My mom wasn't an apron mom. We had a couple in the closet but they came out VERY rarely. She's just a clean baker :) Aprons were a thing of mystery; I saw them at the church suppers, and in old movies and photographs. But they were unnecessary to my way of life.
But I soon came to realize that I, on the other hand, am not a clean baker. And I seriously lack in the household motivation department.
It was a few years ago, when I was really starting to set up my own home, that I stumbled upon a blog that I've come back to time and time again: The Hillbilly Housewife. At the time, my main interest was the low-budget, real food meals. But one day, I found an article that changed the way I think entitled Apron Evangelism. She talks about how her boys were being insubordinate (of course, this was before Grace was even imagined) and how she just couldn't get motivated to clean her house. Until she made an apron:
Boy howdy, was I in for a surprise. In the mirror I saw a vision of the homemaker I have always strived to become staring back at me. Her cheery face glistened in the sunshine. Her hair tied up neatly in bun looked authoritative, and compassionate all at the same time. The apron covered several figure flaws and accentuated the fertile curves of the woman I saw in the mirror. This woman had purpose. She had status. She had clout. I stood there, contemplating the wonder of the homemaker that shone through my image in the mirror. “This is who I want to be” I told myself. “This is the Keeper of the home, with a capital ‘K’. ”
So... full skirt, deep pockets, pretty print... comfy, functionally, and best of all - upcycled! This material was a shower curtain that I loved. When we redid the bathroom, though, we went to one of those curved "hotel" rods that requires 2 curtains to get good coverage. This one was retired to my craft storage in wait for the perfect use. I have just enough to make an apron for Gracie that matches! Of course, she's too little now, but... someday... I've been having all kinds of crazy matching/coordinating outfit plans lately. Which is probably a really bad idea but kind of fun to think about all the same.
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| Blue birds with brown flowers. It makes me smile |
For those of you who don't cloth diaper or use wool diapers, wool is pretty awesome. It is a natural fiber that is both breathable and water resistant. You use it over an absorbant diaper (I prefer fitteds, but prefolds or flats work well, too). Without a man-made fiber barrier, air is able to flow all the way to Baby's skin. Wool pushes pee back into the absorbant diaper as well as letting some evaporate. I always chose wool if Grace's skin is looking red or rashy. Any hint of issue clears up so quickly.
The plan for these is to wear them under the sudden abundance of cute little sundresses we just recieved in a bag of hand-me-downs. But they work equally well with t shirts (and you can see them, then!). And yes... my little mover is essentially walking. She can if she wants, but usually isn't brave enough to let go. My how her nearly 11 months has just flown by!
I only finished this 10 days ago, and I've already found 3 occasions to wear it! Once at the conference (all day, a very long day, and it wore so beautifully), once to church, and once to a wedding (which is what these pictures are from). I will DEFINATELY be using this pattern again, with a few tweaks. 
