halterneck apron

I felt in need of some sewing therapy after the knit debacle, and this lovely print from Fabric Godmother came to my rescue.

I had bought it with this dress in mind, but something about it seemed to demand a more practical application. And I wasn't sure how therapeutic the dress would be, whereas a nice new apron seemed promisingly safe and potentially rewarding.

So, I traced around a battered old apron...

... and tweaked it a bit, to make the template longer and curvier than the original, with an extension at the top for the halter-neck.

I measured the inside of the halter-neck - it was 31cm. Then I made the tape measure into a 62cm loop and checked that it would fit over my head. 

(There are no photos of that not-very-elegant process, but it worked for me).

I added seam allowances and cut it all out.  My new book (Design-It-Yourself Clothes by Cal Patch) has taught me that seams should always meet at a right angle. Here are my right angles...

... and here are the neck pieces sewn together with my first ever flat-felled seam - all of 7cm of blissful flat-felled therapy.

I finished the edges with narrow bias tape, sewn on all in one go with a wide zig-zag.

I'd used this finish on bibs in the past, and had thought of it as a short-cut. In Design-It-Yourself Clothes it is described as 'decorative'. Hooray for the rebranding of lazy finishes! I celebrated by using red thread on my cream bias tape.

I cut two ties for the waist...

... each sewn lengthways with wrong sides together...

... and turned to right side before attaching to the body of the apron.

The Fabric Godmother must have been smiling on this fabric because the pattern matched, more by happy chance than actual planning.

All done!

Sewing angst banished thanks to a helpful book and some gorgeous fabric - oh yes, and I sewed patiently, and with care.