The saga of the apron. And I do mean saga.

Is there an award for being the last one on Earth to finish a handmade Christmas present? If so, I win! I win!

This is the finished apron I finally gifted by mother-in-law today. Months and months ago, she mentioned that she'd like if I made her a holiday apron. We're always struggling to come up with good gifts to give her, so I was happy to have the inspiration handed to me. I knew from that point on -- maybe sometime in October -- that I'd make her her holiday apron for Christmas.

I started thinking about fabric and patterns. At Jo-Ann's one day, I put this in my cart, 40% off. McCalls 6177.

I thought that third look was it. Cute, right? Then I read the instructions and sort of freaked out. I began to worry that it was too difficult a pattern in the time I had. And then I noticed that I bought sizes 18 wide and larger. Rookie mistake. My mother-in-law is basically the same size as me. So I had to go another route.

At that point, I opened up the book One Yard Wonders for inspiration, and I decided to make the Cottage Apron.

Kind of cute, right? Kind of.... sexy? I liked this a lot, I just felt like.... Is a woman in her 60s really going to like this? It didn't seem like her. I also started questioning having straps made out of ribbons. Is that really going to hold up in the wash?

As you can see, I was second-guessing everything.

On Christmas Eve, at 10:30 p.m., my mind scrambled in a haze of last-minute present wrapping, I decided there was no way I could give her Apron A. So I set out to make another.

I had a yard of fabric in a festive print. I had red linen. I quickly cut out an apron, using another I had as a pattern. I cut straps, including one very wide and long strap to go across the middle. I hemmed all the sides, made some straps, and voila, before you could say Merry Christmas, I had a new apron!

But wait!

So I gave it to her. She said she loved it. It was all fine. Except I put the sash on way too low, so it hit around the hips, and so the sides of the back hung in a sad droopy manner. I had stitched the strap right to the top of the apron, so I told her it would be no biggie for me to take it home and move it up higher. I was disappointed that it wasn't perfect, but hey, I still think I made the right call and made an apron more suited to her. And I could fix it.

And then. And THEN.

Do you feel the drama building?

If you're squeamish... Maybe you will want to skip this next photo. Because I am sure I am about to break all sorts of blogger rules in posting this photo.

What happened AND THEN is that I brought the apron home, and when all the holiday fun cooled down, I un-stitched that baby. And then the next morning I laid it out on the floor to pin the sash back on. The clock was ticking. She was coming to babysit soon.

I walked upstairs to get more coffee. And when I came back.... I saw this.

I won't enlarge it more than that, because ew, gross! Ladies and gentlemen, that's what it looks like when your cat decides your unfinished sewing project -- a project for your mother-in-law --  looks like a great place to barf.

My husband was all: "Just wash that spot off!" Oh darling. No. That sucker had to go in the wash. Which meant it wasn't done by 11:30, when she came over to babysit. Which meant it was another week before I'd see her again to have a chance to give her her apron.

So finally finally this week, I finished her up. And presented a fully finished, non-barfy, non-teeny-bopper apron to my mother-in-law. On Jan. 10! Only 16 days after Christmas!

I had to make my husband model after his wipe-the-barf-off-the-corner comment.

 Hahaha.

Here it is on me, looking ladylike in my pajamas.

I

Moral of the story: don't leave your sewing projects near a barfy cat? Don't wait unitl 10:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve to attempt a sewing project that is actually a good fit for your recipient?

That's for you to decide. All I know is this: my mother-in-law seems pleased enough with her new apron (and yes, she knows about its sordid past) and bonus, my friend Evelyn was so taken with my first apron, she bought it from me! I am now contemplating what to make her to thank her. Irony! Whatever I decide, I'll try not to let my cat near it.

Linked at...