Intro

This was my first project that involved using a sewing machine. Up until now, the only experience I had with sewing was doing it by hand to connect separate pieces when crocheting. I finished this apron in one sitting the Saturday after it was assigned (January 18), and ended up skipping lunch and a meeting to finish as I realized I probably would not have the motivation to do it later in the week. Overall, it took me around 9 hours and 40 minutes as I started at 9:00 am and worked until after 6:40 pm.  Looking back, I do not regret setting everything else in my life aside to get this project out of the way and I am just glad it is over.

Preparations

Evan and I worked on the apron together, up to the point of sewing, and we used the same template to cut out our aprons. We decided to create a medium-sized apron with curved sides. If I were to do this project again (which I doubt I will have the motivation to), I would have the curves go lower, so that they would end near where the waist straps are. This would make it so that the point where the curve and the edge meet doesn’t fold forward. 

We began by using the paper to measure out the general shape of our design. We then used masking tape to stick the paper onto our corresponding fabrics, and helped each other to cut the fabric out with fabric scissors. Then, we cut out the straps and were ready to start sewing.

 

 

 

 

Sewing

We started using the machines to sew. I tried three different sewing machines and settled on one that I felt didn’t break or jam as often. One of the machines had a problem with the sewing mechanism where the top needle would get bent while sewing, and another constantly got jammed and tangled up at the bottom around where the bobbin was. The machine I ended up using had a problem where the top thread would often get unwound and out of the needle, which slowed down my progress. Also, a couple times the bobbin got jammed and I had to rewind it, but luckily I only had to rewind 3 times by the time I had finished.

Once I settled on a machine, I realized another problem besides just the questionable functionality of the machines was my questionable sewing skill. I practiced on scrap fabric and realized that I was awful at box stitches and using the sewing machine in general. Along with how often the top thread unwound, each single box took me around 30 minutes. I practiced the box stitches until they looked somewhat like a box. Then I began sewing the straps onto the apron, starting with the neck strap. I undid the box stitches when they looked too “off” to be considered boxes (which happened more often than I thought was possible). 

Change of Plans

As I finished three box stitches for the neck straps and one side strap, a TA stopped me and told me I had to hem the sides. I undid my box stitches and started hemming the sides and the ends of the side straps. The biggest mistake I made while doing this was that I folded the sides in once rather than twice. This led to the back of my apron still fraying, rather than being smooth as it would have been the proper way. Furthermore, the curved design I did earlier in the designing phase made sewing the hems much more difficult. I achieved a somewhat curved hem by cutting the curve into multiple slits, which I individually folded over and sewed. Hemming took me much longer than I thought it would, as the machine decided it would be fun to unwind the top thread and force me to have random gaps in my hem. I don’t think the machine and I were on the same wavelength for the entirety of this project.

It cost me a lot of my happiness and my sense of self-worth, but I was finally able to finish the hems. I quickly finished the box stitches for the straps (only took me another two hours) and had a photo taken of my apron before rushing to get dinner and away from the OEDK.

Cleaned Workspace

No bits of thread or cloth, but maybe pieces of my soul left behind. 

Improvements for the Future

Biggest mistake: I should have used black yarn so that not every single one of my mistakes would be visible. I might be more happy with my apron if I couldn’t see every point where I made any error.

My box stitches could use a lot of work. If I ever need to box stitch again, I’ll consider making 100 boxes or until they look consistent, whichever comes last.

There are frayed ends due to my incorrect hemming, which I mentioned earlier.

Along the hem, there were spaces that look very ugly due to the top thread unwinding and me having to thread it through the needle again before sewing. 

The sewing across the hem is uneven. I’m not sure how this happened, I stepped on the foot pedal at a constant force and moved the cloth forward at a constant speed. Could just be another Winson skill issue.

My corners, where the thread directions change, look incomplete.

Cost Breakdown (way too much for a Winson-quality apron, do not hire me)

Total cost: $113.96

10 hrs of labor – $100 dollars at $10/hr (https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Sewing-Salary : while the average sewing wage is $18/hr and the bottom 1% of workers get paid $11-12/hr, I’m confident that I am below the bottom 1% of sewing workers)

1 yard of fabric – $1.89 (https://www.michaels.com/product/black-matte-tulle-fabric-10594445)

1 spool of white thread (125 yds, cost offset for future use) – $2 https://www.michaels.com/product/coats-clark-dual-duty-xp-all-purpose-thread-10557642?michaelsStore=5804&inv=3 

Cotton twill tape (3 yds, Cost offset for future use) – $10.07 https://www.michaels.com/product/wrights-twill-tape-5x3yd-384631359179997217 

Conclusion

In a way, this project both brought a motivation out of me that I’ve never experienced before and took everything, physically and mentally, out of me. In the moment, it made sense to keep going until my apron was complete, but for the two days after I finished my apron, I felt too tired to do anything productive between my exhaustion and the dreary weather. If this project taught me anything, it is that I need to get better at forcing myself to stop and also that I am not good at sewing. Perhaps I can get better if I ever need to, but I’m happy to accept that this activity is not my strong suit. Until then, I’ll leave the sewing to the machines, craftspeople, and surgeons.