My father brought me this newspaper clipping from the "Farm Show" paper the other day and thought I would share it with you.
Do your kids know what an apron is? I'm not sure mine do because my wife never uses one. But her grandma did.
The principle use, of course, was to protect the dress underneath but, along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.
It was also wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.
From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs. When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids. And when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms. Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron. From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.
When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds. And when dinner was ready,it served as a flag to call the men in from the fields to dinner. It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace the old-time apron that served so many purposes.
I just love this perspective on the history of an apron. What is says to me is that, especially now in our economic down turn, that it is the memories that we make that is important not the money we make or the things we have. It also makes me think why on earth did we get away from wearing aprons? My grandmother wore them on brief occasions but my great grandmother always had one on. I ask you to ask yourself the question, are we really that independent that we can't be seen wearing an apron? Is the apron really going to hinder our feminism movement? I say celebrate your womanhood, wear your aprons and make some memories with your family.
Be checking back, by popular demand I am starting a sewing 101 tutorial. It will give you the very basics of using your machine to hemming your pants and other small projects. Not that I want you to put me out of business, lol, but I just feel that sewing is a lost skill that is handy to have. And I would love to share it with all of you.
