A PLEATED APRON.
Last of all comes the little odd apron, but I should not be at all surprised if many of you did not prefer it to either of the others.
For this, one yard of zephyr is needed in a pretty check or plaid design, and a quarter of a yard of plain zephyr to match or tone in colour. One of the many that I have made was of white zephyr, with a plaid design of pale blue and brown. To go with this I chose a plain chocolate brown, and it really looked exceedingly pretty when finished.
From the yard of check material cut a strip three inches wide along the selvedge. Then from the remaining piece, cut a strip six inches wide on the width of the material. This will leave a piece 27 inches wide and 30 long. Most zephyrs run 30 inches wide in the single width.
Lay the material flat on the table and turn down a narrow hem, where the selvedge has been cut off, also making a hem the selvedge side as well. Then take two corners of the square and join them together to form a mitre, being very careful to match the design of the material. This forms a pocket, which is useful for holding anything. Next cut the plain material into three strips of 3 inches each, and join into one long piece. Then the 6 inch piece of checked zephyr should be cut into two pieces, each measuring 3 inches wide, and also joined into one long strip.
This leaves you with one long strip of plain, one middle-sized piece of check, and one shorter strip of check.
Take the short piece of check, which measures just a yard long, and cut off a piece of plain one inch shorter. Lay the plain material on top of the check, and tack them together with a line of thread down the centre. Fold the check material over the plain to form a narrow border either side, and stitch with machine. Leave one end of this band rough, and the other end round off, continuing the little border the same as the sides.
From the 60-inch strip of check, cut off a yard length, and the same from the plain, proceeding exactly as before, only finishing off one end quite straight. This makes the shoulder straps and band of the apron, and should leave two strips of material, one check measuring 24 inches and one plain measuring 18 inches. This latter cut into two strips one-and-a-half inches wide, and join into one strip again. Turn down either side of this strip to make a band, and sew along the top edge of the pocket, slanting each end to make a pretty finish.
When this is done, take a stitch with a needle through the centre of the pocket and the apron, and this prevents it from gaping.