Hi I'm Angel with FleeceFun.com. Today I'm going to show you how to make the
Thankful Apron. A cute classy apron that has a little bit
of sassy-ness to it. For this project you will need the following:
you'll need the printed up free PDF pattern that's available on FleeceFun.com. You'll need 1.5 yards of cotton (1 yard of
fabric A, and 1/2 yard of fabric B), rotary cutter, ruler, and mat. Cording and this is optional. Thread and iron. An iron is very important for this project. Alright once you have all those pieces it's
time to get started. Now be sure to wash and dry the cotton that
you're going to use as aprons tend to get washed a lot so you're going to want to be
sure that you do that before you start sewing on it. It's just a courtesy thing and you don't want
to start out with one size and end up with another. So be sure to wash and dry the cotton especially
that you're going to be using. You'll need to cut out the pattern. You'll cut of the pattern pieces. You'll need to cut two of the top, one of
the front and one of the liner. Know that the front bodice piece you cut where
the dotted line is so it's going to be a little shorter than the back bodice piece with the
lining bodice piece. In addition to the top you'll need to cut
the following. You'll need to cut three of the neck strap
waist strap piece- be sure to set on the fold where it says to in the pattern. You'll need to cut down the second neck strap,
the shorter one, and again be sure to place this on the fold so just follow the directions
on the pattern. You'll then need to cut the skirt. Using a rotary cutter, cut across the full
width of the fabric to make the skirt. The length you desire is up to you. In the example that I am sewing, I chose to
keep it a little bit shorter so it's about 18 inches long. If you want to make an apron with a belt like
in the example that I'm showing, the strip of fabric at the waist that you can see, you'll
need to cut out one more of the neck strap ok? And again place that on the fold. Once you cut out all those pattern pieces
it's time to start sewing. You're going to take the large rectangle part
of the skirt and you're going to turn it under quarter of an inch twice, press it and iron
the edges of the rectangle. Now, if you are cool enough just to be able
to sew this, hey you are much better than I am, but I actually need to do a little trick
which is I sew using a quarter of an inch seam allowance all the way around once and
then I away from the thread I just made, that seam I just made, well it's not a seam it's
the line of thread I just made, I sew another quarter of an inch in so I have basically
these lines already on the fabric for me to see. Then I am going to take them and I'm going
to iron them under once along that, turn it, iron along that again so it's turned under
twice and then I'm going to sew it down. It's a really nice way of finishing the edges. It just makes it so the pattern itself is
extremely durable so I highly recommend doing this. If you have a serger you can finish it off
that way but since I don't I use my sewing machine and this is a great way to give longevity
to a garment. Now that you've done that with the skirt you're
going to do it with the two waist strips. Not the strip that goes across the bodice
piece but the two strips that are the ties. And what you're going to do is you're going
to do the same thing we did with the skirt so you're going to sew along the edge, quarter
of an inch in, and you're going to sew a quarter of an inch in again from that seam you just
made. You're going to turn it under twice. Iron it so it looks good. And then you're going to sew it down using
a straight stitch and that just really finishes the edges nicely. Now one thing that I would say is very crucial
about this pattern in particular is ironing. You really need to take time and iron all
these pieces nicely. I know it's a pain. It's not my favorite. I hate dragging out the iron but it is crucial
for success with this pattern so take your time. Iron all the pieces that I'm telling you to
and you should be ok. It just gives the apron a nice crisp look
to it and it makes things a lot easier to sew on. We are going to prepare the neck straps. The two neck straps are not the same length
on purpose. This is by design- it's part of the pattern
to have the bow on the side rather than the back of the neck. Taking the two strips that will be the neck
ties fold the right sides together so it makes one strip that's approximately 1.75 inches
wide and sew all along the lane using a quarter of an inch seam allowance. Using a safety pin on the edge you're going
to turn it right side out and you're going to repeat this with the other
strip and again just take a second and press this strip so it will look nice. And then tuck in the right ends of the strip
in itself about an inch and then top stitch that shut. Alright once you have that done set it aside. Let's get started on the next step. Now it's time to prep the bodice. So what you're going to do is turn the bottom
lining under one inch and press. If you're making the waistband hold it up
to the bodice and trim it to the correct length. Then you're going to turn the top edge .5
inches under and press it down and then add the cording at this time. If you're adding the belt you're going to
sew it on to the front piece of this tie. So just pin it thoroughly then top stitch
it into place about a quarter of an inch in from each side, from the top edge. Great. Now that you've got that done it's time for
the next step. Now it's time to start to bring it all together. Take the skirt part of the apron and make
a basting stitch at the top of the rectangle, the 40 inch long side, and near the edge about
a quarter of an inch gather to the length of the bottom bodice with right sides together
pin the bottom of the bodice and sew using a half inch seam allowance. We're getting close to bringing it all together. Hang in there with me. Let's get on to the next step. Alright next step. Pin the neck and the waist tie straps to the
side of the bodice on the right side of the fabric. Sew on the straps using a quarter of an inch
seam allowance. This is just to give it an extra reinforcement. Please note that the side with the shorter
neck strap is the side that the bow will be on. Pin the straps out of the way so it don't
get caught on the seam allowance when we add the backing of the bodice which is what we
are about to do. Ok great. Last step then we can bring it all together. Now it's time to attach the lining of the
bodice. Pin lining on the back of the bodice right
sides together, the straps should be sandwiched in between the lining and the front of the
bodice. You're going to sew all the way around the
bodice from one side to the other leaving the bottom where the bodice meets the skirt
open. This is the section that you iron under. You're going to make sure you leave that open. Ok. Sew all the way around using a quarter of
an inch seam allowance. Alright then you're going to turn it right
side out. You're going to make sure everything looks
nice. Then you're going to pin the bottom lining-
the part that is not attached- to the front of the bodice to hold it in place and you're
going to top stitch all the way across the bodice a quarter of an inch from the edge
and this should sew the bottom shut. Trim your threads and you're finished. You have a great classy looking apron that
is great to bring out for holidays. You can make one for every day use. It's just a good apron to have around. If you like this pattern I have other patterns
on my website you might also like. Just because It's Fleece Fun it doesn't mean
it's all fleece. You might also like the Baking Outside the
Box apron. It's in child size, perfect for your little
baker. I also have a bib with or without a pocket. Also perfect for your messy little kid. Have a great day and remember velvet is pretentious. Fleece is fun!