As a long-time lover of Disney, Cinderella has always held a special place in my heart. Originally released in 1950, it has cemented its way into the fond memory of many and still remains a timeless classic today. The original and the modern remake are always guilty pleasures for me as I love all the colours, the story and just how beautiful the films are. I had always heard of an elusive and rare 1950’s pattern in which Walt Disney, Cinderella and J.C Penney’s came together to create a beautifully illustrated apron pattern and, as if my fairy Godmother made it appear by magic, I have now come to possess this vintage treasure. In today’s blog instalment, I test out this wonderful pattern to see exactly how the Cinderella apron comes out all these years later.

I am not 100% sure when exactly this pattern came out but many guess that it came out in 1950 as part of the celebration release of Cinderella. The pattern comes as a folded paper pattern, 10 x 7 1/2 inches, unfolding to two-sided sheet 40 x 29 3/4 inches with the apron pattern on one side. On the other side you find colourful illustrations depicting Cinderella modelling different aprons whilst cartoon mice looking on approvingly. The inner illustrations are stunningly beautiful and very charming. I don’t think I could ever cut this pattern so I am definitely going to trace the pattern in toile. When I finally get my own house and a proper sewing room, I think I will frame this pattern as the images are too beautiful to just keep in a pattern draw.

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For this project, I spent a fair amount of time trying to decide what fabric to use. First I thought about doing something inspired by the images on the pattern itself but I ended up deciding on a Cinderella themed fabric instead. I didn’t want something obviously Cinderella and after looking at various pumpkin and mouse themed prints, I stumbled upon this stunning fabric on Spoonflower. The pattern states I need about 2 yards and since I couldn’t order half a metre, I opted for 2 meters and plan to use the rest on another project. I ordered this fabric in the Petal Signature Cotton which was super thick and lovely to work with. Once the fabric arrived, I was so excited to get started.

After tracing the pattern on toile and transferring all markings, I actually let the pattern sit on my sewing pile for almost an entire year. I cut my fabric in March of 2020 and have only just sewed it up in February 2021. Lockdown wasn’t great for me the first time around but I’m so glad I got back into this project because I now have a super cute Cinderella apron.

Sewing up the pattern was super easy and straightforward. The pattern is adjustable to different waist sizes which I thought was a great touch and I think even a beginner sewing enthusiast could nail this project. After sewing the front sides to the aprons front panel, the pockets were added. The apron was gathered and then attached to the waistband. All seams were finished off and bippity bopping boo she was done. She took about an hour to make but I did take my time, stop for a snack and also played with the cat so it’s a great quick project.

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The fit of the apron was perfect. The apron wraps around the body and meets at the back so you don’t have to worry about anything touching your clothes if you plan on wearing this apron during cooking or cleaning. I do wish the apron was a bit longer in the front but looking at the images on the pattern, she’s not supposed to be super long. I’m really happy with my chosen fabric, even though I think the pattern could have been printed a little stronger. I love how to design came out on the apron and how subtle it was without being obviously Cinderella. I haven’t been able to find other people’s creation of this pattern to see what fabrics they used so if you know of someone else creating this pattern please let me know.

Note: This is not a sponsored post. All opinions and thoughts expressed are solely my own and not influenced in any way. There are no affiliate links and I do not benefit from any link clicks or purchases made.