The Aprons in my life
Posted by: TammyThere used to be a time when aprons were a necessity and acceptable wear for women in the home. Aprons protected the clothing underneath from all matter of kitchen messes and dirt (from little hands and trips to the garden). Aprons were also used by quite a few men like blacksmiths, farriers and butchers. My dad used one when he was a machinist to hold his small tools and to minimize how much machine oil got on his clothing. It was much easier to wash an apron than an entire dress back in the day before washing machines. Pinafore style aprons were designed to generously cover almost the entire front of a child or woman. For an interesting read on the history of aprons you can check out “The History of Aprons”.
Aprons continued to be used well into the 50’s and 60’s (I have a collection of my great grandmother’s aprons-the type you tie around your waist but her waist was much tinier than mine 😉 ). At some point, aprons seem to fade away and become almost shunned. As women went out into the workforce and being a “housewife” became less acceptable, the apron seemed to become a symbol of domestic bondage as it were. Aprons periodically came out for BBQs and maybe a few other messy events.
I didn’t give much thought to aprons most of my life. It didn’t occur to me to try and wear one despite scrubbing and pre-treating numerous grease, oil and food stains I incurred from my kitchen adventures. I guess the key event that got me thinking about aprons was when I started learned to can. I was always splashing spaghetti sauce on myself and then dealing with the laundry repercussions. I had a bib-style apron that I made from one of those fabric patterns from the local box store but it did nothing to cover my chest area. Wearing an apron that tied around my waist was as good as wearing nothing at all. Thus began my search for bib-style, generous covering aprons.
It was the Amish and Mennonite women of Lancaster that helped me realize the type of apron I wanted: generous cut, practical and durable. We were camping in the Lancaster area and I visited Zook’s Dry Goods store in Intercourse, PA. First, if you’re a quilter/sewer then this place is a MUST on your shop hop in the area! But, even if you’re not a quilter/sewer you need to go in and make your way to the back of the first store. Zook’s is actually three stores that fill the building from front to back and even downstairs. There is the fabric shop, then an Amish dry goods store, then another Amish store with everything a home needs (pots/pans/silverware/scoops/drying racks, you name it!). It was in the second or middle store that I found my first apron: my Amish apron.
I LOVE my Amish apron! It’s made of a seersucker type material that drys very quickly (which is good when you hang all of your laundry to dry). I was quick to ask the shop keeper if I’d be violating some aspect of their faith to wear the apron as I wasn’t Amish. She was so sweet and pointed out that the apron is not part of their faith, just part of their daily lives and a necessity to keep their dresses clean. I wasn’t offending her by buying one and wearing one. She was amazed that I would want to wear an apron at all! I explained about all my baking, cooking and gardening (a gathered apron is like another hand when you’re harvesting green beans for dinner) and how I wanted a practical, full coverage apron for home life. She helped me find one that fit just right (being a homemade item they don’t have exact sizes so you just try them on until you find the ones that fit right) and I happily left with my apron!
I ran into only one issue with my apron: laundry day! I had just the one apron and it got plenty of wear and use and I missed it when I had to finally wash it. Thus began my desire for more aprons. The Amish shopkeeper in Intercourse told me to feel free to copy the pattern for my own use but I’m not that good a seamstress. I went shopping for more aprons. I was in the Finger Lakes region of NY when I found my Mennonite aprons at The Windmill Market (local farmer’s market). A local Mennonite woman made them and sold them as part of her booth and she loved that a non-Mennonite was so excited to buy up aprons! These aprons are colorful with a pretty binding along the edges and heart-shaped pockets (very different from my conservative Old Order style Amish apron).
So which apron to wear? You’d think that I’d always want the colorful aprons but those have a gathered skirt portion that blows around a bit so when I’m outside grilling or canning with the big camp stove, I use my Amish apron to minimize the danger with the open flame. Other than that, my apron choice varies with what I have on underneath (I like to match my shirt color with my aprons) and my mood. My youngest son loves the hot pink colored pattern. 😀
So here are all my current aprons and you can see my garden hats above.
I do have to share that I love wearing my aprons. I haven’t ruined a shirt in the kitchen since I began wearing aprons. I love walking out to the garden and dropping fresh-picked green beans and herbs and whatever else into my gathered apron. My apron has become such a habit that on days I didn’t put it on for one reason or another, I find myself reaching for it to dry my hands off and not finding it there. Yes, it is a loved part of my domestic life and one that I love sharing.
I’m going to share this site with you if you’re interested in ordering aprons (this site specializes in modest clothing for Christian women and links to other sites offering the same): Modest Clothing
