Lesson 4—Construction

Click here for a printable version of this lesson.

Welcome back to our Oh! Christmas Tree Apron Sew-Along, sponsored by our friends at HUSQVARNA® VIKING®! We are so glad that you have joined us on this sew-along journey. In this final lesson, we’ll finish constructing our aprons! If you are just now joining us, click here to visit the sew-along homepage, where you can download the free Oh! Christmas Tree Apron PDF pattern, enter for your chance to win an EPIC™ 95Q sewing machine from HUSQVARNA® VIKING®, and catch up on the first three lessons!

Supplies Needed

• Embellished Apron Front
• Apron Lining cut during Week 1
• Apron Neck Straps cut during Week 1
• Apron Waist Ties cut during Week 1
• Fine Fusible Fleece cut during Week 1 (for Adjustable Neck Straps only)
• Two 1” D-rings (for Adjustable Neck Straps only)
• Construction thread to blend with fabrics
• Fasturn or your favorite tube turner
• Left-Edge Topstitch foot
• Button foot and Placement tool
• General Sewing Supplies

Notes

All seam allowances = 1/4” unless otherwise noted. Stitch D:1 places the needle 1/4” from the right-hand side of a 9mm foot. You can also use a center straight stitch and the 1/4” indicator line on the bobbin cover. The advantage of using stitch D:1 is that the fabric will ride on all feed dogs and be completely under the foot. This will help the fabric to stay straight as it feeds through the machine.

All measurements given are for adult size. Measurements for child size are in parentheses.

Creating the Curved Neck Straps (Ladies’ and Girl’s Aprons)

1. Place two neck straps right sides together and stitch the long edges together. Do not stitch the short end.
2. Clip the corner and curves. Turn right side out and press well.
3. Attach the Left-Edge Topstitch foot and select a center straight stitch. Move the needle slightly to the right (SW=1.0). Place the strap under the foot with the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks on the tip of the toe of the foot and to the left of the needle. The bulk of the neck strap will be to the right. Stitch, keeping the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks. Start stitching on one side of the open short end and stitch to the other side of the open short end.
4. Repeat all steps to create a second neck strap (photo 1).

   

Creating the Adjustable Neck Straps (Men’s and Boy’s Aprons)

1. Fold the 3-1/2” x 2-1/2” rectangle of fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together, to measure 3-1/2” x 1-1/4”. Stitch the long side only.
2. Place the 7/8” x 3-1/4” rectangle of Fine Fusible Fleece on top of the strap, fusible side of fleece to wrong side of fabric. Center it within the body of the strap, keeping it out of the seam allowance and away from the raw edges (photo 2). Fuse in place.

   

3. Turn the cylinder right side out using the tube turner. Press well.
4. Attach the Left-Edge Topstitch foot and select a center straight stitch. Move the needle slightly to the right (SW=1.0). Place the strap under the foot with the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks on the tip of the toe of the foot and to the left of the needle. The bulk of the neck strap will be to the right. Stitch, keeping the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks. Stitch both long sides.
5. Run the strap through the two 1” D-rings. Fold the strap in half around the D-rings and stitch near the D-rings two to three times. Stitching with the standard foot and a straight stitch on the far left (Stitch A:1) will allow you to get close to the rings yet give them enough room to move (photo 3).

   

6. Fold the 2-1/2” x 28-1/2” (2-1/2” x 19-1/2”) rectangle of fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together, to measure 1-1/4” wide. Stitch one short end and the long side. Do not stitch the other short end.
7. Place the 7/8” x 28” (7/8” x 19”) rectangle of Fine Fusible Fleece on top of the strap, fusible side of fleece to wrong side of fabric. Center it within the body of the strap, keeping it out of the seam allowance on both the long and short ends and away from the raw edges (see photo 2). Fuse in place.
8. Turn the strap right side out using the tube turner. Press well.
9. Attach the Left-Edge Topstitch foot and select a center straight stitch. Move the needle slightly to the right (SW=1.0). Place the strap under the foot with the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks on the tip of the toe of the foot and to the left of the needle. The bulk of the neck strap will be to the right. Stitch, keeping the edge of the neck strap aligned with the red marks. Start stitching on one side of the open short end and stitch to the other side of the open short end.

Creating the Waist Ties (Ladies’ and Girl’s Aprons)

1. Fold the 3-1/2” x 28-1/2” (3” x 19-1/2”) rectangle of fabric in half lengthwise, wrong sides together to measure 1-3/4” (1-1/2”) wide.
2. Place on a cutting surface and align the 45-degree line of a rotary ruler with the fold at one end. Use the outside edge of the ruler to cut a triangle off the end of the folded fabric (photo 4).

   

3. With the fabric still folded wrong sides together, stitch the angled end and the long side. Do not stitch the straight short end.
4. Clip the corners, turn right side out and press well.
5. Attach the Left-Edge Topstitch foot and select a center straight stitch. Move the needle slightly to the right (SW=1.0). Place the strap under the foot with the edge of the waist tie aligned with the red marks on the tip of the toe of the foot and to the left of the needle. The bulk of the waist tie will be to the right. Stitch, keeping the edge of the waist tie aligned with the red marks. Start stitching on one side of the open short end and stitch to the other side of the open short end.
6. Repeat all steps to create the second waist tie (photo 5).

   

Creating the Alternate Waist Ties (Men’s and Boy’s Aprons)

1. Fold the 2-1/2” x 28-1/2” (2-1/2” x 19-1/2”) rectangle of fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together, to measure 1-1/4” wide. Stitch one short end and the long side. Do not stitch the other short end.
2. Place the 7/8” x 28” (7/8” x 19”) rectangle of Fine Fusible Fleece on top of the strap, fusible side of fleece to wrong side of fabric. Center it within the body of the strap, keeping it out of the seam allowance on both the long and short ends and away from the raw edges (see photo 2). Fuse in place.
3. Turn the strap right side out using the tube turner. Press well.
4. Attach the Left-Edge Topstitch foot and select a center straight stitch. Move the needle slightly to the right (SW=1.0). Place the strap under the foot with the edge of the waist tie aligned with the red marks on the tip of the toe of the foot and to the left of the needle. The bulk of the waist tie will be to the right. Stitch, keeping the edge of the waist tie aligned with the red marks. Start stitching on one side of the open short end and stitch to the other side of the open short end.
5. Repeat all steps to create the second waist tie.

Putting It All Together

1. Place the neck straps to the top of the apron, aligning the outside edge of each strap just inside the piping that travels around the corner. If using the curved straps, ensure that they curve to the inside as shown (see photo 6).

   

2. Place the waist ties to the sides of the apron, aligning the outside edge of each tie just below the piping (photos 6 and 7).

   

3. Baste the neck straps and waist ties in place within the seam allowance.
4. Pin the ends of the neck straps and waist ties near the center of the apron to keep them from getting caught in the outer seams of the apron.
5. Fold the bottom edge of the ruffle, if using, back over the ruffle on each side and pin in place to keep the sides of the ruffle from getting caught in the outer seams of the apron (photo 8).

   

6. Place the rectangle of lining fabric to the apron front, right sides together, aligning all raw edges. Pin well.
7. Turn the apron over so that the apron front is on top. Pin along the stitching that attached the piping to the arm curves. Pay attention to the direction you will be stitching when pinning these areas (photo 9).

   

8. Using a piping foot, stitch the arm curves and the top of the apron through all layers, following the stitching that attached the piping to the apron front.
9. Snap on the standard foot and stitch the sides and the lower edge of the apron, leaving a 5-6” hole in one side for turning. If using the ruffle option, stitch the sides using a 1/4” seam allowance and stitch the lower edge using a 3/8” seam allowance.
10. Cut the arm curves, leaving a 1/4” seam allowance.
11. Clip all curves and corners. Turn the apron right side out, avoiding the pins that are keeping pieces out of the way. Remove the pins and press the apron well. Press the opening closed.
12. Use the Left-Edge Topstitch foot as before to topstitch the sides and lower edge of the apron. This will close the hole left for turning and finish the apron nicely.
13. For the adjustable neck straps, thread the long strap through the D-rings, taking care to not twist the strap. Then thread the end of the strap through only one D-ring and adjust as desired. Note: The excess strap will fall to the outside of the apron if threaded through the D-rings from back to front (photo 10). It will fall to the inside of the apron if threaded front to back.

    

14. For the curved neck straps, stitch a buttonhole as indicated on the pattern on one strap and sew a button to the opposite strap. Refer to the manual applique instructions in Week 2 for tips on the use of a Button foot to attach the button.

Your apron is now finished! Thank you so much for joining us on this Oh! Christmas Tree apron journey! We’d love to see your finished aprons. We invite you share your photos with us on our Classic Sewing Magazine Group on Facebook.

We would also like to thank HUSQVARNA® VIKING® for helping us bring this sew-along to you. If you are on the market for a new machine, the two HUSQVARNA® VIKING® machines that we have featured in this sew-along—the DESIGNER EPIC™ 2 sewing and embroidery machine, and the EPIC™ 95Q sewing machine—are both wonderful choices. We will draw the winner of the EPIC™ 95Q giveaway soon, so stay tuned to find out which lucky sew-along participant will take home this new machine!