Gift Apron and Playing House

The blue and yellow floral apron is from my great aunt Becky. I am guessing that it is from anywhere between the 30s and the 50s, but if anyone knows this fabric and can give a better ballpark for how old this apron is, that'd be great.

I made a similar apron following the original's design from the vegetable fabric I bought at the Scrap Exchange. 

I visited with my parents this week, as well, and my mom told me she recognized the vegetable print. She said that her mom had stayed at home while she was little and to save money, Grandma was sewing some shorts for my mom and aunt. Out of this fabric. With turnips, carrots, eggplants, and everything. Mom and my aunt were crying and complaining about having to keep trying on things for my grandma to size them. Grandma asked them if they'd rather her stay at home and put up with homemade clothes or her go back to work. They decided they'd rather have her at work than have to go out in public in turnip shorts. 

I hope the turnip fabric will work better as an apron than as those ill-fated shorts. I think I will save it to give away, but it would be fun to cook with.

My mom also loaned me the book "How to Sew a Button: and other nifty things your grandmother knew, a money-saving, heartwarming, life-simplifying guide" by Erin Bried. The book is begins with a chapter called "Meet the Grandmothers," all of whom lived through the Great Depression and so approach homemaking with great economy. This book has everything from how to kill a chicken, swaddle a baby, polish your nails, garden, sooth a cold, to how to tie your husband's tie. 

I'm house sitting this week, so I get to play house and have space to cook and sew and such. My plans for cooking this week so far are spaghetti and meatballs (using my grandmother's amazing recipe), pad thai, and coffee cheesecake (recipe from my best friend's grandmother). Pictures of food and recipes will follow. 

In a few weeks, I will be back on campus and living in a dorm. Thankfully, this dorm has a kitchen downstairs, so I will be able to keep cooking. I'll probably end up with a lot of easy, one-pot cooking. It will be an interesting adventure hauling all my supplies and ingredients from my room to the kitchen, but it will be totally worth it to get a break from dining hall food. 

Please share your favorite recipes and family cooking stories. Happy Friday!