Upcycle Living

My secondary school (high school) uniform was a bright turquoise pinafore design that everyone hated, saying that it looks like an apron; but guess what - I actually liked it 😊 Without doubt, I love aprons too (including all pinafore design clothing)! However, I have only bought ONE apron ever, which was then updated to slightly different look , and then got really worn off and was disposed of. I've then decided to not buy anymore apron - definitely not in Malaysia - where aprons are either too expensive or too ugly (and still expensive)! Since then I've transformed an old sundress into an almost instantly made apron , and went on to making this new, reversible design apron. The fabrics used here were bought originally for making placemats but then I got really busy for many months that I forgot all about it (or rather, gave up on it). Not until a recent spring cleaning that I found them stacked in a drawer. If I don't do anything with them, they will go to w...

I love aprons: the design, the look, wearing it. But let's face it, aprons are not cheap. And to think that it's something that I wear to block off oil stains and dirt from cooking, it just doesn't make sense to spend money on it. Oh I'm such a stingy hag 😈 This was a sundress I had but worn off over time, and I'd ripped a whole somewhere on the back. Can't give it to charity, didn't want to cut it off into cleaning cloth (not yet), so I had to do something about it, and with it. Since my old apron has become so manky, it deserves a retirement. This old spaghetti strap dress came ready handy as it came ready with 2 attached belts for back tie bow, so all I needed to do was to separate the front and the back (keep the spaghetti straps and belt attached to the front portion), hem the edges to tidy up any loose edge and threads. Only took me one afternoon (hand stitching). Introducing my new apron, formerly called sundress 😎 ...

It took me a long time to find an apron which I'm willing to buy. But it is still far from perfect: it's got a PVC lining which makes cooking really hot, especially in this tropical country. And it's also difficult to wash. So I decided to cut off the PVC layer (which I then used to pack something to send in the post). Then I thought it looks really to dark and dull in the kitchen, that it needs some livening up. I took some leftover embroidered border I've got for years, sewed them on to the top of the apron and the pocket (B). I then cut several embroidered flowers (B) off the remaining border and sewed them on the apron, each with a purple bead (from my existing craft box) over it. Ta da. A "new" apron I'm in no hurry to replace.