Apron Collection, Part Two

Embrace the rick-rack and rejoice. 

Apron Collection, Part One

In honor of Thanksgiving, a celebration of all the cute vintage aprons in the world (well, in my kitchen). And yes, that's totally a pear giving a high-five to a strawberry. 

Urban Inspiration

Every time I visit a city, new or old, near or far, I perceive it as if I might live there some day (I mean, why not?). I think it's because of this that the first places I seek out are farmer's markets, used bookstores, coffee shops that pull their own shots, and all the other things that make me the artsy urban cliche I am. I try to see where I would and could fit in, how much my purple coat sticks out in the crowd.

I have an upcoming project with the fabulous Theatre Mir that deals with urban environments and development. Thus, I am presenting the question; in what ways does a city's architecture (literal and figurative) create its own unique style? There's the obvious elemental concerns (everyone in Chicago owns a parka and rain boots). Then there's the... edginess of New York? preppy-ness of Boston? showiness of Nashville? I don't have an answer, but I've been searching for throughlines of fashion and architecture. The photo above is a fence on the Upper East Side that would translate beautifully to a textile pattern. I'm going to start collecting more of these images...

Full disclosure: I'm wearing a vest and blogging at a coffeeshop in Cambridge, Mass. I need to stop now. 

Plaid-on-Plaid Moment #2

And now I've apparently taken up posting pictures of my crotch online.

The Bee's Knees

I'm a total sucker for vintage cotton prints. They remind me of guestroom bedsheets at Grandma's house and sweet little aprons, it's something comforting and homey. One of my favorite little history facts is feedsack dresses. Flour, animal feed, and other grains used to come packaged in a patterned cotton sack, which women would then use to clothe their families. Cool, huh? And people think I'm weird for reusing Ziploc bags. 

One can find vintage fabrics at garage sales, flea markets, thrift stores and of course online. For those less inclined for the hunt, Repro Depot has great reprints of vintage fabrics.

I have a bad habit of buying a yard of fabric just because I like it, with no particular project in mind. Of course, I now have tubs of fabric waiting to be turned into... anything. I was sorting through some supplies this weekend, and I found all of these cute cotton prints I'd forgotten about. This is definitely going to be another kitchen addition; napkins? aprons? dishcloths? Maybe all three!