When Irons Burp

The turquoise summer apron looks darling, cuter than cute, perfect sweet with the two hundred and fifty-three yards of pink bias trim sewn on. Okay, maybe it wasn't quite that much but I was thankful I had my BBC mini-series to distract me while I stitched away.

Unfortunately my steam iron gave a huge burp as I began giving the apron a final pressing before photographing it to torture you all with apron envy share the final product with you before I hung it up to await summer. A giant, dirty burp of hot polluted water RIGHT ON THE FRONT OF THE APRON where it can't be hidden, missed or ignored!

Soaking the fabric made no difference.  Rubbing it with soap brought no change in the stain.  Scrubbing the spots with a brush were fruitless.  Yep, I was beginning to panic that my beautiful fabric was beyond hope.

Oxy Clean to the rescue!  Most of the spots are gone (actually maybe they've all disappeared and it's my over-active imagination that's seeing slight brownish tones) so I've just sprayed it again before tossing it in the washer.

Pray for me and my apron.

Religiously,

The Apron Lady Returneth

I woke up and saw my new summer apron-in-progress from across the room and my heart sang.

Seriously, roses on a turquoise background--is that me or what!  My instant morningtime reaction told me also that the pink contrast fabric I chose is a winner (I thought it was, but it's nice to have confirmation).  And, oh my, do you love the handmade lace detail on the pocket?   I had just twelve inches of it--not a fraction of an inch was wasted.

This romantic fabric spoke to me the instant I saw it in the quilt shop. It whispered, "Summer apron, summer apron, summer apron, summer apron." I couldn't resist. I'm weak that way when it comes to aprons.

I have three aprons, but they're lined so I admired them from afar during the summer.  Obviously I should possess a light apron to cook in while it's hot hot hot, right? 

Equally obvious that I should have spent the run up to Halloween sewing a summer apron which won't be worn for another ten months rather than cutting out and painting my little Frankenstein door hanger. My enthusiasm derailed my to-do list yet again!

At least I voted on time, although tonight I plan to avoid all network coverage of the election results.  Instead I intend watching a BBC Victorian mini-series called "Cranford" while I finish sewing my pink bias trim all around the apron edges.

Stylishly,

A Well-Loved Hard Worker

A vintage apron for only a dollar...

 

well-worn, a few holes and plenty of grease stains...but look at the curve on that pocket...

 

and that neckline....so sweet...

 

but what really made me buy it was the tie that had been replaced.  It was touching.

 

I dream about the woman who wore this apron.  She was petite, I can tell from its size.  How many chicken dinners did she fry for her family?  Were there childish tears dried with the corner of her apron?  Did she gather snap beans in it?  Or hang laundry while wearing it? Was green her favorite color? 

Lover of vintage linens,

Summer Tune-up

It's almost summer, isn't it?    Feels like it--my young walking partner and I played hookey and cruised through our favorite vintage store (Junkee, of course!) This sweet apron caught my eye.  The white cotton was so soft from years of laundering and the red trim provided just the perfect touch of color.  The arched waistband added a super-cute (and slimming) flair that made me long to whip up some meringue or bake a batch of Snickerdoodles.

Alas...it didn't come home with me.  Sad, I know.  I'm hoping it might be there on my next visit when I hope to have a little loose change burning a hole in my pocket.

Fingers crossed,

The Best-Laid Plans...

...are flexible!

Maybe I won't be taking photos of  Blondie-Pie (Kharma's newest nickname) against a dark background as part of my first tutorial (pet silhouettes) anytime soon.

Instead I'll be splicing video footage together for a SnowDogs movie and then uploading to YouTube. At least I will if the dogs cooperate and play while I'm looking instead of the minute I put the camera down.

Maybe I won't be painting my long-planned Meadowsweet Cottage sign just yet.  Getting across town to pick up a new printer cartridge can wait until the streets are free of snow. It'll look like this, more or less.  I just have to re-size the script to fit, print it out, transfer the outlines to the sign, paint, varnish and it'll be ready to hang.  I'm eager to finish!

Instead I'm finishing a new apron--Poulets des Provence.  If chickens are good, then hens living the good life en France are the best.  I don't need another apron for myself (duh!), but I fell in love with the fabric and knew it would make a perfect apron.  I have special plans for this apron so keep your fingers crossed!

Besides the snow, we are dog-sitting.  Zeke is much smaller than our dogs and he's a boy.  We survived his attempts to mark his territory inside our house (he's decided perhaps that's not popular) and he's survived playing with his two much larger "sisters".  He's part of our pack now--but we still watch over him carefully and that means less computer time for me.

 Believe it or not, I'm close to my 400th post.  I think that deserves a celebration so while I'm dog-sitting downstairs, I'm thinking of a fun giveaway. 

Perhaps a package of free snow?  Maybe not.  What about sunny skies?

Just A Snowbird At Heart

Either I'm three weeks behind or else I'm eleven months ahead, 'cause every project I've worked on for the last week is either a holiday present to be (because, if recent history is any indicator, unless I start the gift making now, I likely won't have it done in time for Christmas Twenty-Ten) or it's something that I've been dying to make for myself (but refrained from finishing while I made things for other people).

So...presenting Pogonip's Winter Collection:

The beginnings of the snowflake apron. Currently unfinished while I decide what the lining will be. Do I search for a soft wintery blue print? Do I line it with the same blue? What about a white-on-white back? I'm leaning towards the white-on-white option, providing I can find one I like. I have another yard and a half of the deep blue in the workroom just in case. I couldn't resist getting more--the "hand" of this fabric is unbelievable--silky soft, quilters' quality and less than four bucks a yard. What a delight to sew on!

This tablerunner is for me! Huge grin. I don't know how long it's taken to finish. I fused the appliques ten years ago, then left them in the fabric store (!) while I was trying to find a coordinating fabric. That froze my molasses. I recovered eventually and fused a new set of poinsettias, gradually began assembling the ivory/tan/white background squares and somehow managed to almost finish blanket-stitching them (so close) before the Christmas sweatshop workshop opened for business.
If you thought the green border looked a whole lot like the blue snowflakes, you're entirely right. Another chance to work with that scrumptious fabric!

Before the border--amazing difference. Good detail of my blanket-stitching too.

More and more of our presents are getting "wrapped" in bags. They're a great way to go Green and lighten up my stash. They're also a fine excuse to buy more fabric since these Victorian Santas (who've been cluttering my workbasket for years) didn't match anything I already had. So we now possess three more bags.

This concludes my red-and-green January. I've moved on to thinking about handpainted flowers on linen pillows a la Pottery Barn.