One Appliqué Project Was Enough

That itch has been scratched. The crab soup apron is done. I finished it yesterday morning while waiting for the sun to come up and the temps to warm up enough to work in the garden.

A couple of notes about this project before I post the pictures.

I bought the crab soup appliqué kit at a little store called Quilt Vine, in Trappe, Maryland, just south of Easton. This is a darling little store that is packed full of all sorts of goodies and I always stopped in there when I visited my in-laws.

They have quilt designs using this appliqué, but it was on display in the store on the front of a wraparound apron. As I had no desire to make an appliqué quilt—but I can always use more aprons—I decided to use my appliqué in the same way.

Their display apron was lined.

I did not find out what pattern they used for the apron but knew I had something similar in my pattern collection at home. I used Simplicity 5201.

I traced the size Medium from the pattern. I should have checked PatternReview.com, first, because several other reviewers noted that this finished apron is huge, and it is. I probably could have done with a Small.

The Simplicity pattern is a single layer of fabric finished with bias binding. I had a few moments of trying to puzzle out how to line my apron—and I wanted it lined to hide all the thread ends from the appliqué—because I couldn’t figure out how to turn what is basically a möbius strip inside out after sewing in the lining. I pulled out another apron pattern from my vast collection and followed their instructions. Basically, you leave the shoulder straps unsewn, turn the apron inside out through one of them, then sew the straps and strap lining shoulder seams. The openings get sewn shut with the topstitching, which I did on the Necchi industrial only because it makes the nicest topstitching of all my machines.

The lining is a pale yellow beach-y type print with starfish and shells on it. I could not find crab-themed quilting cotton anywhere in Kalispell, not surprisingly.

I don’t have any full-length mirrors in my house, so I had to get creative with the picture of me wearing it:

Yes, it’s huge. It’s also much longer than I expected, and I am not short. The picture on the front of the pattern makes it look like it stops just above the knees. Maybe it does on someone who is 6’ tall. I would only make the long version if I were trying to look like Ma Ingalls.

I wish I had placed the appliqué a bit further up, which would have left room for some pockets, but I was totally freelancing this.

This is not my favorite style of apron as it requires a bit of work to get into it. I am glad no one was watching me try to get it onto my dress form. I was laughing the entire time.

(I made a linen crossback apron for Cathy a few years ago and used the free pattern from Purl Soho. I like that design much better and that pattern was also a lot of fun to sew.)

This project is done and I have another apron to wear. I also know how to do machine appliqué should the need ever arise again.

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I went out to the garden after lunch, intending to deal with tomatoes, but I only got as far as the lettuce bed. I put down more cardboard, then pulled up the lettuce stalks and laid them on top. The lettuce went to seed weeks ago and I would just as soon it comes up in that area again next spring. The garden looks ugly now, but all that vegetable matter and cardboard will sit under the snow this winter and decompose.

And I dug up a row of potatoes:

These are mostly Yukon Golds with a few Classic Russets. The Yukon Golds don’t keep well, so we usually eat those first. The Classic Russets are my favorites. After these dry out for a few days, I’ll sort them into burlap bags and we’ll put them in the root cellar. Only eight more rows of potatoes to dig up!

If it doesn’t rain today, I’ll paint the ice cream parlor chairs, which have been scrubbed down.

I’ll leave you with a picture of our neighbor’s sunflowers. I have never seen any this tall!

Mike was out working in his garden, so I popped over to visit with him for a few minutes. His property backs up onto the pig pasture. He’s been feeding the pigs leftover kale and beets and I promised him a couple of packages of bacon in return.