Tag: Blog

The Road to California quilt show was a great time. For four days, I was surrounded by color, texture and creativity. A very energizing experience. The layout of Road is huge. It took me a day and a half just to figure how to find my way back to the booth from the ladies.

On this particular journey, I was also delighted to reacquaint with Betty Faye Ortiz, a friend of ages ago, who I haven’t seen in almost ten years! Turns out we’re both textile crazies, and Betty Faye took me shopping down in Orange County at some of her favorite haunts for undiscovered bargains. Well, bargains may be the wrong word, but undiscovered for sure. I’ll be sitting on my suitcase to get it to zip.Another surprise was meeting up with Andrea Pitts, who has been a devoted purchaser of my aprons since I started Apron Memories, and her best friend Kim (now my friend, too). They found time in their busy lives to rescue me from dining alone. Twice. Sweeties both.
AND, two aisles away sat Mark Lipinsky, editor of Quilters Home Magazine and the darling of the quilt world. Mark was an early-on reviewer of The Apron Book and continues to support me in my book ventures. Meeting like-minded apronistas is one of the perks of my apron journey. And with only two copies of The Apron Book left for sale, I kept hoping the purchasers would be memorable in a good way. Well, I got my wish. Thank you, Urbana Schneider (L) and Jan Bowden (R)!

xxxea
Tie One On…an apron, of course!

I leave tomorrow for a 5-day appearance at the RoadtoCalifornia quilt show, and have yet to begin packing. The days of my preparing a family of four for a week’s vacation with foresight and zero aggravation are apparently no longer. Why I stopped being efficient and exchanged calmness for stress is the question, and if I were packed, one I might ponder. Alas. Truth be told, I know exactly what delays my ability to organize – it is the state of my writing/apron storage room. What was tidy turns to chaos as I choose which aprons to pack and which
aprons to coordinate with my outfits. On the surface, my indecision seems ridiculous, but my reluctance to leave behind a particular apron is about my not wanting to hurt the feelings of the apron – not the fabric, mind you – I’m talking about the woman who once wore it. Giving an apron a human condition, like “spirit,” is anthropomorphizing, and in the time it took to look up the correct spelling, I could have been packed!

xxea
Tie One On…an apron, of course!

APRONISMS: Pocket Wisdom for Every Day is my new book! It’s a Little Book, a gift line byAndrews McMeel, publisher of The Apron Book. Here it is in the hands of Gideon, my youngest son, who was visiting when it arrived in the mail. It really is little, 3″ x 3 1/4″ , and so beautifully designed – the cover looks and feels like linen! Here’s the cover up close – it really is this vibrant!
It’s so adorable, I can hardly let it alone. Let APRONISMS inspire you to write down your own pearly wisdoms!

xxea
Tie One On…an apron, of course!

While we were galavanting around Denver, our home

The Apron Book reminds us of everything we once loved about aprons and then shows us how to make them ourselves. Each page is a delightful montage of full-color photographs of new and vintage aprons, tidbits of advice, recipes and tips for collecting and preserving these textile artifacts. You’ll also find the images of apron lovers past and present and their apron stories, plus four basic apron patterns, detailed and illustrated sewing instructions, and a host of variations for sewers of all skill levels. As a bonus, the Basic Bib Pattern is packaged separately and tucked within the book’s pages!

There is no other book like The Apron Book, which celebrates the humble yet lovely apron and the spirit of the men and women who wore them, and at the same time provides the inspiration and the tools to reinvent aprons for the here and now.

According to EllynAnne, aprons don’t hold us back, they take us back…the very reason for the apron’s status as today’s hottest collectible.

“What is the allure of aprons? They tell the stories of our domestic lives. As you wander through these pages…you may get misty eyed as you read these women’s words. Or you may be inspired to sew your own aprons. …Or you just might be inspired to start your own collection. And you may find yourself tied to EllynAnne’s apron strings…in the most positive way imaginable. Enjoy!” ~ Ellen Levine, from The Apron Book’s Foreword.