Kitchen Aprons - A Brief History

Kitchen aprons have been worn since the early 1800’s, however it might be said that they first came to the fore in the 1940’s and 1950’s, when almost every household magazine advertisement featured a picture of a woman wearing an apron. This was not solely restricted to food-related tasks - aprons for ironing and housework were additionally extremely common during this time.
It was in addition around the 1950’s that TV ownership was on the rise, and family shows helped create a stereotypical image of the apron-wearing mum of the period. These shows have since been repeated several times over, giving generation after generation a sight of what life must have been like 50+ years ago.
By the 1970’s kitchen aprons were mainly worn by anyone performing a food-related task, whether it be preparing, serving or cooking the meals. It was no longer mainly women wearing the aprons either, with men commonly found sporting PVC numbers around the BBQ.
Aprons now often had wording on them, with many people expressing their ideals and political stances of the time, and this progressed into the rise of the novelty apron by the 1980’s. The Muscle man and bikini-clad woman designs were particularly well-liked, as well as those displaying pictures of popular cartoon characters such as Tweety Pie, Bugs Bunny and Donald Duck.
Modern Designs
More kitchen aprons are being sold recently. Designs from 60 years ago are bestsellers, and originals from the period are popular with collectors. Novelty aprons are loved and loathed in equal amounts, and will always have their place in the market. PVC aprons are still available, but cotton is the most popular in these environmentally friendly times.
Sales of kitchen aprons are increasing, so why not take a little time to choose a stylish and one-off apron that will inspire you to accomplish momentous things in the kitchen!