A DIY Farmhouse Apron

Let’s travel back in time for a moment – back to the age of April 2016.

It was the time when the Country Living Fair came to Nashville.

Okay, going back a few months may not be too exciting, but it was an awesome time for me where I was gifted with a new friendship, some blogging encouragement, and a connection.

Let me tell you the story.

If you remember, I teamed up with Country Living Magazine and was able to give away tickets to the Country Living Fair. One of the perks was that I received 2 tickets for myself. I was over the moon!

A few months earlier, I had reconnected with a longtime blogging superhero of mine, Cindy from Cottage Instincts. She drove 8 long hours to attend the fair and stay with me. It was such a refresher for my soul and a lifelong friendship was forged that weekend thru junkin’, music, and laughter.

We were like kids in a candy shop at the Fair.  So much to see and buy, but one thing we were sure not to miss was when blogging Rock Star, KariAnne from Thistlewood Farms spoke about her dreamy Farmhouse in Kentucky. Not only did she inspire us with an incredible presentation, but we had the chance to meet her. She was real, tangible and honest and gave us such encouragement about blogging and I left feeling as if I had attended a conference! 

So let’s fast forward a few months later to an invite on Instagram. KariAnne and Hoffman Fabrics were looking for ambassadors to represent her new Sweet Tea fabric line, launching this month, and I immediately jumped at the chance to work with someone with such integrity.

I was floored when a little email came in from KariAnne letting me know that I was going to be adding a title to my name.  

Meet, Jennifer Fancher, Sweet Tea Ambassador. 

Y’all should have seen me reading that email. Poor Trent, bless him, was battered and bruised because I was slapping and popping him with excitement as I read. If I would have encapsulated that moment, it would have been nothing but emoticons and exclamation points.

So last week, my first Happy Mail came! It was Christmas in June!

Just look at the packaging.

{swoon}

It was not only filled with incredible fabric, but sweet little extras that made me smile and made my heart happy!

Now can I just gush a moment about this fabric? 

The colors alone stopped me in my tracks, as blue is my favorite color, but it is a high quality, soft but durable fabric.  At first, I wanted to do something with the samples for my home, but I couldn’t get over the urge to want to swim in it’s beauty, so I decided to make something that I could adorn myself with and drown in it’s loveliness.

I also knew I wanted to make something that would fit our Almost Farmhouse, so I decided to try my hand at an apron.

Now, here’s a huge disclaimer – I am not a seamstress and might have had a mini breath-into-a-paper-bag moment about cutting the fabric for the first time, because I didn’t want to ruin it. It is durable and was able to handle the beating that I gave it with my attempt at sewing.  

I searched Pinterest for DIY Apron ideas, and pieced different ones together to get the look I wanted. 

This fabric makes this novice look like a pro! 

Okay, not that I particularly wanted a shot of my bum on my blog, but look at the mitered corners! I love how cute the stripey-bow looks against the flowers. It is a perfect combination of fabrics.

I have to admit, I was a bit sad when the sewing was over, so I channeled my inner Aunt Bea while wearing the apron, and yes, I might have imitated her voice a little. Then inspiration hit!

I was gifted a set of gorgeous porcelain bowls on our wedding day, almost 20 years ago and we use them everyday. 

I decided to make some vintage inspired bowl covers for them with the leftover fabric. That way, when I need to bring a dish to a party, I arrive in style.

I used the navy rick rack to pop against the white and flowers.

The white looks so handsome with the stripes.

As a lover of all things vintage, I feel like I’ve been sent back decades and I’m loving it.

This is such a fun opportunity and I’m honored to be a part of the Sweet Tea Ambassador Team. I can’t wait to see what comes next month.

Click this link to see what the other Ambassadors create with their Happy Mail and you can click the picture below to find out where to buy the Sweet Tea line in your area.