Have you ever wanted to sew, but were intimidated or overwhelmed by what project to try first? An apron is a tried and true sewing project that is not only timeless but a useful item. You could even give a handmade one to a baker or gardener friend!

I am laying out a few simple apron projects to try with me! I recently found a few antique sewing books for a couple of dollars. I was pleased to find pattern diagrams inside, along with vintage sewing techniques and instructions for each project.

Here is the book I will be sharing a few apron ideas for us to choose from.

Apron #1: “Square Sewing Apron”

This apron is a simple half apron that ties on the waist. It features a large rectangular pocket with soft gathers at the center bottom (under pocket placement). It’s trimmed in lace (or you can use rick rack).

Only 3/4 yard of fabric is required, along with up to 3 yards of trim.

Woven cotton fabric is best for this kind of apron. Medium to heavier weight as too thin will cause the apron to fall apart once used and washed.

This apron is useful for household chores such as sewing, cooking, cleaning, and gardening!

Apron #2: “Valentine’s Apron”

This style is simply adorable, and frilly. It requires roughly 30″x 36″ voile (or semi sheer, stiffer woven fabric), 4 yards of lace, 1 yard of beading, and 2.5″ of 1/2″ wide ribbon is optional to trim as the photo shows.

This apron features a heart shaped pocket that is trimmed in lace and ribbon. The bib is not shown with a shoulder strap, but you could add one if you like. This apron has soft gathers on the sides. Optional beading can be added over the top of the seams.

This is a great apron for sewing, baking, or for costuming. It might even look cute hanging in your kitchen as decor!

Apron #3: “Sewing Bag Apron”

This functional apron can be turned into a bag by pulling the drawstring of the pocket in the center bottom area.

It requires about 1 yard of fabric.Medium to thicker weights, even canvas, would work for this project. 1″ wide ribbon is required, 4.5 to 5 yards in length.

The small pockets on top are optional, though they add not only design but extra storage. These would be ideal to hold bobbins, or threads – even buttons!

Easy and Useful Project

These three are all relatively easy, especially if you opt out of the excess trimming. All have functional purpose as well as style.

I believe a beginner could finish these aprons in under 6 hours. If you are more advanced, these can be done in just a couple of hours.

Let’s sew an apron!

What was your first sewing project and what did you sew it for? Have you recently sewn something new? What do you think about sewing an apron? Which fabrics and projects are your favorite?

Imagine that I said to you, “I hate your purple hair. It looks terrible on you.” Assuming that your hair is any color except purple, you might wonder about my eyesight but aside from that, you wouldn’t give the comment a second thought.

It would roll right off your back. You wouldn’t ruminate about it, or question whether I was right, or second guess your actual hair color.

On the other hand, if your hair color was purple, you might feel offended.

Do You Fear Being Judged by Others?

Many of us feel obligated to consider other people’s opinions (i.e., judgmental thoughts or comments) before we do or say something. This usually manifests in a formulation such as:

• What will people say if I…?
• I don’t want others to see me as…
• What will the family think of me if I…?
• How will my kids react if I… ?

You have no doubt felt the sting of being judged by others. Sometimes criticism is meant to be helpful; sometimes it isn’t.

• You need to get on with your life.
• You’re not dealing with this properly.
• You are only looking out for yourself.
• You are being overly dramatic.
• You should take better care of yourself.

We fear being judged and we feel hurt when we are judged only when we are in agreement; only when deep down, we are already judging ourselves.

We talk to friends about it and they commiserate with us, telling us how rude and insensitive the comment was, but that doesn’t solve the hurt, because the hurt is rooted deeper. The problem isn’t what another person said (or what they might say). The problem is what we already are thinking about ourselves.

Judgment Presents an Opportunity

Being afraid of being judged or feeling the sting of judgment presents an opportunity to examine our own thoughts; to consider that deep down, we might be in agreement. And then to remember that all thoughts are 100% optional.

Thoughts that cause extra suffering do not serve us. Let’s face it, life can be painful enough. The last thing we need is added suffering.

Examine your thoughts. Are they both true and useful? (Hint: if they make you feel horrible, they’re very likely not useful.) If they are not both true and useful, it’s time to choose other thoughts, on purpose, that are 100% true for you.

Once we stop judging ourselves, we can stop living in fear of being judged by others. We can break free of the paralysis and take action: make the bold move, quit the job, accept the dinner invitation, start the business, be brave enough to be a beginner.

Once we learn to have our own back, judgmental comments lose their sting. We can simply allow other people to be wrong about us.

Does fear of judgment keep you from taking action? Do you agree that judgment only stings when, at some level, we are already judging ourselves? How have you allowed others to be wrong about you? What do you think others might judge you for? Have you tried switching self-criticisms off for the benefit of better thoughts?

I’ve tried a lot weird things for the sake of beauty, from using a lip-vacuum device in attempt to fake a plumper pout to dousing my lackluster locks with a bottle of IPA beer to restore some shine after a bleach job gone wrong. One thing I never imagined doing, however, is spreading warm candle wax on my body with the hopes of achieving supple skin, but alas, here I am.

Before you assume that this skincare-candle hybrid is a product of kink culture or a sexy Valentine’s Day gimmick, hear me out, because apparently skincare candles are the latest thing in the beauty and wellness space. I’m guessing you’re either intrigued or horrified at this point, so I’ll go ahead and get on with my Neom Organics Skin Treatment Candle Review.

To offer some much-needed context here, I’ve been a huge fan of Neom’s luxe candle range for some quite some time now, but I have to admit — when I stumbled upon their Skin Treatment Candle, I was a little hesitant — not to mention kind of confused. But, in the name of beauty (and my job, of course) I figured I had to give it a try for myself. Spoiler alert: it’s not scary, painful, or kinky (unless you want it to be, that is) at all.

In fact, it’s the ultimate me-time selfcare product I’ve been subconsciously dreaming into existence for the past year (I mean, let’s face it: we all could use a little extra TLC after the dumpster fire of a year that was 2020.)

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

Basically, you simply light the candle as you normally would, wait 10 or 15 minutes for the skincare-grade wax to soften and pool into a liquid, and then you’re ready to drizzle this yummy skin-enhancing wax-to-oil formula all over your skin — just don’t forget to blow out the flame. Clearly, Neom’s Skincare Treatment Candle isn’t formulated with any old candle wax. The soybean oil base is infused with not only twenty-four different de-stressing essential oils, but also a slew of nourishing skincare ingredients, including jojoba oil, cocoa butter, almond oil and rapeseed oil.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Intensive Skin Treatment Candle

It probably goes without saying, but this candle also happen to smell like straight-up heaven on earth — i.e. lavender, jasmine and Brazilian rosewood.

Full disclosure: while I was ever-so-slightly concerned about getting burned, rest assured, it wasn’t an issue. In fact, this is one of the most relaxing nights to myself I’ve had in a hot (pun intended) minute. Neom recommends that you make a night of it too — draw a warm bath, pour a glass of wine, and get ready to have the literal softest skin ever after massage in the moisturizing oil and breathe in the relaxing blend of anxiety-erasing aromas.

Neom offers two versions of their Skincare Treatment Candle: the Scent to De-Stress and the Scent to Sleep. I tried the de-stress version, and as someone with an apparent inability to fully unwind, I found that it really did the trick.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Perfect Night’s Sleep Skin Treatment Candle

For all of the restless night owls out there, it’s time to give this sleepy time candle a try. Not only does it smell and feel amazing on the skin, but it also helps you wind down and prepare for some solid shut eye with the help of English lavender, calming sweet basil, and jasmine.

Buy: Neom Perfect Night’s Sleep Candle $46

I’ve tried a lot weird things for the sake of beauty, from using a lip-vacuum device in attempt to fake a plumper pout to dousing my lackluster locks with a bottle of IPA beer to restore some shine after a bleach job gone wrong. One thing I never imagined doing, however, is spreading warm candle wax on my body with the hopes of achieving supple skin, but alas, here I am.

Before you assume that this skincare-candle hybrid is a product of kink culture or a sexy Valentine’s Day gimmick, hear me out, because apparently skincare candles are the latest thing in the beauty and wellness space. I’m guessing you’re either intrigued or horrified at this point, so I’ll go ahead and get on with my Neom Organics Skin Treatment Candle Review.

To offer some much-needed context here, I’ve been a huge fan of Neom’s luxe candle range for some quite some time now, but I have to admit — when I stumbled upon their Skin Treatment Candle, I was a little hesitant — not to mention kind of confused. But, in the name of beauty (and my job, of course) I figured I had to give it a try for myself. Spoiler alert: it’s not scary, painful, or kinky (unless you want it to be, that is) at all.

In fact, it’s the ultimate me-time selfcare product I’ve been subconsciously dreaming into existence for the past year (I mean, let’s face it: we all could use a little extra TLC after the dumpster fire of a year that was 2020.)

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

Basically, you simply light the candle as you normally would, wait 10 or 15 minutes for the skincare-grade wax to soften and pool into a liquid, and then you’re ready to drizzle this yummy skin-enhancing wax-to-oil formula all over your skin — just don’t forget to blow out the flame. Clearly, Neom’s Skincare Treatment Candle isn’t formulated with any old candle wax. The soybean oil base is infused with not only twenty-four different de-stressing essential oils, but also a slew of nourishing skincare ingredients, including jojoba oil, cocoa butter, almond oil and rapeseed oil.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Intensive Skin Treatment Candle

It probably goes without saying, but this candle also happen to smell like straight-up heaven on earth — i.e. lavender, jasmine and Brazilian rosewood.

Full disclosure: while I was ever-so-slightly concerned about getting burned, rest assured, it wasn’t an issue. In fact, this is one of the most relaxing nights to myself I’ve had in a hot (pun intended) minute. Neom recommends that you make a night of it too — draw a warm bath, pour a glass of wine, and get ready to have the literal softest skin ever after massage in the moisturizing oil and breathe in the relaxing blend of anxiety-erasing aromas.

Neom offers two versions of their Skincare Treatment Candle: the Scent to De-Stress and the Scent to Sleep. I tried the de-stress version, and as someone with an apparent inability to fully unwind, I found that it really did the trick.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Perfect Night’s Sleep Skin Treatment Candle

For all of the restless night owls out there, it’s time to give this sleepy time candle a try. Not only does it smell and feel amazing on the skin, but it also helps you wind down and prepare for some solid shut eye with the help of English lavender, calming sweet basil, and jasmine.

Buy: Neom Perfect Night’s Sleep Candle $46

I’ve tried a lot weird things for the sake of beauty, from using a lip-vacuum device in attempt to fake a plumper pout to dousing my lackluster locks with a bottle of IPA beer to restore some shine after a bleach job gone wrong. One thing I never imagined doing, however, is spreading warm candle wax on my body with the hopes of achieving supple skin, but alas, here I am.

Before you assume that this skincare-candle hybrid is a product of kink culture or a sexy Valentine’s Day gimmick, hear me out, because apparently skincare candles are the latest thing in the beauty and wellness space. I’m guessing you’re either intrigued or horrified at this point, so I’ll go ahead and get on with my Neom Organics Skin Treatment Candle Review.

To offer some much-needed context here, I’ve been a huge fan of Neom’s luxe candle range for some quite some time now, but I have to admit — when I stumbled upon their Skin Treatment Candle, I was a little hesitant — not to mention kind of confused. But, in the name of beauty (and my job, of course) I figured I had to give it a try for myself. Spoiler alert: it’s not scary, painful, or kinky (unless you want it to be, that is) at all.

In fact, it’s the ultimate me-time selfcare product I’ve been subconsciously dreaming into existence for the past year (I mean, let’s face it: we all could use a little extra TLC after the dumpster fire of a year that was 2020.)

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

Basically, you simply light the candle as you normally would, wait 10 or 15 minutes for the skincare-grade wax to soften and pool into a liquid, and then you’re ready to drizzle this yummy skin-enhancing wax-to-oil formula all over your skin — just don’t forget to blow out the flame. Clearly, Neom’s Skincare Treatment Candle isn’t formulated with any old candle wax. The soybean oil base is infused with not only twenty-four different de-stressing essential oils, but also a slew of nourishing skincare ingredients, including jojoba oil, cocoa butter, almond oil and rapeseed oil.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Intensive Skin Treatment Candle

It probably goes without saying, but this candle also happen to smell like straight-up heaven on earth — i.e. lavender, jasmine and Brazilian rosewood.

Full disclosure: while I was ever-so-slightly concerned about getting burned, rest assured, it wasn’t an issue. In fact, this is one of the most relaxing nights to myself I’ve had in a hot (pun intended) minute. Neom recommends that you make a night of it too — draw a warm bath, pour a glass of wine, and get ready to have the literal softest skin ever after massage in the moisturizing oil and breathe in the relaxing blend of anxiety-erasing aromas.

Neom offers two versions of their Skincare Treatment Candle: the Scent to De-Stress and the Scent to Sleep. I tried the de-stress version, and as someone with an apparent inability to fully unwind, I found that it really did the trick.

Courtesy of Neom Organics.

Neom Organics Perfect Night’s Sleep Skin Treatment Candle

For all of the restless night owls out there, it’s time to give this sleepy time candle a try. Not only does it smell and feel amazing on the skin, but it also helps you wind down and prepare for some solid shut eye with the help of English lavender, calming sweet basil, and jasmine.

Buy: Neom Perfect Night’s Sleep Candle $46