When I started my online sewing business in 2005, aprons weren't even part of the plan.
My little sewing business began with purses and accessories—and over the next several years, I made a LOT of them.
I made recycled wrapper purses from 2005–2008, photo purses from 2007 until the end of 2012 (when my printer guy retired), embroidered Scripture Purses from 2007–2019, repurposed-clothing purses, boutique-style fabric purses, and my denim "Patootie Purses" made from recycled blue jeans, just to name a few.
It was a lot of fun. And it kept me very busy.
My One-of-a-Kind Purse Era
In those early years, I made a lot of one-of-a-kind purses. I sold them at local craft shows, in person at other events, and through my original website. At the time, that worked beautifully.
I could make something completely different from the last thing I made, take it to a show, and see what people thought. If someone fell in love with it, it went home with them. Then I could go back to my sewing room and make something completely new. I loved that creative freedom.
When I opened my Etsy shop in 2011, though, I quickly discovered that my one-of-a-kind approach didn't translate nearly as well to an online marketplace. Getting unique, one-off items found and seen was challenging. I realized that if I wanted to build a successful Etsy shop, I needed to focus more on designs that I could make repeatedly. So that's what I did.
I concentrated on purses that could be reproduced and customized, including my Scripture Purses and my popular Santa Purses. I continued selling my remaining one-of-a-kind purses on eBay and at in-person events.
And then there were the aprons.
It All Started with an Aspiring Pastry Chef
I actually started making aprons in 2008, when my youngest daughter announced that she wanted to be a pastry chef when she grew up. Naturally, she needed an apron. So I made her one.
And then something unexpected happened. I loved making it.
I loved combining beautiful colors and prints. I loved playing with vintage-inspired styles. I loved experimenting with vintage sewing techniques. And, perhaps most importantly, I loved that an apron gave me such a wonderful canvas for all those beautiful fabrics I had collected over the years.
So I made another one. And another. I immediately realized that I had stumbled onto something I enjoyed even more than making purses.
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When I was first starting my business, I had something I don't have nearly as much of these days: Time. Most of the year, I had time to experiment with new designs and develop patterns. I'm pretty sure I still have a notebook tucked away somewhere filled with photos, drawings, and magazine clippings that inspired some of those early creations. And when I was preparing inventory for the holiday craft shows I participated in from 2005–2012, I almost always included at least a few prototypes. I'd make something new, take it to a show, and see what happened. Did people pick it up? Did they ask about it? Did they try it on? Did somebody immediately say, "I LOVE this!"? In-person shows were wonderful for that kind of immediate feedback. I could literally watch people react to something I'd just dreamed up and sewn together. Some of the aprons in this collage were made using authentic vintage patterns from the 1940s and '50s. Others were designed around leftover pieces of fabric that were simply too pretty to throw away. A couple came from customer requests. But most of them? They came straight out of my imagination. |
Then Etsy Changed the Way I Designed
Once I opened my Etsy shop, my time became much more precious. There simply wasn't enough of it for me to constantly develop new apron patterns. So eventually, I settled on five main apron styles for my Etsy shop:
Those designs became the foundation of my apron business. And something else became very clear along the way: Aprons got a LOT more attention than purses in my shop. Once I saw that, the direction of my business became easier to understand. I eventually discontinued all of my purse designs in 2019, with two exceptions: my Santa Purse and Santa Tote. After all those years of making purses, I had officially become an apron maker. And I'm really glad I did.
Why I Love Making Aprons
Making aprons brings me so much joy. I love fabric. I love color. I love prints. I love taking two or three fabrics that weren't necessarily designed to go together and discovering that, somehow, they look fantastic together. I love vintage-inspired designs. I love the little construction details. And I especially love taking a beautiful piece of fabric and turning it into something that someone will actually use.
Over the years, I've collected quite a stash of beautiful fabrics, including plenty that are now discontinued or out of print. Aprons are a wonderful way to showcase them. That's one reason you'll find so many different fabrics in my shop. I don't want every apron to look exactly alike. I want there to be a little bit of discovery involved.
Learning to Sew Smarter, Not Harder
There's another reason I eventually decided to focus on aprons, and it's one I don't talk about quite as often. Purses are hard on my hands. At least the way I made them.
During my peak purse-making years, I could spend a long day sewing and go to bed with aching hands. Purses involved a lot of layers, interfacing, hardware, detailed construction and small pieces. I loved making them, but the physical toll eventually became hard to ignore. Aprons, on the other hand, allow me to use the skills I've developed over more than 30 years as a professional seamstress while being a little kinder to my body. And these days, I'm learning an important lesson: I want to sew smarter, not harder. I want to keep creating beautiful things. I want to enjoy the process. I want to put care into every apron I make. But I don't want my business to leave me too sore and tired to enjoy the rest of my life. So focusing on aprons wasn't just a business decision. It was also a decision to build a sewing business that I can enjoy for the long haul.
And That's How I Became an Apron Maker
When I look back at the path from those first recycled-wrapper purses in 2005 to the aprons I'm making today, it certainly wasn't a straight line. There were purses made from candy wrappers and blue jeans. There were photo purses and Scripture Purses. There were vintage patterns, prototypes, craft shows, customer requests and notebooks full of ideas. There were plenty of experiments that worked—and plenty that didn't. And somewhere along the way, my youngest daughter asking for a simple apron led me down an entirely different path.
I'm so happy she asked. Because after all these years, I still love making aprons.
And I'm pretty sure that's exactly where I'm supposed to be.