I was driven. I was ambitious. I was determined to make the best apron out there. I had ideas: I was going to sew a red and green pocket, and I was going to sew snowflakes with white thread to decorate the apron and give it a more Christmas-esque vibe. Alas, my efforts feel short, and I settled for a regular apron with no shimmer or flair. This is the story of how an apron of all things drove me insane.

I started with a template I drew on my phone. I decided on the measurements based on my height and the circumference of my waist.

To the butcher paper! I was drawing out the template with a pencil and a ruler when I ran into my first problem: I did not have an intuitive idea about how long 30 inches is (I am not from the US, and I still cannot fathom the concept of an inch). As such, I realized I was drawing one side of the apron too close to the center such that the butcher paper was not big enough for the other side. I had to erase the whole thing and do it again. Normal human beings would have learned from their mistake the first time, but I am no normal human being. No, I did the same mistake again, and I had to erase the whole thing and do it… again… I also had trouble drawing the lines at right angles at the corners; I used my keyboard overlay for help, which I like to call resourceful (but not necessarily smart) thinking. After 2 painstaking hours, I finally had a drawn template that I can use to cut the fabric into the shape of the apron.

 

It was time to cut the fabric. I simply taped the fabric to the paper and used a knife to cut it. I sometimes found it hard to cut the fabric, and I think I could have used a tool that is more efficient than a knife, but it ultimately got the work done. I decided to continue working on the apron another day to replenish my mental stability.

Now that the fabric was cut, it was time to sew the hems. I went to the OEDK at 9 PM, and to my horror, all the sewing machines were broken. Two were utterly irreparable. I spent 2 hours trying to fix one and adjust its settings. The needle was broken, the bobbin was getting jammed, the tension was too high, the needle would only poke holes, and the list goes on and on. Piece by piece, I fixed and tweaked the machine until I was able to sew a few stitches on a scrap piece of fabric. I was overwhelmed with joy, but it was already 11 PM, and my heart sank when I realized that I might be staying after hours to complete the project.

I used pins to keep the hems in place and at an equal width while I sewed them. I used red stitches to blend in with the color of the apron, and they were mostly in a straight line. There were a few imperfections here and there, but I am happy with how it turned out. My sanity slowly seeped out of my body throughout the process, but every successful hem invigorated me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was time to sew on the straps. I put them around my neck and waist to determine a suitable length, and I swiftly cut them and went to sew. By this time, I had given up on my awe-inducing apron-related aspirations and just wanted to complete it (but still to a high standard). The straps were quite miniscule, so I found it quite challenging to properly do a box stitch. I practiced box stitches on a scrap piece of fabric, not knowing that it would be different with straps. The first box stitch (picture on the left) with a strap was subpar at best because the bobbin thread incessantly jammed in the middle of sewing. When I got to the fourth box stitch (picture on the right), though, it looked pristine! Practice indeed makes perfect. I also sewed the ends of the waist straps, which was difficult given their small width.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, I used a pair of scissors to cut off any excess thread to give the apron a more refined look. When I was done once and for all, it was 3 AM. I live off campus, but I was not going to walk alone in the middle of the night to my apartment (since I don’t have a car). As such, I decided to sleep in the Off Campus Lounge at Lovett (which is slowly turning into my second dwelling). Walking back, I contemplated what I had accomplished, as well as what I had failed to accomplish. I was too tired and significantly exasperated to sew a pocket and a few snowflakes; as a result, I was dejected that I could not bring my ideas to life. On the other hand, I was proud of my first sewing attempt, and I thought of how I can possibly implement my newly developed skills in the future.

 

Money Talk!

💸

I will not be taking the sewing machine into account, as it was provided to me by the OEDK. However, I will be taking the time I spent fixing the machine into account.

Yard of Christmas-themed fabric: $7.16

Thread: $5.61 for 125 yards (4500″). However, the circumference of the apron is approximately 87.1″, and two separate threads were used all along the circumference, so an estimate of 174.2″ was used for the apron. Assuming 50″ of thread was wasted during fixing, sewing, and trimming (I think that is, unfortunately, an underestimate. I am sorry OEDK), a total of 224.2″ of thread was used, resulting in a cost of $0.23.

Strap Fabric (Twill Tape Ribbon): $8.59 for 27 yards. Approximately 120″ of fabric was use, resulting in a cost of $1.06.

Labor: Assuming a cost of $15/hr, I worked for 8 hours, resulting in a cost of $120.

Total cost (*drum roll*): $128.45

With more skill and expertise in the future, less material will be wasted, and sewing the apron will take less time, resulting in a dramatic decrease in the cost. For example, the 4 hours spent on drawing the template and fixing the machine can be easily reduced to an hour, given that I am familiar with the process and that I hopefully learned from my mistakes.

 

brianbishara