It’s All About Friendship

September is International Women’s Friendship Month along with National Sewing Month. It seems that friendship and sewing often go hand-in-hand, whether it is stitching alongside my friends or making some fabric gift or another.

This makes September a perfect time to get together with your lady friends, sew an apron and enjoy some delicious Amish Friendship Bread. Really, what better excuse could you need?

First, you’re going to need an apron, of course. If you’re anything like me, you have plenty but will take any excuse to stitch up a new one. I recently tried out Indygo Junction’s All-Day Apron and loved it. I want to try the modern linen apron in Modern Mix (Stash Books, 2011). The box pleats are a different method for me–I usually just gather the skirt–so I am intrigued. What apron patterns have you been wanting to make?
Once we have our aprons, we need to bake and what’s better for Friendship Month than Friendship Bread? Here’s a favorite of mine:

Amish Friendship Bread
1 cup Amish Friendship Bread Starter
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 2 (9×5 inch) loaf pans.
In a large bowl, combine the Amish bread starter with oil, eggs, 2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix well. Pour into prepared loaf pans.
Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes.

This recipe makes two loaves: one for you, one for a friend (of course!). We all have friends who need to know they are appreciated. September is a great time to show them. And you’ll have the chance again in November on National Tie One on Day. Get ready because that’s gonna be grand!

My Aprons + A Giveaway!

The inspiration for the aprons I made was taken from “The Apron Book – Making, Wearing and Sharing a Bit of Cloth and Comfort” by EllynAnne Geisel – page 73. I liked the big pocket – great as a clothespin pouch or for bringing in green beans and tomatoes from the garden. The red apron could be given as a gift for National Tie One On Day. The green apron is just fun! I enjoyed the cartoons and bits of satire such as “I got a sewing machine for my husband. Good trade huh.” and “A clean house is a sign of a broken sewing machine.”

Now I’d like you to share your aprons with me!

Using random.org, on September 8, 2010, I will choose a winner and send the lucky person the pattern book “Little Retro Aprons for Kids” by Cindy Taylor Oates, as well as the pattern “Vintage Potluck” from Favorite Things and I’ll even include some 100% Kona cotton  ” Glam Garden” fabric stash builders by Josephine Kimberling for (c) Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

Provide a link to your photo on the AproniCity blog comments site. I may even post a few of your aprons on AproniCity.

Apron Pattern Designer – The Apron Lady

Are you looking for apron patterns to sew for National Tie One On Day? Or maybe a special apron to wear for Thanksgiving dinner? The Apron Lady has apron styles for just about anyone, women, men and kids. Check out all of her fabulous patterns in the slide show below, and look for these apron patterns in your favorite independent fabric or quilt store.

Celebrate National Tie One On Day

Apron-iCity is a proud sponsor of National Tie One On Day. Celebrated on November 25, 2009, Tie One On Day is an opportunity for people throughout the country to put the “give” back in Thanksgiving.

Here  EllynAnee Geisel shares about putting the “give” back in Thanksgiving and National Tie One Day:

Four years ago, EllynAnne Geisel was rolling dough for “one more pie” for her Thanksgiving feast, “When I suddenly took stock of the amount of food I’d prepared for the next-day’s holiday meal.” For a dozen guests, Geisel recalls, “there was just too much!” Deciding that her company “absolutely did not need another dessert choice,” she spontaneously wrapped a sweet in a handy piece of cloth…an apron. “Then I wrote Thinking of You on a notecard, and still wearing my own apron, walked out the front door.” Within a block, Geisel was presenting the wrapped treat to a very surprised neighbor, “who I’d heard was experiencing a difficult time.”

Turns out, Geisel was in for a surprise herself. “I hadn’t anticipated that acknowledging my neighbor with a baked good would have me feeling positively buoyant.”

It is that win-win for participant and receiver that Geisel is promoting through her National Tie One On Day^TM..  Celebrated on November 25, 2009, Tie One On Day is an opportunity for people throughout the country to put the “give” back in Thanksgiving.

According to Geisel, a store-bought item is as easily wrapped as homemade, “and the cloth can be anything from an apron to a napkin.”

EllynAnne’s recipe for a Lovely Lemon Bread would be perfect to wrap in your apron for a lovely gift.

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