This apron makes a great host or hostess gift for anyone who likes to barbecue. Because of it's adjustable tie it fits just about anyone! --Molly

• 1 1/2 yards of upholstry weight fabric in red
• 1 yard of upholstry weight fabric in blue
• Tailors Chalk and a Pencil
  
• A Two inch Bias Tape Maker 
• Thread in blue and white (to match each fabric)
  

Wash and iron both fabrics.

Fold the red fabric neatly in half lengthwise from selvage to selvage.

Apron 

Start at the top of the fabric with the fold on the right. Mark a 6.5-inch line perpendicular to the fold and mark a 1-inch line 90 degrees down from the end of the 6.5-inch line, as shown above. The bottom of this 1-inch mark will be POINT A

Make a little mark 1-inch below the 6.5-inch line at the fold.

Make another little mark 16-inches down from this 1-inch mark on the fold. (I used my pencil, which will come out when the apron is washed but you might want to use chalk if you want to give it as a gift.) We will call this mark POINT B.

Mark away from the fold  13-inches from POINT A. This will be POINT C.

Mark a diagonal line from POINT A to POINT C

Mark a straight line down from POINT C, 13-inches from the fold for 20-inches. The end of this line will be POINT D. This will be the skirt of the apron. Make a straight horizontal line from POINT D to the fold.

Now cut the whole thing out!

Pocket 

Cut the pocket piece 17-inches x 10-inches.

Tie 

Fold the rest of the blue fabric in half from selvage to selvage. Cut three 4-inch strips from selvage to selvage and cut off the selvages.

Top and Sides 

Turn the main apron panel so the wrong side is facing up. Working at the very top of the piece, press a 1/2-inch fold then fold it down again 1/2-inch and pin as shown above.

Iron, fold, and pin in the same manner along the long left and right sides of the apron as well (but not the diagonal sides or bottom hem.) 

Sew the top and sides down with a 3/8-inch seam allowance.

Diagonal Sides

Zig Zag stitch along the diagonal sides.

Press and pin 1/4-inch fold to the wrong side.

Sew seam with a 1/8-inch seam allowance.

Fold the diagonal side down 1-inch towards the wrong side and pin. Sew with a 7/8-inch seam allowance (directly on top of the sew line from the previous step.)

Repeat for the other diagonal side. Each diagonal side is basically a  7/8-inch "tube" for the adjustable ties to run through. (I'm sicking my finger in the "tube" in the picture above.)

Bottom Hem 

Hem the bottom of the main apron panel in the same way you did the sides and top, with a double folded 1/2-inch hem.

The tie on this apron is a really long piece of 2-inch tape. (It's folded in half vertically so the finished width is 1-inch.)  

Piece together the three 4-inch strips in the manner shown above. If you've never done this before click here for a more in depth explanation. Cut this long sewn together strip so that it's 95-inches long.

Iron the long strip through the bias tape maker. If you've never done this before click  here for more information.

Press your long strip in half lengthwise and pin the sides together with the right side out.

Tuck the end edges in neatly before you pin the ends shut.

Sew the tie closed  using a 1/4-inch seam allowance. (You don't need to sew the ends closed if you've tucked them in as shown in the second picture above. It will be easier to thread the tie through the apron if you don't sew the ends shut.)

To thread the tie through the diagonal sides of the apron I used a knitting needle. If you have a bodkin you can obviously use that too, but since so many of us are knitters as well as sewers I thought many readers might have a knitting needle on hand!

Place the tip of a size 6 (or smaller) knitting needle into the opening at one end of the tie. Try to get your needle into the fold so the needle is holding the tie firmly.

Push the needle and tie through the bottom (waist) of the diagonal side of the apron until it pokes out of the top. Hold on to the tie and remove the needle. (Then pull a good length of the tie through, but make sure not to pull it all the way through.)

Repeat the same process for the second diagonal side, only this time enter through the top of the apron and exit at the bottom (waist).

Pull through the tie so there are equal lengths on both sides. You can now adjust it to any length for any one of any height.

Press a 1/2-inch fold along the top and bottom (the long edges) of the pocket piece, toward the wrong side of the fabric.

Then press folds along the right and left sides (the short sides) 1/2-inch each, towards the wrong side.

Repeat these two steps once and pin all the edges down.

Sew along all four sides with a 3/8-inch seam allowance.

Fold the apron and the pocket in half lengthwise (this will help the pocket to be well centered). Place the pockets' top right corner 4-inches from where the tie comes out at the waist and it's right edge 4.5-inches from the apron edge as shown above.  

Pin the pocket in this position and unfold. The pin the left and bottom edges. You don't need to pin the top, as you will not be sewing the top shut.

Sew the pocket using a 3/8-inch seam allowance, along the previous seam. Make sure not to sew the top!

Mark 3.5-inches from the left side of the pocket and then 3.5-inches to the left of the previous mark. Pin the pocket down to the apron in a few places between the marks.

Sew along the marks to make the pocket divisions, for your spatula and other tools. Make sure to backstitch these seams.

You're all done!

Happy 4th!