#pocketwin: Lagenlook Aprons

[ysabetwordsmith]

While researching something else, I stumbled across lagenlook aprons. These come in nice fabrics with big pockets, and are designed to be worn over other clothes.  They differ from kitchen aprons in that they are meant as fashion wear, not just for messy tasks; but they still add pockets for practicality.  Alas, they are also ruinously expensive; see examples from America and England.

However, aprons are among the easiest garments to make. Even if you can't sew, you could probably make one with fabric glue or ironing tape. You just take a rectangle of fabric, taper the top if you wish, put a wide strip across the bottom and make channels to divide that into pockets, then attach a neck loop or ties and waist ties.  You can actually put a lot more pockets than that, but remember weight; the more pockets you want, the heavier the fabric needs to be.  For a lightweight fashion fabric like calico, one bottom row is probably plenty.  With denim, you can trick it out like a carpenter's apron if you want to.

Here are some patterns so you can make your own tie-on pocket garment:

https://www.hgtv.com/design/make-and-celebrate/handmade/make-a-no-sew-waist-apron

https://shop.mybluprint.com/sewing/article/how-to-sew-an-apron/

https://www.threadsmagazine.com/2012/01/16/free-patterns-for-three-apron-styles

https://abeautifulmess.com/2018/01/sew-your-own-half-apron.html

https://weallsew.com/charming-pocket-apron/

https://www.allfreesewing.com/Aprons

Comments

[corvi]

I really want one of these fruit-picking aprons.

Wow!

[ysabetwordsmith]

I hadn't seen the funnel style before. I pick fruit with a baggie held in my mouth. But the apron would work better for big things like apples.

Ingenious!

[mama_kestrel]

They've make the front of the apron into a tube rather than a flat piece of fabric, and then made it possible to loop it up.

[acelightning]

Wearing an apron would mean I'd have to wear a whole extra layer of clothing! (When I've wasted a day doing something in public that wound up not working, or taking a long time withoug accomplishing much, my usual comment is, "I put on clothes for this?") I appreciate the opportunities for pockets, but then I'd be wearing underwear, pants, a shirt, and an apron (and I can't get the interior of my house cold enough now to make wearing clothes an appealing idea). I suppose someone could figure out an apron-like garment that can be worn over underwear or bare skin, but I'm not sure it's possible to make such a thing comfortable, as in "not a dress, dammit".

Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

In that regard, consider a half-apron, or smaller still, a tool belt. Lagenlook aprons really are intended as another layer.

Re: Well ...

[acelightning]

Layering makes sense when your surroundings are cold. I tried making myself a utility belt, but it was uncomfortable - awkward sizes and shapes made of scratchy fabrics, banging against each other and against my sweaty skin. and usually more in the way rather than helpful.

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Layering makes sense when your surroundings are cold.<<

It works best in variable conditions because you can add or remove layers to stay comfortable. However, it also works in hot conditions if you use the right materials. You need very light, gauzy stuff. There are now many garments sold for sun protection including hats, hoodies, pants, and skirts. The nice thing about layering is you once you get indoors, you can take off the sunscreen layer and lounge around in your shorter stuff.

>> I tried making myself a utility belt, but it was uncomfortable - awkward sizes and shapes made of scratchy fabrics, banging against each other and against my sweaty skin. and usually more in the way rather than helpful.<<

Bummer. Building a good utility belt requires skill to make it secure and reasonably comfortable. You might try cutting the yoke out of a pair of jeans or work pants if it's the seat that gives out first. Then build the utility pouches onto that base.

Re: Well ...

[acelightning]

In July at the Jersey Shore, even the gauziest layers can be too hot. (Well, even no clothes at all can be too hot. But it's dangerous to cook stir-fry in the nude.)

[mama_kestrel]

Okay, define "not a dress". You have to wear a shirt anyway. How would you feel about making a sleeveless tank-top type thing in a woven fabric (i.e. not stretchy, because stretch and pockets are ugliness waiting to happen), about 6 inches longer than standard (essentially tunic length) with the same kind of pocket strip across the front at the bottom? Because that would be dead-easy to design. (Says the dressmaker whose head is drawing pattern pieces as she types....)

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> i.e. not stretchy, because stretch and pockets are ugliness waiting to happen <<

Believe it or not, that seems to be one of the current fashions: big saggy pockets. 0_o I'm seeing it in the lagenlook stuff.

[mama_kestrel]

Big pockets that match each other are one thing. Big pockets that sag because they're stretched out of shape? I consider that poor design. Of course I may be in a minority there.

The problem with big saggy pockets designed that way is that if they're set at an angle they'll dump whatever is put in them if the wearer moves the wrong way, like leaning over to the side. I have a jacket that looks like the pockets should be perfectly adequate, and feels like it when I stick my hand in - but the minute I sit down and change the angle at which they sit, the contents spill out all over my chair, or my car, or whatever. I consider that a major #pocketfail. They either need to be an inch higher, or set at less of an angle (which I can't fix), or about 3 inches deeper. As it stands I can put gloves in there (non-slippery), but they won't hold onto either my phone or a tube of lip balm. So if I'm designing? Non-saggy pockets.

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

That sounds like a housecoat, which is to say a gendered version of an artist's smock or a lab coat.

[mama_kestrel]

Neither that long nor that loose, but the general shape is right.

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

As a wide-shouldered vertically condensed person my notions of length and loose are not accurate. Ask me about the hazards of a full length skirt from a standard pattern. Yup, I think the hem was originally the knee.

[acelightning]

That might work. I have a couple of "loungers" (vaguely nightshirt-like, each with one large patch pocket) that I wear around the house a lot. Most "housecoats" look like something my great-aunt would have worn when she was the age I am now.

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

There's a certain amount of selection error in play. The housecoats that most got seen on film were the ones that couldn't be backlit into impropriety and those tended towards very 'mature' women.

I suspect your loungers are what I'd call a shift, a sleeveless slipover that might brush the knees.

Last night I was watching an educational film and it had a housedress, which is a step up from a shift, in that it had treatments like ruffles and was built with apron concerns in mind. A small overall print for that 'small stains won't be noticeable, can more beets.'

Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

I think of a housecoat more like a women's bathrobe. 0_o Usage may vary by region or other factors.

However, I suspect that lab coats would be a very effective way for women to obtain pockets.

Re: Well ...

[mama_kestrel]

They would indeed. Lab coats are really warm, though - ugh!

Re: Well ...

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

Remember to do a little glow in the dark embellishment on the lab coat pockets. Enforcing personal space.

I may have Southernisms included, they came with the davenport and the warsh.

Re: Well ...

[mama_kestrel]

What my grandmother called a house dress I see listed in modern catalogs as a "lounger".

[mama_kestrel]

Looking at those designs reminds me of nothing so much as 19th c. children's pinafores. Not that those had pockets (the pockets were separate and tied around the waist under them), but the shape is very similar. The nice thing about aprons is that they go from outfit to outfit, just as little girls' pinafores did.

I wonder...any bright ideas on selling something like this? Langenlook's designs are nice, but they're so all-enveloping it looks like another dress or skirt. Because my mind is happily designing variants that would be better suited to everyday wear for people who aren't inclined to the bohemian look.

Hmm. I've got a lot of cotton and linen in my stash.....

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

It strikes me that the scarf is the 'normal' addition these days, so the most apt styling for the upper bodice. Maybe done with some sewn in draping? A back fastening belt to pull the weight distribution to the hips and spine. No further down than the knees, it'd be like urban chaps.

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Looking at those designs reminds me of nothing so much as 19th c. children's pinafores. <<

I thought so too. They also remind me of much older styles, where the servant women and sometimes the chatelaine would wear a sort of partial dress over their full dress, not just for spill protection but to have somewhere to put things. You could tuck stuff through the tie belt or loops or pockets. It was an alternative to a chatelaine's belt.

>> I wonder...any bright ideas on selling something like this? <<

If I were going to do it, I would consider such things as:

* Offer a loose version and a more fitted version.

* Provide a range of colors including neutral and brighter ones.

* Make some with heavy fabric like denim for robust work, and some in lighter fabric like calico for casual work.

* Try to cover a wide price range. Scavenged cloth is often cheap or free, reducing the cost to time+skill. You can do a lot with recut jeans from a thrift shop or garage sale. Conversely, if you're buying heavyweight quilt calico, that'll cost more.

* Hang a sign that says something like:
Are you tired of women's clothes that don't have pockets, or only have tiny pockets that won't fit your stuff? Now you can buy extra pockets for ..."
And then post pictures of things like phones, hands, and other items fitting into the pockets you've made.

And of course, you should post on my blog, where folks are looking for pockets. :D

Re: Thoughts

[mama_kestrel]

Good ideas all.

Step 1: work up some designs. :)

One of the things I like about the pinafore style is that it hangs from the shoulders rather than the waist. Put something heavy in the pockets of a garment that hangs from the waist and it's likely to pull down on that side. Shoulders take care of that problem.

[sulien]

Urk! You're not kidding about their stuff being ruinously expensive. If anyone decides to make their own and is looking for natural fabrics and even ready made layers (particularly dyables), Dharma Trading Company is fabulous. If you want to splurge and go for silk, Thai Silks has reasonable prices and a great selection. If you want to try your hand at designing your own fabrics, an inexpensive way to start is to get a basic set of Derwent's Inktense pencils and/or blocks (available for a helluva lot less at Dick Blick and Amazon). These are best used with fabric medium and set with a hot iron to ensure the colors don't fade quite so badly and there are tons of Youtube videos on using these. I'm going to pick some up one of these days...

Sorry about the edit to fix the coding. :-}