This is the first time I ever used a sewing machine. I found it challenging at first, but quickly got the hang of it. Here’s my finished apron:

I definitely “winged” it–I did the whole thing quite unplanned, but it was simple enough that it still ended up how I envisioned it. It’s made out of three main parts: the vinyl from recycled billboard, the straps, and the leather pocket.

First, I measured how big I wanted the apron, traced it out on paper, traced that onto the vinyl about an inch larger on each side to account for the hem, then cut that out. I moved on to hem the apron. I simply creased the edge with scissors instead of pinning it, and it worked out.

After that, I moved on to sewing on the straps. This was difficult for me–I kept messing up the X stitch. Here’s an example of a pretty terrible one:

After doing a few, I realized that I needed to keep the needle in the fabric to turn it, and that I could do a reverse stitch if I couldn’t fit the apron a certain way under the sewing machine. Once I got the hang of it, my X stitches turned out a lot better:

Finally, I decided to add a pocket. I wanted it to contrast with the apron, so I found some faux leather. Hemming faux leather was a lot harder because I couldn’t crease it. I’m really happy with how it turned out though!

Overall, I really enjoyed sewing. I want to get better at it too, so I might make some small things for friends to practice.