Sew an apron with pockets and adjustable ties

A bib apron with a front pocket and adjustable ties is one of the quickest garments you can sew: one body piece cut on the fold, a patch pocket, a neck strap threaded through two D-rings and two long waist ties, all joined with straight seams and hems. It takes 1 to 1.5 m (1 1/8 to 1 5/8 yd) of 140 cm (55 in) wide canvas, linen or denim and 2 to 3 hours. The D-rings are what let the same apron fit anyone who borrows it.

What do you need to sew an apron?

The pieces:

• Apron body, cut once on the fold. The bib is narrow at the top, the sides curve out below the chest, and the skirt runs straight down to the hem.
• Two waist ties, each a strip 100 × 8 cm (39 × 3 1/8 in), finished to 3 cm (1 1/4 in) wide. That length lets you cross them at the back and tie at the front, or tie them at the back with a generous bow.
• One neck strap, a strip 70 × 8 cm (27 1/2 × 3 1/8 in), finished to the same 3 cm.
• One front pocket, a rectangle 40 × 24 cm (15 3/4 × 9 1/2 in) including allowances, divided later into two or three compartments.

Notions: two 3 cm (1 1/4 in) D-rings, thread, and a size 90/14 or 100/16 universal needle if your fabric is canvas or denim. No interfacing, no zip, no buttons.

On 110 cm (45 in) fabric, add about 0.3 m (3/8 yd) so the ties fit beside the body.

Which fabric is best for an apron?

Choose a sturdy, washable woven. Cotton canvas and cotton drill protect against splashes and tools and take years of washing; medium-weight linen is lighter, dries fast and softens with every wash; denim looks good in a workshop. Waxed cotton shrugs off water but cannot be ironed hot or washed hot. Whatever you pick, pre-wash the fabric the way you will wash the apron, because an apron that shrinks 5 % after the first wash loses its length and its ties get noticeably shorter.

Quilting cotton works for a child's apron or a light kitchen apron, but it is thin for a workshop. If you are sewing heavy canvas for the first time, read sewing with canvas for needle, thread and pressing advice.

How do you draft the apron body?

For an adult apron, start from three measurements: the hip, the length from the top of the chest to the natural waist, and the length from the waist to the knee.

1. Draw a center line (the fold) as long as the chest-to-waist length plus the waist-to-knee length, plus 3.5 cm (1 3/8 in) for the hems at top and bottom.
2. At the top, mark half the bib width from the fold: 14 to 15 cm (5 1/2 to 6 in) for an adult, so the bib is 28 to 30 cm wide.
3. At the waist line, mark half the skirt width: a quarter of your hip plus 7 cm (2 3/4 in). For a 100 cm (39 in) hip that is 32 cm, giving a skirt 64 cm (25 in) wide that wraps the hips without meeting at the back.
4. Join the bib edge to the waist point with a gentle outward curve over the last 20 cm (8 in) above the waist. This is the armhole edge.
5. Draw the skirt side straight down from the waist point to the hem, and add 1.5 cm (5/8 in) hem allowance on every edge except the fold.

A half apron is the same drawing without the bib: a rectangle from the waist line down, with a waistband strip of your waist plus 4 cm (1 5/8 in) by 8 cm wide.

How do you sew an apron, step by step?

1. Cut and mark. Cut the body on the fold, then the ties, strap and pocket as rectangles. Snip a notch at the waist point on each side where the ties will go.
2. Make the ties and the neck strap. Fold each strip in half lengthwise with right sides together, sew the long edge and one short end at 1 cm (3/8 in), turn right side out with a safety pin, and press. Or press both long edges to the center, fold in half and edgestitch: no turning, and the same 3 cm result.
3. Hem the pocket top. Fold the top edge 1 cm then 2 cm (3/4 in) and stitch. Press the other three sides under by 1 cm.
4. Attach the pocket. Center it on the apron 8 to 10 cm (3 to 4 in) below the waist line. Edgestitch the sides and bottom, with a small triangle of backstitching at each top corner where a pocket tears first. Then topstitch one or two vertical lines through pocket and apron to divide it: a 12 cm (4 3/4 in) compartment for a phone and a wider one for a tea towel.
5. Hem the curved edges first. Staystitch each armhole curve 1 cm from the edge, then fold on the stitching, fold again by 6 mm (1/4 in) and stitch. A narrow hem follows a curve far better than a deep one.
6. Hem the straight edges. Fold the sides 1 cm then 1 cm and stitch. Fold the top of the bib and the bottom edge 1 cm then 2.5 cm (1 in) and stitch, so the deeper hems enclose the ends of the side hems. How to hem shows the folds and how to turn a neat corner.
7. Attach the neck strap. Sew one end of the strap behind one top corner of the bib with a square of stitching crossed by an X. At the other corner, fold a 6 cm (2 3/8 in) scrap of the strap through both D-rings and stitch its ends behind the corner the same way.
8. Attach the ties. Place the end of each tie behind the apron at the waist notch, raw end folded under, and sew a box with an X through all layers.
9. Thread the strap over both rings, then back under the first ring and over the second: the rings grip, and pulling the free end shortens the strap.
10. Press everything, and press the ties flat.

How do you make the neck strap adjustable?

Two D-rings work like a belt buckle without holes: the strap passes over both rings and back between them, and the friction of the fabric against the rings holds it. Pull the tail to shorten, lift the top ring to lengthen. One 70 cm strap then suits a 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in) cook and a 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) one.

If you prefer not to buy hardware, sew two or three buttonholes along one end of the strap and a button at the bib corner, or make the strap and ties one continuous piece that crosses at the back and ties at the waist, which also takes the weight off the neck.

What mistakes should you avoid?

• Stretching the curved edges. The armhole curves are partly on the bias and grow if you tug them while hemming. Staystitch first and let the feed dogs move the fabric.
• Ties that are too short. 70 cm ties only reach around the back of a slim waist. Cut 100 cm and trim later if you prefer a short bow.
• A pocket set too high. With the pocket at the waist line, your hands hit the ties. 8 to 10 cm below the waist is comfortable.
• Sewing thick corners with a fine needle. Where the tie, the hem and the body stack up, you are sewing through six or more layers of canvas. Use a 100/16 needle, lengthen the stitch to 3 mm and turn the handwheel over the thickest spot.
• Skipping the pre-wash. Cotton canvas can shrink 3 to 5 % in length.

Can Sewly size the apron for you?

Sewly's apron pattern sizes the body from your hip, your back waist length and your waist-to-knee length, in knee, thigh or half-apron length, with the pocket on by default and the D-rings listed as an optional notion. The body prints as a pattern piece; the ties, strap and pocket are given as cutting dimensions so you cut them straight from the fabric and save paper. It is also one of the most reliable handmade gifts to sew: a child's size in a bright print takes an evening.