There is something about linen that I have grown to really love. It has to do with the texture, weave, and casual drape. Its durability and hard wearing nature I find hard to ignore. Any fabric that ages as well as it does only adds to its appeal. Despite some opinions about how crinkled it gets and the need to iron it after every wash, I must confess I don’t bother to iron my linen garments and fabric. I find that I am comfortable wearing crumpled linen which does eventually self iron on the body. This characteristic look of linen doesn’t require it to be neatly ironed away in my opinion.  Think of luxury bedding adverts and sumptuous images of natural toned slept-in linen sheets come to mind.

The feel of the sun dried cloth as I collect it from the clothesline is unique- coarse and stiff, that yields to wear so beautifully. I love the sheer transparency of the higher grade linens to the rough and rustic look of others in their natural, undyed shades, making me appreciate this remarkable fabric in its various qualities.

So, here is another confession. As much as I adore linen, I have never ever purchased new linen clothes or fabric. This decision has much to do with a thrifty living philosophy as much as my passion for reusing and recycling. Whatever linen I have in my possession has been via regular visits to op-shops (pre-COVID19) almost always at the behest of my homeschooled kids for their clothing needs.  I’ve stumbled across an assortment of sizes, quality, shades and styles finding pieces that I could not simply pass by. A lot were picked with altering intentions to fit my size. As a result many of my summer pants are linen that have had pockets added or the waistband adjusted and length shortened. Others are projects in waiting.

One day I looked at an oversized linen shirt in purple. I thought of the pinny apron in one of the Country Living (UK) magazines which caught my attention. I then decided to transform the purple shirt into a practical pinafore apron reusing all the cloth for the purpose. Thus began my foray into creating linen pinafore aprons with collected linen garments and I am absolutely hooked!

I sold my first few pieces at the markets and I was delighted to see the response. I am pleased that I can now make them available through my online shop. In these days of lockdown, I am looking forward to creating more of these practical upcycled linen pinafore aprons to present to you.