prints often use the same dyes, oxides, or inks.  Thus, I figure my husband is dressed in a fabric that is a simpler “close relative” of the chintz we saw in the exhibit! 

     There are more differences between chintz and block prints yet to be mentioned, but I will not dive into the weeds here.  I just want to focus on how we were trying to honor India’s fiber arts heritage along with the exhibit by having this shirt for the occasion.  Most importantly, my hubby really seems to like his first taste of just how wonderfully soft and uniquely stylish an Indian block printed cotton can be to wear.  I hope you look into the beauty behind the history of Chintz and consider finding an Indian cotton print to work with for your own projects – whether they are for others or not.  You will not be disappointed!

THE FACTS:

FABRIC:  a soft cotton and flax blend Indian block print for the main shirt body with a solid red cotton broadcloth as the inner shoulder lining as well as the under collar contrast

PATTERN:  ”1950’s Men’s Sport Shirt with Front Detailing” vintage pattern reprint (listing here) from the “Vintage Sewing Pattern Company” on Etsy. 

NOTIONS NEEDED:  lots of thread, interfacing, and two natural coconut buttons

TIME TO COMPLETE:  The pattern itself took several hours to assemble, trace and resize down, but the actual sewing was a total of 12 hours and finished in September 2022

THE INSIDES:  I tightly zig-zag stitched over all the raw edges to imitate serging (overlocking)

TOTAL COST:  The fabric was an end-of-the-bolt remnant on sale at $15 for 1 3/8 yards, and everything else cost pittance as it was all leftovers from other projects, already on hand.

     The overall fit of this design is relaxed, boxy, and meant to be a closure-free pop-over-the-head shirt.  However, pullover or not, it is classic for menswear of the 1950’s decade with its dropped shoulder line, obnoxiously wide collar, and generous sizing.  The interesting chest paneling that incorporates working pockets carries the heart of the design.  It was so fun to sew, see how it turned out, and subsequently have my husband enjoy it.  I love a good design anyway, but especially one that leaves open the perfect opportunity for having fun with a directional fabric print as this one does. 

     I contacted the seller that reprinted the pattern to hopefully find out more information so I could more precisely date this design.  They kindly let me know it originally came from Woman’s Own, a British lifestyle magazine first published in 1932 and continuing to this day (albeit with more celebrity gossip and no patterns).  A man’s shirt pattern coming from a line so specific in name to women is rather humorous in its irony.  Nevertheless, by knowing the pattern number and then finding a few other Woman’s Own patterns which were dated with a nearby number, I was able to place my hubby’s shirt between 1958 and 1960.   It wasn’t until after circa 1963 that menswear styles started slimming down with smaller collars.  Menswear changes very slowly and clues to dating vintage styles for guys lies in the subtle details.

     This post’s project pattern reminds me of a previous 1950s pullover shirt that I made for my husband (posted here), which was also in an Indian cotton.  However, this design has the decorative panel coming across the chest and a full convertible collar.  The instructions were clear and well laid out, being a newly digitized reprint, while the pieces matched up perfectly.  The design is so economical, too – the numerous pieces make it fit on a smaller cut than it would otherwise.  If you didn’t notice my point in the “The Facts” above, I did make this out of just over a yard…but then again I am a pro at eking out efficient pattern layouts!  My biggest challenge was restricting my layout availability for the pattern pieces by having the stripes change direction from vertical through the body to horizontal across the upper panels. 

     Dramatic work was needed on the pattern at the paper stage before any cutting.  I did a pattern fitting on him because a pullover shirt in a woven (with no stretch) needs to be a tricky balance of a loose fit that does not drown the wearer.  It needed to be sized down to a whole size smaller than what the pattern’s size chart showed that my husband needed.  Evenly, in small, spread-out increments, I pinched out about 4 ½ inches across the width of the chest (which was tricky to do with the geometric paneling), with 2 of those inches solely out of the collar.  This was supposed to get the shirt down to a 38” chest, 14” collar according to the pattern’s size chart, yet the finished garment fits like a 40” chest, 15” collar.  I also found that the pattern had the chest panel running too low.  Looking at the pattern, the pocketed chest panel needs to run across from arm to arm.  If I hadn’t folded up the pattern piece by a couple of inches, the chest panel seam would have dropped below his arms to run across his upper torso.  I was looking out for him ahead of time, though, and eventually nailed down the fit, but as long as my man likes what I made for him, that is all that matters.

     It was crazy how I needed to cobble together the one piece that didn’t fit in the pattern piece layout – the shoulder panel.  Being one of the smaller pieces, the shoulder panel was sacrificed to be assembled from the leftover cuttings since I wanted the stripes to run horizontally.  I somehow organized 7 individual scrap pieces in a way that remotely matched enough to make the seams indistinguishable (see picture above at far left).  I ironed the entire panel so all the pieced seams would lay flat (see middle picture above). Nevertheless, it is the interior lining panel, being cut – as it should – in one solid piece, which helps support that section and keep it in the correct shape (see far right picture above).  I love lining the shoulder panel of shirts – it creates such a clean interior and gives a professional finish in one easy step!  Plus, lining panels are a perfect way to use smaller scraps of fabric, especially when it adds a fun little contrast of color. 

     The coconut buttons on this shirt are a special touch that makes me smile.  Natural wood buttons are frequently used in India’s fashions, but nevertheless I wanted to keep everything about this shirt as natural as possible.  No polyester is to be found here except for a small amount blended in the thread!  Coconut buttons, however, seem to absorb water easily and so cannot take a soaking at all.  I might want to just do a quick hand wash to clean it.  If coconut buttons get too wet, in my experience, they separate or just plain start to fall apart!  These have some sort of glazing on the front so maybe they will be sturdy for a while…we will see.  For now, they tame down the rich red tone and are the perfect mix of being a ‘nicer-than-normal’ shirt button but subtle enough to not be too noticeable.  After all, pockets always seem more fun than they already are when there is a neat button to close them!

Another amazing picture we took from the Chintz exhibit!

     I know I have made plenty of Indian inspired garments for myself, so I hope you enjoyed this different approach to sewing something using that county’s great fabric offerings.  Even though this shirt is not glaringly different, I suppose it’s still quite a unique thing to make for my man – definitely something one would not find anywhere else!  Yet, that is one of the main reasons for home sewing, right?  To fuel that creative drive for fulfilling a personal vision as well as to have unique well-fitted garments for me and others to wear are some of the things I enjoy about sewing…how about you?  Let’s all be happy he accommodated me enough to model his shirt and work through his unwillingness to be on the other side of the camera!

Staunch in Scarlet

I am normally not in the mood for wearing red unless I want to channel Agent Peggy Carter. That is just me.  It is such a strong statement color, and it is the one bright tone I am truly still not accustomed to yet!  A classic red I reserve for her, my stalwart heroine, in my way of thinking.  Christmas and Valentine’s Day are my only exceptions, as well as any patriotic occasion…which in its own way is related to Peggy Carter via her beau Captain America.  It’s cool that there is a holiday in February (for the United States) where I can tick more than one of my ‘stipulations for me wearing red’ boxes.  President’s Day comes in February on the heels of Valentine’s Day and is close to the anniversary of the first release of the Agent Carter television show.  So here’s a post about a great ‘new’ me-made WWII era dress, sprinkled with a bit of blue and white for good patriotic measure, in an unusual red tone that works for many seasons and celebrations!

My accessories really carry this outfit, I think, and I am very happy how they complement my dress together.  I am proud the hat is me-made at the last hour before these photos.  Understand it’s not a proper ‘sewn’ kind of hat, but neither is it a permanent creation either.  It’s whipped together in a sort of very resourceful 40’s era ‘make-do’ idealology.  I will talk more about it later on in this post.  My shoes are a fabulous true vintage find I bought for only $5 (yes, you read that right).  I have been able to pin their style down to the late 1930s or very early pre-WWII 40’s, due to the heel shape, materials used (woolen fabric and leather), and the high vamp (where it cuts across your foot at the front).  My gloves as well are a true vintage late 30’s or early 40’s cotton twill pair. 

All these items tweak the year on the pattern I used to make it seem (from a historical standpoint) as if this is a style of dress earlier than what it really is for a 30’s spin on a 40’s pattern.  By adding inches to lengthen the dress, as well, I ended out with an overall late 1930’s look, instead.  Usually historical vintage fashion anticipates the upcoming era during decade transitions, but not too often can styles go back in time.  This is an interesting and successful experiment!

THE FACTS:

FABRIC:  a rayon challis for the dress and a sheer chiffon for the hat

PATTERN:  Simplicity #4949, year 1943, from my pattern stash

NOTIONS NEEDED:  All I needed was what was on hand – thread, a 22” zipper, and a bit of bias tape

TIME TO COMPLETE:  This dress was made in 8 to 10 hours and finished in September 2019

TOTAL COST:  I bought the under two yards cut of my dress’ material on clearance in my local JoAnn store for only $7.00.  The blue contrast is from remnants leftover from this Burda Style 50’s dress.  The hat’s chiffon was on hand, bought years back for another project not yet made.  I’m counting the scraps and the chiffon remnant as free.

Before I go any further, I need to point out that this dress is so wonderful it is my ultimate go-to 40’s dress.  I actually had to put it downstairs for the time being because I need to give my other dresses some love by wearing them, too!  The lack of a set waist (with a seam) is somewhat unusual and oh-so-comfortable.  The dress is one piece from shoulder to hem.  Added to that is the stretchy side panels cut from a knit.  Combined with the swishy rayon and midi length, this dress feels and wears like the loveliest nightgown.  I added a center back zipper to keep this dress easy and stress-free to put on, as well.  With the side panels in a knit, I didn’t really have a choice but to move the placement of the zipper anyway.  Sneaky loungewear which can also be dressy enough to wear out and about is a gem, especially today.  The colors work for all seasons too, as my grey, navy, or dusty blue blazers and sweaters pair well over this dress.  For only $7 spent and some easy sewing, I really received the most bang for my buck with this project.

Besides changing up to a back zipper and adding length to the hem, I slightly altered the pattern to both make it work for my under 2 yard cut of material and also not break up the floral print on the dress’ front.  There were only four main pattern pieces for this dress so I took the easy way to grade in an extra inch or two anyway and changed up the layout of the tissue pieces.  I didn’t even bother with cutting out the fussy neckline facings, either, opting for simple bias tape finishing.  My fabric was restricting me at only 45” wide.  Luckily, the dress is not bias cut but straight along the grainline.

Instead of having a seam down the front, I cut that on the on the fold.  Yes this eliminated the curvy shaping, but kept the print undisturbed.  In lieu of the original lines, I added a “fish eye” style dart vertically down the front center from the bottom dip of the neckline to taper off into the skirt body at the waistline.  The dart also nicely raised up the originally very low V neck.  The back half was cut as the pattern wanted, and was laid out on the fabric with the wide skirt portion at the opposite end as that of the front.  The short sleeves were barely squeezed out of the portion in between the side seams to the front and the back dress pieces.  There were scraps left which were no bigger than 4 inches.  As I have done time and again, I just made my project idea work out with an inventive tissue piece layout. 

Speaking of pattern layout, I also went rogue when it came to cutting out the side triangular panels.  I barely had scraps of my chosen fabric leftover big enough for the two side waist panels.  It was all that I could manage to cut out the side panels on the bias.  Not that it matters all too much as I was using a 4 way knit, yet it is always important to follow grainlines.  Oh well.  The fact that I kept the seam though the center actually helps keep the knit from stretching overmuch.  I stabilized the seam with a three solid rows of straight stitching while not letting the knit distend under my machine.  Furthermore, I did some small, decorative hand stitching along the seam to help the inside allowance lie flat but still add some subtle beauty.  

The knit panels help this dress hug my curves in a way I adore.  When I was looking through what scraps I had on hand to use which would be the nicest contrast to the rayon print, this dusty blue knit was really the best, most versatile match I came across.  The fact it was a knit was secondary to my choice of color, but I figured that it may help shape this dress into a body-hugging, comfortable, slinky little number.  I was spot on, apparently.  The fact the side panels are in a contrast really do so much to make this a dress which slenderizes a figure.  Seriously, if you want a dress that automatically makes you look like you lost weight, this is the one.  Just imagine if this was in a solid tone for some color blocking.  It deceives the eye to see an hourglass figure smaller than what is really there.  You see the side panels, but the mind centers on the main body of the dress, which at its smallest point, is only a third of what the true waist of the wearer is.  It’s a deviously simple successful design and incredibly fun to sew – the perfect detail to make use of fabric scraps, too!

Now, this style of dress seems to be relatively easy to find.  Since both before and after I have sewn my dress, I have found similar styles both in Hollywood costumes, designer styles, extant vintage garments, as well as through several sewing patterns, some of which are available to buy as reprints today.  If you like this post’s dress, particularly, than you’re in luck because the pattern I used for my own dress can be bought through Eva Dress (see page for it here).  

Yet, the 40’s era side panel dress pattern of the moment through the vintage sewing community seems to be Folkwear Company’s #233 “Glamour Girl Dress”.  However, I just do not see it having the same size-reducing effect as the Simplicity #4949 I used.  Perhaps it’s because of the way the panels connect in the middle into a tie.  I do not have this pattern myself and do not intend to, but the tie front seems to cause too much bulk and excess of material around the waist.  It is lacking the thin, smooth band of material through the middle of my dress which fools the eye into seeing an impossibly tiny waist.  Besides, so many ladies seem to have both fitting and sewing issues with the Folkwear dress, from what I have read and heard first hand from others.  The midsection to the Folkwear dress becomes more of a belt-like feature for ease of wearing rather than a flattering design element as on the Simplicity dress I made.  I will stick with something I have tried already and know I like.  I hope to revisit this post’s pattern in the future to make it in a different way, inspired by the many varieties you see in my collage image.

My hat is actually something I whipped up after seeing some tutorials for such a thing on social media several years back (which is why I no longer remember where it originally came from).  It is only a one-something yard length of sheer chiffon wrapped around two foam styling rolls (like a modern version of a vintage hair “rat”).  I used my “Hot Buns” hair tool, since I had it on hand.  Then I connected the two of them together to form a circle (there are snaps built into the ends so this was easy to do).  I was tempted to buy something a bit more defined in shape such as a Styrofoam ring (used for wreath making).  However, the Velcro-like outside to the “Hot Buns” grabbed a hold of the fabric nicely, just the same as it does to my hair, to help this impromptu hat idea work better than I expected.  I left enough of a ‘tail’ on each side of the ring for this to tie around my hair much like headband.  Otherwise I wrapped the rest of the fabric closely around the “Hot Buns” ring with no pinning or tacking needed to keep in place. 

I think a knit would have worked better than the chiffon for this accessory project, but I’m just happy to have a new, era authentic hat for no cost and no effort, using things from on hand.  I’m practical enough to know I don’t currently have any more room in my hat boxes, so this little head decoration suits me perfectly.  This is a very late 30’s to early 40’s style of hat that can be seen everywhere between that time – from Hollywood, such as the head of actress Ida Lupino in the 1939 “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” movie, to a home fashions, like this page out of a Sears Catalog from 1940 (see bottom right).  It seems as if such a hat can be also termed as a turban, especially if it was knitted or a soft velvet.  With that in mind, it makes total sense now that it would come together quite easily, not be a permanent millinery piece, and be comfortable, practical glamor to wear. 

Now I suppose it is time to ease off of the fascination for red that the February holidays have brought upon me…at least for now.  Although scarlet tones are not seasonal (I do realize), it’s time to catch up on some more of my Disney inspired “Pandemic Princess” outfits next!  I will return to something more appropriate for the chilly weather we are currently having.  I’ll meet you ‘just around the river bend’…and let me know if you catch the hint!

Candy Stripe Blouse

I don’t know about you, but we have plenty of candy leftover still from Christmas (and even a little from Halloween).  Among the candy, we had so many candy canes we actually were able to decorate the tree with them!  Now that the tree and Christmas are past and out of sight, we have to work on finishing those candy canes still around.  Well, how about instead taking care of some scraps of red and white candy striped fabric?  As one who’s not that crazy for sweets (I know, call me odd…), this ‘sewing option’ to finishing off some ‘candy’ is my kind of thing!

Hubby thinks of the hospital volunteer “Candy Stripers” when he sees this blouse.  I know the two share similar fun red and white stripe usage, but they technically wore pinafore-style jumpers and my garment is just a blouse.  Still, both a pinafore and my 1940 blouse are peasant themed, and a rather “cute” (yuck – hate that term) style which tends to make one seem younger than one’s actual age (I don’t need help there).  Both are from the same decade – my pattern dates to 1940 and Candy Stripers originated in 1944.

However, my blouse has something extra to it that makes it uniquely special in its own way, apart from any history or style or whatever.  It is made from fabric given to me by my Grandmother.  This post is in memory of her, as she is now deceased as of this past weekend.  The fact that the fabric for my blouse was from her gave me some stress and self-inflicted pressure, at first.  I wanted to make the very best I could with what she gave me, but I realized when planning to make this blouse that she would want me to only enjoy and be creative with what she gave me, and nothing less.  I felt the fabric and the pattern were made for on another, so it must be the best re-use of her scraps – I am quite pleased with my blouse, and thankful for her always encouraging appreciation of my talents.  She was seamstress herself, as was her mother, too, so she had some awesome and useful sewing related items she was sweet enough to want to see what I would do with.  Grandma, this blouse is for you!

The date of this design (as I mentioned above) is 1940 – thinking back, my Grandmother was 10 years old that year.  To make this blouse all the more poignantly related to Grandma, the family (myself included) suddenly realized, while looking at pictures of her long life over the weekend, how very similar her face and mine are to one another.  Goodness, we seemed to have more in common than I knew.  She was such a lovely woman, always with a kind word, a smile on her face, a thoughtful act, and a love of nature and of family, just to name a few qualities.  I just hope I can be more like her, not just in face, but in person, too.

THE FACTS:

FABRIC:  a 100% cotton flannel scraps, from the stash given to me from my Grandmother; linings and facing are cotton broadcloth scraps from on hand in my stash

PATTERN:  Hollywood #1991, year 1940

NOTIONS:  The only notion I bought was the trio of front buttons; otherwise, everything else was from on hand – the thread, bias tape, and hook-and-eyes

TIME TO COMPLETE:  This was relatively quick – 6 to 8 hours were spent to make this blouse and it was completed on February 4, 2016.

TOTAL COST:  Just the buttons were bought (modern & basic red half-ball type) , so only a few dollars in total

This was a fun, intriguing, yet challenging project all-in-one.  I had plenty of inspiration that I had found for late 30’s and early 40’s striped blouses (many of which can be found on this Pinterest board of mine) so it was just a matter of choosing a combo of directions for each section of my own blouse.  This part was quite the memory game, trying to remember which pattern piece was for which section of the blouse and trying to lay it out in the intended stripe placement, all the while remembering to match lines!  At first, it seemed I was quite limited as to what I could do because the fabric was a scrap piece, all cut up already in odd places.  But, some mind crunching and much switching around of pattern pieces (again, like a puzzle game) and I was able to get what I intended, with only the blouse bottom waistband being necessarily cobbled together from four individual parts to make a whole.  In all, this was another “close call” sort of project where you cut the pattern squeezed onto the fabric so much so that you barely have a few inch scraps leftover – so difficult but these kind make the most of every inch of fabric.

As was the case for other Hollywood patterns, this blouse again ran large.  I know it seems it is supposed to be quite poufy and generous by design anyway, but I accounted for it by slightly downgrading with bigger, more modern, seam allowances.  My only complaint to this top is that the button front neckline does not give me enough room for my head.  I am able to put the blouse on as you can see, but getting it on is like some sort of skin pulling, “second birth” experience (sorry ‘bout the mental picture) that leaves the tasks of fixing one’s hair and applying make-up to be something that comes after being dressed.

The awesomely full and puffy 30’s style sleeves are my favorite part to this blouse, besides being proud of the matching I achieved in the arm pleats on the side (see right picture).  Also, this is the first Peter Pan collar that I really actually like on myself for some reason.  The controlled, even fullness of the bottom band is easy to wear – nothing to come un-tucked!  The flannel keeps me just warm enough on chilly days but the short sleeves prevent me from being overheated when being inside.  In all, this blouse is a great wear, so comfy with full movement, bold statement striping, and a vintage look that is a good kind of unusual.

In order to avoid a side zipper being too stiff for the side closure, I buried my intolerance for hand stitching and sewed in snaps.  The snaps keep the bottom blouse poufing out like it should above the bottom band.  A strong waistband hook-and-eye holds the waist together.  Sometimes I tuck the waistband into my bottoms (as when I wore my 40’s style denim skirt) and sometimes I leave the blouse band out (as when I wore it with my 40’s jeans), and I can’t decide what I like better.  The blouse appears more like an Eisenhower-style jacket when untucked and closer to a blouse when tucked.  Either way, I guess I do need to find more than just navy and denim bottoms to match with my blouse, at some point.

This last mention is no big deal, but I wish I had thought about “setting” the colors before I washed the blouse fabric.  It was a crisp red and white originally with a generally smooth feel, but after washing the flannel its brushed finish fluffed out more than expected and the red leaked slightly into the white turning some stripes into a faded pink tone.  The color problem is not something obvious enough to really show in our pictures, however I wish I had thought of it beforehand and am keeping this lesson in mind for the next bold two-tone fabrics that have to make their way to the washer.  Any suggestions on how to do this “setting” of dyes that leach?  I have seen salt water soaks being recommended, but does anyone have first-hand tips to share?

I attempted to channel to quaint hairstyle on the cover of the pattern envelope with a simple ribbon headband.  In the one set of pictures I even tucked my hair up to have more of a late 1930’s look, then the other pictures have my hair left down long for more of the ‘40’s young lady’ look.  It was after the pictures for this post were taken that I saw these old photo booth shots of my Grandmother in 1940 when she was 10 (center) and some others as a teen in post WWII times.  In the 1940 pictures, she had her hair short and curled, wearing the same ribbon-headband-with-a-little-bow just like me, but the teen pictures are pretty alike, too!  These old photo booth pictures make me see similarities between us all to well…

There are many ways to remember the past, but remembering it through fabric is kind of special.  You get to wear it, do creative things with it, and it can be seen in pictures for a long time after.  Admittedly, there is nothing that can beat a memory but clothing certainly can add to that recollection or bring it back.  This might not be the best garment I’ve made but the special background to it makes it pretty great to me.  Now that the time for stories coming directly from my Grandma is past (sadly), I’ll keep paying attention to my her pictures and maybe I’ll see a glimpse of what she made with the other part of the fabric I used to make the blouse in my post.

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What’s Red and Black and Ruffled All Over?

Why my new “Parisian Dachshund” apron, of course! I’ll bet you would have never guessed that one coming, he he 😉

No really, with all its miss-matching of cultures and objects, this apron has a rocking vintage flair, fun prints, and feminine attitude. I can never get enough of aprons, but this newest one tempts me the most to wear it out for more than just cooking or entertaining. Should I wear this one as a fashion statement, what do you think? I personally think the apron looks best going overboard in matching and accessorizing in the spirit of fun, like I did in my photos…flowers, feathers, large bright earrings, tight black knit-wear underneath, deep red heels, and a big hairstyle! This wild combination shows the outgoing fearless side of me.

Just like for my “Tea for Two” aprons, my “Parisian Dachshund” apron was made into a carbon copy duo: one for me and one for a gift for a family member. I had small doses of both my fabrics and used my high efficiency cutting practices to make two of these highly dramatic frilly versions of a kitchen clothing cover.

As is normal for me, my best aprons are created when I don’t use a pattern. The starting ‘blank’ for this “Parisian Dachshund” apron was to outline an existing rectangular “cobbler’s” style apron which I own already. Then my supplemental fabric, the one with the layers of Fleur-de-lis, roses, dachshund silhouettes, and scroll work, was cut into long wide strips, to be ruffled. All four of the edges were finished on the strips before I ran two rows of loose straight stitches to gather the top about ¼ inch away from the edge.

I’ve always wanted a supper frilly, ruffle apron in forever. I was totally tempted to add two layers of ruffles to my “Parisian Dachshund” aprons, and I cut out two rectangles for a gathered duo, whether I used them or not. After sewing on one layer to the apron ‘blank’ bottom half, two ruffled layers seemed to make it way over the top. Thus, for each apron, I ended up with an extra not-yet-gathered rectangle, and it went towards making the back ties. I made sure to be precise and center two layers of print for the width of each tie. See how nicely the layers of dachshunds, Fleur-de-lis, and roses can be seen so much better on the ties than on the ruffle? By the way, I hate doing ties…but somehow or another I always seem to suck up my disgust and make them well 🙂

Cutting out the two apron ‘blanks’ out of only one yard left me with nothing more than a small triangle of scrap fabric left. This small triangle was slightly adapted and cut into more of a crescent shape and made into a neck band for my version of the apron set. I really enjoy the way that this crescent shape fits nicely around my neck. The two skinny ends come to join into the apron top corners, while the flared middle lays over the back of my neck like a collar. For the gift apron, I used two leftover ties of the ruffle fabric to make ties for neckline to make it easier to get around and over the head and face of the recipient.

Pockets are a must in my book for an apron! I took a liking to a decent sized scrap of black denim, and used it to make pockets for the aprons. Inspired by the interestingly placed decorative, but useful, pockets on many vintage patterns and garment originals, I added a “mother and daughter” type of pocket style to the “Parisian Dachshund” aprons. There is a normal hand sized pocket, monogrammed for a special touch with the wearer’s initial (a “K” for me, and a “B” for the gift apron) in bright red thread. There is a mini, but still useable (for change maybe), pocket hanging over the edge of the bigger one and slightly a step off and above. Both pockets are top stitched down in two rows of the same bright red contrast thread. I love to add little details and fine work to my projects!

This apron is perfectly blended with everything that I love and enjoy: dachshunds, anything French themed, Fleur-de-lis, and aprons. My mom’s side of the family has always had a dachshund in the household – my Grandparents had several, as well as my dad and mom, her sisters (my Aunts), and myself and my family currently own one. These long and short dogs are sweetest companions I know. Our own dachsie is good to everyone, but he is especially close to me, his dog-mommy. Anything French is hard to resist for me, after the wonderful time I had in that country years ago. I can never get enough Fleur-de-lis stuff because it is very symbolic to me in many ways, but especially since it is the symbol of our town’s patron, King Saint Louis IX.

Aprons are very meaningful and special to me, as well as easy but an incredible amount of enjoyment to create. I try to make each apron different and uniquely individual, especially when it comes to giving them as presents, which is my favorite thing to do with aprons! My aprons are not at all something to ‘save’ in fear of ruining them – they get displayed by being worn on a daily basis and getting loved by enjoying using them. The neatest old vintage aprons are always the ones that are stained and torn or threadbare because I can’t help but think of the times they saw and the work they helped out with – in other words an apron can be a tangible memory! Besides, I seem to think of aprons as the best friend of someone who sews or works with fabric – an aprons protects garments while decorating your style for the day, all the while expressing your personality. What an odd but special combination!

THE FACTS:

FABRIC:  Both fabrics are 100% cotton “M’Liss” brand prints, from the “In Paris” line of designs sold at Hancock Fabrics. I only had 1 yard of the red and black scroll fabric used to make the basic apron ‘blank’. The “layered with lines of designs” fabric was used for the ruffles and ties – and I only had ½ yard of it! Scraps from on hand went towards the apron pockets.

NOTIONS:  Thread was the only notion needed and that was on hand in plenty.

PATTERN:  None – I just winged it!

TIME TO COMPLETE:  Quick and wonderful – each apron took about 2 1/2 hours each, and both were done on December 10, 2014.

TOTAL COST:  Should I really address price when it comes to a gift? Anyway, with such a small amount of fabric used to make the two aprons and scraps for the pockets, the price was a very reasonable total.