A Retro Apron

"What a dream a had, pressed in organdy . . ." Alright, let me say that I am pretty sure that when Paul Simon wrote that song (For Emily, Whenever I may Find Her) he was not thinking of an apron (LOL) but I thought this was a cool craft anyway. Enjoy.


Making a Retro Apron

Organdy
Handkerchiefs
Number 8 needle
Rotary cutter



1. Cut a 20-by-54-inch rectangle from the organdy. Iron and sew a double hem along the two short sides and one long side. Sew two parallel rows along the unhemmed edge using the longest stitch on your sewing machine. To gather the fabric, simply pull the top thread, scrunching the fabric to about 17 inches and securing the thread with a pin.



2. Topstitch along the gathered end to secure the ruffle. To make the ruffle on the handkerchief, repeat the same process, gathering one short end and reducing the width by about 2 inches.



3. Pin the handkerchief to ruffled edge of organdy. Sew it, centered, along the top of the apron, using the #8 needle. Trim the top of the apron with a rotary cutter to give it a clean edge.



4. To hide the raw edge of the handkerchief with the waistband of the apron, cut a 5-by-18-inch piece of organdy and iron a 1/2-inch hem all the way around. Fold it in half lengthwise and press. Pin the waistband to the top of the apron.



5. To make the ties, cut two 3-by-36-inch strips of organdy. Sew a 1/4-inch double hem all along each edge. Insert the ties about 1/2 inch into the each side of the waistband. Topstitch around the two short edges and the bottom long edge of the waistband.