About EllynAnne Geisel

Since first tying on domestic armor just eight years ago, essayist EllynAnne Geisel has gathered more than 400 aprons and apron memories from across America. She celebrates the spirit of the men and women who wore aprons through her national traveling exhibit, Apron Chronicles: A Patchwork of American Recollections (apronchronicles.com).

The exhibit is managed by The Women’s Museum of Dallas, a Smithsonian affiliate (thewomensmuseum.org). While gathering her stories of women and aprons, EllynAnne became fascinated by the women of the disappearing Western lifestyle. She attended a trick-riding camp, immersed herself in the subculture of rodeo queens, and tried her hand at branding cattle. She now creates inventive vintage-inspired designs for her company, Apron Memories®. Her collection of aprons has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and Country Living, and Bree on the hit ABC television show Desperate Housewives has worn her creations.

EllynAnne also is the creator of Tie One On Day. Chase’s Calendar of Events recognizes this day annually on the fourth Wednesday of November in celebration of the humble apron and the spirit of women of earlier generations who have worn it. On the eve of Thanksgiving, EllynAnne encourages us to wrap a loaf of bread in an apron and tuck a prayer or note of encouragement in the pocket before delivering the bread to someone in need of spiritual or physical sustenance.

Her vignette on the book that influenced her life appears in Jack Canfield and Gay Hendricks’ You’ve GOT to Read This Book! 55 People Tell the Story of the Book That Changed Their Life.

EllynAnne lives with her prince charming in Pueblo, CO.

Q & A

How did the idea for The Apron Book originate?

In 1999, I was an empty nester homemaker formulating an article on the apron as the icon of housewifery when during my daily perusal of obituaries, I noted the frequency of funeral announcements for homemakers. The lackluster recital of the homemaker's life — my life — inspired me to imagine a project that memorialized the embodiment of the spirit of a home through evocative stories.

In the six years hence, my apron journey took a wayward jaunt when my curiosity of women living the disappearing Western lifestyle led me to attend one of the few trick riding camps in the nation, immerse in the subculture of rodeo queens, attend the Miss Rodeo America pageant in Las Vegas, and try my hand at branding cattle at cowgirl camp. Bit by a horse named Spud, I decided to leave cowgirling behind. So I pulled off my boots and picked up where I'd left off - toting a laundry basket of aprons hither and yon, listening to apron stories and transforming the memories into emotional narratives.

Accompanied by photographic portraits of the apron storytellers, those narratives and 200 vintage aprons are now showcased in the national touring exhibit, Apron Chronicles. But I never stopped envisioning a project centered exclusively around the apron itself. So I continued to collect aprons and apron stories. As The Apron Lady, the outlet for my collection and stories is Apron Memories, a presentation that provides me the opportunity to interact with audiences garbed in their own aprons (see Appearances).

Every day, I receive a letter or email from an apron lover, and I answer each, for as a writer, I know what it is to have a story to share. I am honored to listen.

Did The Apron Book involve special research?

Not research as much as day-by-day perseverance in pursuing my conviction that I couldn't be the only one who related so passionately to aprons! For four years, I toted a laundry basket of aprons everywhere I went, including into every establishment and home I visited. I even traveled with a fabric lined peach basket filled to its brim with an assortment of aprons. Both baskets were absolute magnets. I never had to say a word. From the second someone saw the aprons, they were instantly engaged and sharing their own apron memory. During those four years, what I discovered is everyone knows what an apron is and everyone has a story to share. I think I am the luckiest person ever because I meet the dearest people, who like their stories, are each unique and wonderful.

Who will enjoy The Apron Book?

Everyone! The Apron Book is chockablock with appeal to those into cooking, crafts, sewing, textiles, Americana, collecting, and preservation.

Aprons evoke a strong sense of connection to our pasts, and especially from those who grew up when aprons were part of a woman's wardrobe. However, aprons are also strong reminders of special events in people's lives, along with recipes, prayers, holidays and relationships, and age and gender aren't factors. With the revival of aprons as kitchen couture, there's a new audience to consider - those for whom an apron is a funky accessory to an outfit, an occasion or an attitude.

Does The Apron Book have a message?

Yes! Aprons don't hold us back, they take us back.

Author's description of The Apron Book

• The Apron Book is so beautiful to look at, its contents so heartfelt...from the cover to the final page…it's a love letter in an expanded form.
• It's a celebration of 6 years spent nurturing the idea that I wasn't the only one who felt a connection to aprons.
• It's unique to its genre.
• It's a delight to the senses, each page a colorful montage to be experienced physically and emotionally.
• It's apronology and apronisms.
• It's the loveliest juxtaposition of prose and patterns, chat and snapshots, brilliant color and gentle remembrance.
• It's to be read and reread.
• It's that best present — the one you give as a gift and purchase for yourself, too.
• It's a compilation of vision and dream, from the publisher, the agent, the storytellers and me.

What do EllynAnne and Dr. Seuss have in common?

They share one of the world's most mispronounced surnames.

Geisel = Guý zull