Survey: Are aprons for cooking popular?

[PeterPan]

It has been so long since I've had anyone in my home that I've lost my sense of what people expect/like when cooking somewhere. Do you wear an apron when you cook? If you have access to one, do you prefer to wear it? Or is this a generational thing or something that has changed?

Sorry for the narrow response options on the poll btw. I wanted to see the percentages, so "Only if it has cats" isn't the most helpful answer, lol.

[Arcadia]

The only time I wore an apron for cooking was in home economics class in 7th/8th grade. My chemistry teachers used to joke that we should wear our home economics class apron for chemistry lab so that our school uniforms do not become pieces of art.

If I barbecue often, I might get a barbecue apron.

[Annie G]

I’ve always worn one, but part of that is because my first job (that I kept for ten years) was in a bakery and we all wore aprons.  So I got used to it.  I don’t wear it EVERY time I cook, but usually at least once a day.  My mom passed away 8 years ago and I wear the last apron she wore, which is one she made.  I’m a messy cook, I’ll admit to that. 

[Amy Gen]

I always wear an apron when I’m cooking or washing dishes. I have a couple of special ones that were made for me. 

[KungFuPanda]

I have about five cooking aprons and one garden apron.  I'm a bit of a dervish while cooking and I will ruin my shirt just by looking at a kitchen.  I even travel with aprons if I'm going to be cooking away from home or helping someone else cook.  Aprons are also useful for cleaning if you're like me and live in yoga pants with no pockets.  

[Tap]

I use them if I am frying foods or items that splatter a lot. I use them on holidays, since I am cooking a lot and want to stay clean. I use them if I am doing something like kneading bread that may touch my clothes. 

I don't use them for normal everyday cooking. 

Edited April 24, 2021 by Tap

[itsheresomewhere]

I have a collection of aprons.  Most are for daily wear ( kitchen aprons, gardening aprons, hobby aprons for painting), my work aprons ( waterproof so I don’t get soaked grooming dogs) and then I have my fancy aprons from the 50s or earlier.  They are just neat, take up hardly any room and I just like them.  
 

[Garga]

I never wear an apron and never get my clothes dirty. But I’m not the best cook, either, so it’s not like I’m hovering over pots of homemade sauce or anything like that.

But I recently found my old apron in a bin in the basement and pulled it out, because I think it would be useful to wear when cleaning, because of the roomy pockets. 

 

 

[Swimmer1112]

I voted never.

I don’t think we even have an apron in the house. I usually just change, if I need to. 

[vonfirmath]

We got aprons as wedding gifts. We just recently found them and can remember using them --twice-- in 17 years of marriage. So we are getting rid of them.

 

[Rosie_0801]

Oh yes. I have a painting apron and cooking/dishwashing/eating curry aprons because I'm a klutz.

[Ausmumof3]

I don’t and I’m a messy cook/eater.  I am just too lazy for that one extra step of tying and untying an apron.  

[Resilient]

DH thinks they are.  I get a new one every Christmas.  DH has a cooking costume (chef hat, apron) he wears when he cooks the feasts of the year.  I wear my favorite one occasionally but mostly they just clog up the apron drawer.

[madteaparty]

Only when I’m in the food pantry kitchen.

at home I sometimes wear the gladiator apron DD got DH in Rome🤣but that’s for fun lol 

[GoVanGogh]

I do not wear an apron, but I sell a lot of vintage aprons in my online shop. Younger people are wearing vintage aprons, esp fancier hostess aprons. 

[Corraleno]

I have a plain linen pinafore-type apron with giant pockets that I wear in the garden or when I'm making bread or home-made pasta, so my clothes don't get covered in flour, but I generally don't wear it for just everyday cooking.

[iamonlyone]

I generally only wear an apron when I am wearing nicer clothes (like during holidays). I will occasionally put one on when I am making something like noodles or bread dough, but I don't make those things often. I have a cool one a friend gave me that was made in Africa that is my go-to, and I have a fun Christmasy one I wear seasonally.

[Spryte]

No, never.  But you all are making me think I should try one.  I’m a mess in the kitchen.

[VickiMNE]

I cook a lot and I wear aprons most of the time.  As a newlywed (nearly 40!) years ago, I didn't, but then I realized that my clothes were slowly getting stained/discolored in the belly area--yes, I frequently washed! ---but all the splatters took their toll.  

Now I have five aprons and could use a few more....

 

 

[Eos]

5 hours ago, itsheresomewhere said:

I have a collection of aprons.  Most are for daily wear ( kitchen aprons, gardening aprons, hobby aprons for painting), my work aprons ( waterproof so I don’t get soaked grooming dogs) and then I have my fancy aprons from the 50s or earlier.  They are just neat, take up hardly any room and I just like them.  
 

Me too.  I use boring utility ones for cooking but I have a huge collection of vintage ones. One word: rickrack.

[Melissa in Australia]

half the time

[Carrie12345]

I’m going to vote never, but I’ve WANTED to be an apron-wearer for years.  It just never took.

One issue is that I’m wearing hoodies nearly 10 months out of the year. An apron over a hoodie on a not exactly svelte body has a bit of a StayPuff look about it! The extra layer feels weird, too.
 

[Pawz4me]

I've never worn an apron in my life, unless (maybe) it was a very little kid dress up thing that I don't remember. 

[Guest]

Interesting. I usually wear an apron for cooking or making bread. Otherwise, I get that one pop of grease or splatter of tomato sauce on my shirt and regret it. 

[Rosie_0801]

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

I’m going to vote never, but I’ve WANTED to be an apron-wearer for years.  It just never took.

One issue is that I’m wearing hoodies nearly 10 months out of the year. An apron over a hoodie on a not exactly svelte body has a bit of a StayPuff look about it! The extra layer feels weird, too.
 

I rock that look.

[PeterPan]

8 hours ago, Dreamergal said:

A plain denim apron with leather straps is my go to apron.

I've been seeing denim aprons in the stores and didn't understand the logic. That's a good point that they might wash up better.

 

8 hours ago, itsheresomewhere said:

aprons ( waterproof so I don’t get soaked grooming dogs)

Oh that's smart! I usually just wear old junky clothes and then have to take a shower because I'm soaked and gross, lol. Any particular recommendations?

7 hours ago, Resilient said:

DH thinks they are.  I get a new one every Christmas.  DH has a cooking costume (chef hat, apron) he wears when he cooks the feasts of the year.  I wear my favorite one occasionally but mostly they just clog up the apron drawer.

Somehow I figured you were about to say they had another use, a nighttime use. Otherwise, why would he keep buying them? 

7 hours ago, madteaparty said:

gladiator apron

Ok, this sound wild.

 

7 hours ago, GoVanGogh said:

Younger people are wearing vintage aprons, esp fancier hostess aprons. 

Interesting! See things do cycle.

3 hours ago, VickiMNE said:

I cook a lot and I wear aprons most of the time.  As a newlywed (nearly 40!) years ago, I didn't, but then I realized that my clothes were slowly getting stained/discolored in the belly area--yes, I frequently washed! ---but all the splatters took their toll.  

Now I have five aprons and could use a few more....

This is so the story of my clothing life. But why so many? You wear a new one each day?? Do you end up ironing them after you wash them?

3 hours ago, Harpymom said:

One word: rickrack.

So denim plus rickrack would be no iron vintage, yes? 

45 minutes ago, Quill said:

Interesting. I usually wear an apron for cooking or making bread. Otherwise, I get that one pop of grease or splatter of tomato sauce on my shirt and regret it. 

I know, I have so many oops like that! No matter how I try. I think maybe my problem is the aprons are stored in the pantry, behind a closed door, out of sight. If they were beside the stove, like y'all are saying in a drawer, maybe I'd get smart and put one on, lol.

Well thanks ladies! Definitely sounds like we are pro apron availability, ideally with rickrack and denim. Perfect. 

[PeterPan]

1 minute ago, Rosie_0801 said:

I rock that look.

LOL

In bigger perspective (is that a thing?), the other trick is sizing the apron so it fits a variety of people. I have some charming aprons that fit my dd that most distinctly do NOT fit me.

[mom31257]

I didn't wear an apron for many years, and then I realized I should. I was tired of spots on my shirts that I missed and then washed and dried. I was thinking they were from eating or something, but the cooking was the culprit. I started wearing one for most of my cooking about 10 years ago. 

[1234]

I’ve never worn an apron and I’m not the cleanest cook. Thinking about it, neither did my parents or grandparents and we’re from the South so lots of fried foods were being cooked. It just was never a thing any of us did.

[Katy]

I chose the middle option but the truth is it depends on if i like my outfit and if I think it would be difficult to get a stain out of. 

[Sherry in OH]

I almost always wear an apron.   I splatter a lot when cooking.  Also, it is convenient for wiping hands.  

My favorite aprons were my grandmother's.  Unfortunately they are wearing out and I cannot find modern aprons in the same style.  

[PeterPan]

Oh this is funny! We're now exactly 50/50 on apron vs. no apron. 

[Amethyst]

I have an apron but only use it when I need to cook and I am wearing something nice (or something white if there is pasta sauce involved)

[Innisfree]

I should wear an apron. I have tried wearing aprons. But our kitchen lacks a convenient place to store aprons (along with much else...), so I tend to just go change into a ratty old shirt before I do something messy.

[VickiMNE]

2 hours ago, PeterPan said:

5 hours ago, VickiMNE said:

I cook a lot and I wear aprons most of the time.  As a newlywed (nearly 40!) years ago, I didn't, but then I realized that my clothes were slowly getting stained/discolored in the belly area--yes, I frequently washed! ---but all the splatters took their toll.  

Now I have five aprons and could use a few more....

This is so the story of my clothing life. But why so many? You wear a new one each day?? Do you end up ironing them after you wash them?

Re: the bolded. HAHAHAHA!  I never iron anything; life is too short.  

I have so many because now with our dwindling household size, I don't need to do daily laundry (I do wear them more than one day).  Plus, we (pre-Covid) have lots of people over lots of the time and have a fairly open kitchen (ie. I'm not stuck in another room).

So, with lots of aprons, 

1. I can sort of match apron to outfit so I don't look so doofy, and
2. Guests like to wear them when offering to help.

I've got flowery ones (Vera Bradley prints!), sleek chef-looking ones, holiday ones, practical ones (pockets!), and none of them are the kind that merely tie around the west and hang down.  I need all the protection I can get.....

[mmasc]

I wear an apron because like others have said, I was tired of getting one spot or splatter and then missing it in the wash, and therefore having a spot on my clothes. I absolutely can’t stand a stain or spot on my clothes, so I’d often throw on an old tshirt to cook dinner, when I finally I figured out that I could just buy an apron lol. I bought one at Williams Sonoma online at least 12 years ago and it’s still the one apron I have and use almost every day. Quality for sure! I’ve washed it thousands of times. (It’s pink, 100% cotton, goes over head and ties around the waist with one long adjustable string that can adjust the neck and waist simultaneously.) I love it!

looks like it is probably this one; but I did buy mine over a decade ago so I’m not sure if they’re exactly the same anymore 

[Innisfree]

5 minutes ago, VickiMNE said:

HAHAHAHA!  I never iron anything; life is too short.  

QFT

[HS Mom in NC]

Yes, I always wear an apron to avoid stains on my clothes. I'm 47, so Gen X. I have 4 hanging on the inside of our pantry door on a 3M hook.  1 to wear, 1 to wash for 2 people cooking together.

[Zoo Keeper]

I wear an apron every day when I cook.  I am a messy cook, and I can't imagine how my poor clothes would look if I didn't wear an apron.

My family usually buys me a new one every year or two, depending on how nasty my old one gets (I do wash my apron, but some stains just don't come out well...)  I prefer a thicker fabric that can take a beating-- and a pocket if possible.   Nothing frilly, and I prefer full length.

I think this might be my next apron...

I am notoriously grouchy when I get asked by 7 people "when is supper going to be ready?" 😉

Edited April 24, 2021 by Zoo Keeper

[Indigo Blue]

No. Never have. Maybe I should.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, VickiMNE said:

I've got flowery ones (Vera Bradley prints!)

Ooo, I didn't know Vera Bradley makes aprons! This could be life altering.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, mmasc said:

I bought one at Williams Sonoma online at least 12 years ago and it’s still the one apron I have and use almost every day. Quality for sure! I’ve washed it thousands of times. (It’s pink, 100% cotton, goes over head and ties around the waist with one long adjustable string that can adjust the neck and waist simultaneously.) I love it!

Ok, speak to me. You iron this thing? Because I got a WS one for Christmas one year, did the perfunctory wash, and it was all jumbled. Either I did something wrong or it needs to be ironed or whatever. I never wore it because it was just such a mess.

Adding: Mine is yellow and white stripes. Maybe the material is different? Maybe we treated it like a towel and that's why it jumbled? I don't know. I can go find it. https://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/personalized-stripe-apron/?pkey=capron  This is mine, and it just says cotton. Yours is https://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/personalized-adult-apron/?pkey=capron  which says heavy gauge cotton. 

Edited April 24, 2021 by PeterPan

[PeterPan]

44 minutes ago, Dreamergal said:

Get one with pockets.

Put me out of my misery. Where are you buying these aprons of perfection?

[Carol in Cal.]

No, I never wear one.  And I really should.  I mess up my clothes in the kitchen, routinely.

But I can’t find the perfect one for me.

The ones that tie on at the waist are pretty much useless, since the splatters I get are mostly on my top half.  I hate the feel of something dragging on my neck, so the full length ones are miserable to wear.  Plus they typically don’t cover enough of the top to really be all that helpful in a splatterfest.  

I think that maybe I need one with shoulders.  Like, a sleeveless smock shape that hangs off of my shoulders instead of my neck, and has big enough armholes to go over my outfit but still pretty much shields my chest.  I have never seen one like that, but if I did I would wear it religiously.  Actually, if I sewed I could probably make a pattern without a whole lot of difficulty.  Especially since I don’t actually care about pockets.  Hmmm.

[Sherry in OH]

12 minutes ago, Carol in Cal. said:

No, I never wear one.  And I really should.  I mess up my clothes in the kitchen, routinely.

But I can’t find the perfect one for me.

The ones that tie on at the waist are pretty much useless, since the splatters I get are mostly on my top half.  I hate the feel of something dragging on my neck, so the full length ones are miserable to wear.  Plus they typically don’t cover enough of the top to really be all that helpful in a splatterfest.  

I think that maybe I need one with shoulders.  Like, a sleeveless smock shape that hangs off of my shoulders instead of my neck, and has big enough armholes to go over my outfit but still pretty much shields my chest.  I have never seen one like that, but if I did I would wear it religiously.  Actually, if I sewed I could probably make a pattern without a whole lot of difficulty.  Especially since I don’t actually care about pockets.  Hmmm.

You want a cobbler apron.

The aprons I like have a back similar to the one on the Advance pattern in this image.  The fronts and hems on mine are squared.  I like that I can slip them over my head and they stay in place, no need to fuss with adjustable ties.  I do not even tie them.  The closest modern aprons I have seen are the Japanese-style cross-backs.     

 

[athena1277]

I started wearing an apron several years ago because I got tired of ruining shirts with grease splatter.  I could sometimes get it out, but not every time.

[Corraleno]

1 hour ago, Carol in Cal. said:

I think that maybe I need one with shoulders.  Like, a sleeveless smock shape that hangs off of my shoulders instead of my neck, and has big enough armholes to go over my outfit but still pretty much shields my chest.  I have never seen one like that, but if I did I would wear it religiously.  Actually, if I sewed I could probably make a pattern without a whole lot of difficulty.  Especially since I don’t actually care about pockets.  Hmmm.

That is the style I have, it just slips on over your head and has wide shoulder straps that cross in the back. Here are links to a linen one like mine, as well as a pattern to make one

Linen apron in multiple colors

Pattern on Etsy

 

[Loowit]

I wear one some of the the time, more lately than in the past.  I got tired of stains on my clothes.  I have been thinking about getting a new one, but never get around to it.  I mostly use one DH got me as a present.  It is a Wonder Woman design.  I also have one my mom made me for Christmas baking that I use during the holidays.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Sherry in OH said:

The closest modern aprons I have seen are the Japanese-style cross-backs.     

I was ust looking at these! they look very comfy.

[Jaybee]

I wear one most times I cook. I'm a slob, and would have everything I own ruined if I didn't. I ordered a couple of this brand back in 2012: https://www.amazon.com/Now-Designs-Cotton-Kitchen-Provencal/dp/B005C7QPXM/ref=pd_day0_1?pd_rd_w=lw31e&pf_rd_p=8ca997d7-1ea0-4c8f-9e14-a6d756b83e30&pf_rd_r=TVDR7W0TBKYYYEEAV2XJ&pd_rd_r=8ceb80a1-4696-45b5-9d7c-7aed0d731e05&pd_rd_wg=BfsCp&pd_rd_i=B005C7QPXM&psc=1 They have the same style in a variety of fabrics on other links. The ones I bought in 2012 are still going strong. They are of sturdy fabric, so they protect my clothes well.

My mom only wore aprons occasionally, and they were the kind that just covered the skirt area. That wouldn't do for me, because it's the top I tend to splatter the worst.