Aprons

I was making apple dumplings today and wearing an apron I made.  I've seen some pretty darn cute aprons out there in shops lately.   In my mother's kitchen, aprons were just taken for granted.  They weren't cute--they were utilitarian.  Before we started cooking, the aprons went on.  They were old, faded, thin in places, but really soft and so useful. My mother would start cleaning some chicken and send me to the garden for whatever veggies were ready, for some dill or parsley and, perhaps some cucumbers.  I ran out and just gathered up my apron and started filling it.  Back inside, I'd sit down with some peas to shell.  My apron would be a protective towel over my lap while I shelled peas into a bowl on my lap.  When I was finished, I shook out the debris off my apron into the compost container.  After I rinsed the peas, I might just quick-dry my hands on it. An apron served as an always-handy little towel.   We used the pockets to carry all kinds of things around the kitchen or outside--some clothespins to hang out laundry--a couple things on the table that should be put away upstairs, etc.  I still take aprons seriously.  I like a full-size apron that fits smoothly and has a bib for serious baking because it holds my clothes out of the way when I'm rolling out dough and working around the oven.  For cooking I like a gathered half-apron with pockets for all the handy uses I mentioned above.  The design of the one here is a particular favorite of mine for all-around use.