Mens shirt and pillowcase to apron

I wish I could remember where I got the idea to turn a button-down and collared shirt into an apron, but, alas I can't. It was some crafty blog I read recently though. I was excited to find the idea since I had promised a friend an apron for her daughter who works in a greenhouse.


I went through my stash of shirts and immediately pulled out this pink one since pink was a suggested color. I then pulled out trims without a clear vision of where I was going with it.


First, I cut off the sleeves and collar and trimmed up the bottom. I then sewed wide bias tape around the sleeves and collar.


I quickly realized that even though the shirt was an XL, I needed something to lengthen the bottom.


This vintage pillowcase matched perfectly. It was also nice to bring flowers into the garment.


I cut down each side of the pillowcase to open it up into one long piece. Amazingly, it was exactly the width of the bottom of the shirt.

I pinned and sewed the two pieces together using the case's end detail to its full advantage by placing it at the front.

I cut off half of the length of the pillowcase as it now seemed too long for its 5'2" recipient. I added ric-rac between the check and floral and more blue bias tape at the hem.

Part of the leftover pillowcase made for a nice tie detail at the back.

And after I took most of the pictures, I decided the rest would make for a cute pocket.

I hope Angel likes it!