I used to be big into making aprons, but since I took up sewing…my cooking time has long diminished. The need for aprons in my household had kind of gone away, until I realized a sewing apron would really solve a lot of my problems.
I had written a pattern for a simple pocketed apron a few years ago and tweaked a few things to make sure it would accommodate my needs. Plus…Alison Glass’s Ex Libris fabric had just come out and I had to have something showing off that wonderful panel print. I really wish that I had bought an entire bolt of that color way of the corsage print, because I can’t seem to find more of it anywhere. When I adjusted my pattern, the bottom patchwork section of the apron had been a complementary strip of fabric–so I just added in the extra 1/4″ seam allowances for the little squares and pieced them to go with the center. The pocket on the front of the apron is actually 3 pockets, which easily contain my seam ripper, scissors, and a water soluble marking pin. The top flap that folds down on the body of the apron is where I slip my needle for burying threads so I always have it handy.
If you have a spare apron laying around, you wouldn’t even need to make a special one for quilting. I really love mine, and it has seriously uncomplicated my life in the quilting room. Instead of wasting time searching for my scissors or seam ripper, I know where everything is and they’re always within reach.
I know I’m surely not the first person to do this, but I hadn’t seen other quilters suggest this, so I thought I would put it out there. If you can’t tell, I’ve got a serious Alison Glass fabric love going on.