#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

Re: Well ...

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

"You're only the height of a 10 year old, why would you have anything they don't?"

There's a reason my of my trousers and jeans are mens and it's not just the pockets. The fact they don't assume inseam based on waist measurement. I once worked with a tall gal and it pretty much worked out the amount too much leg my jeans would come with would allow hers not to be high watered. "Work it out!" It's a logistics problem.

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

If fashion designers really cared, they would use statistical analysis to map human proportions in their target audience and then design accordingly.

So far the only place I've seen doing that is a t-shirt company that maps size popularity in different countries so their customers know which ones to buy en masse. I told a t-shirt vendor about that this weekend. He'd never heard of it and was most pleased.

Re: Well ...

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

That would require them to be technicians not artists, and if an architect their roofs would suddenly not leak. Though, some designers and some fashion critics are making a point to expect more/deliver more than Building the Clothes and tailoring the customer to that.

Steve Rogers' Smedium probably would make a very reasonable tracks of land tee without much female presenting nipples bleed through. (Using an undersized shirt is a standard costumers trick to highlight the male form. But with the Dorito shoulder waist ratio, even a smaller tee requires babydolling.) There are photos of CE at Comic Cons and it's clear those grey tees weren't babydolled. He could burrito a chicken to safety on each side.

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

It doesn't require fashion designers to be technicians. It requires someone to hire experts to map the dimensions and frequency of same across a reasonable portion of a target audience. People do such research for all kinds of reasons, including product development. Certainly engineers do it when designing things like cars or ergonomic chairs. Regrettably the target audience is almost always men, so they don't fit women well, but anyone could do the same for women. If they cared to.

Re: Well ...

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

Ah, but then we'd be being reasonable and the only reason men's clothes make sense is because WWII made it mandatory.

I figure there is enough waste in the current system that straightening out the logistics would let us pay all the machine operators a non-sweated wage, clothe people more chicly and reduce harm to the environment. (I've not run the numbers. It's just there's that much waste from what I'm understanding.)

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Ah, but then we'd be being reasonable and the only reason men's clothes make sense is because WWII made it mandatory. <<

Likely so. I wish clothes had to be sold by actual measurements like cloth or liquids.

>> I figure there is enough waste in the current system that straightening out the logistics would let us pay all the machine operators a non-sweated wage, clothe people more chicly and reduce harm to the environment. <<

I suspect you are right. >_

Re: Well ...

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

Square area coverage? Thermal insulation? Style quotient?

I'm trying to recall the specific books I read regarding the reconstitution of the men's ready to wear segment. Originally, it was the domain of men so wretched as to have no women folk nor the ability to hire a seamstress.