Legend of Zelda Link Apron Tutorial

Posted July 5, 2017

Today I want to share the gift I made for my husband this past Valentine’s Day. He’s a fan of the Legend of Zelda, plus he loves to cook. Since he also likes to make a mess while cooking (I think that’s the sign of really tasty food, isn’t it??!), I decided to make him a protective apron to save his clothes from stains.

Keep reading to learn how to make your own Link-inspired cooking apron. Trust me, you do not need sewing skills to make this project. If you can sew a basic stitch on a sewing machine (which only takes 30-ish minutes to learn) then you can complete this project!

Materials

Heavy cotton fabric
- 2-3 yards forest green (depending on how tall you want the apron)
- .5 yards dark brown
3 yards brown double fold bias tape quilt binding, 0.875 in. wide
Fashion slide adjusters for 1 in. strap (optional)
Brown and green spools of thread (that match your fabric colors)
Gold (Jacquard) fabric paint
Sewing machine
Iron
Ironing board
Fabric cutter (rotary tool)
Cutting mat
Rule or other straight edge for cutting
Apron pattern (I used an old apron I had stashed in a drawer as a reference template)

I picked up my fabric and notions from my local Joann Fabrics store. I watched for a notions sale and also used their 40% off coupon for my fabric. I purchased all my supplies for less than $20.

If you want the neck strap of your apron to be adjustable, then purchase the fashion slide adjusters; otherwise you won’t need these.

Apron Instructions

To ensure your apron is thick enough to prevent soak through stains, it will be constructed from 2 layers of fabric. The front layer will have the belt details, and the straps will be sewn in between the layers for strength.

1. To start, you want to cut out 2 green layers of fabric using your apron pattern or template. First, iron your green fabric so that it’s flat and smooth. Then take 2 layers of fabric and fold them in half. Next, lay your folded apron on top (matching up the folded edges of the apron and fabric) and cut around the edges to get your apron shape. When cutting, be sure to leave a .25 inch seam allowance.

2. Next, cut a brown strip of fabric that’s the same chest width as your apron piece. Then, cut a diagonal strip that’s the same thickness as your chest strap, and that’s tall enough to reach the top of the apron’s edge. Remember to cut your brown strips of fabric .5 inches wider than you want the final thickness to be (.25 inch seam allowance on both sides). My straps were 1.75 inches thick (2.25 with the seam allowance).

3. Lightly trace the outline of your straps on your green apron front piece with chalk (which will easily wipe away). Cut out these pieces .5 inches narrower than you traced (again we want the .25 inch seam allowance on both sides)

4. At this point you should have 2 brown strips (1 horizontal, 1 diagonal) and 4 green pieces (the full back, 2 smaller top pieces for either side of the brown diagonal strip, and 1 larger bottom piece for under the horizontal brown strip).

It’s time to sew the 5 front pieces of fabric together. I found that it helped me if I laid all the pieces out in order. You will sew the top green pieces (one at a time) to the brown diagonal. Then you’ll sew the brown horizontal strip to the bottom green piece. Finally, you’ll sew the top and bottom pieces together.

When you sew 2 pieces together, remember to put the right sides (aka the side of the fabric you want to be facing the outside) together so that they’re touching and facing inward. Once you sew a seam, open the piece of fabric flat and iron them so the seam lies flat.

For example: When you sew green A to brown 1, brown 1 will stay in place. Green A will flip over so that its front side is facing down to touch brown 1. The red lines will line up. There is where you will sew your seam.

5. Once you have all the front pieces sewn into a complete front, cut out fabric that’s twice as tall as you want your front apron pockets to be. Fold this piece in half and lay it on the front of your apron. The folded edge will be the top lip of the pocket.

6. Using your old apron as a measuring guide, cut the bias tape into 2 side straps and a neck strap. I’d recommend sewing the open edge of the fold, shut. Once ready, lay the straps on the top of your apron so that they’re facing inward.

We will be sewing the edges of the strap into our seam when we sew the front and back pieces together.

Once everything is in place (straps and pocket) place the back side fabric on top (remember, right sides facing in) and pin the pieces together).

7. Carefully stitch all the way around the outside edge of the apron, ensuring the strap edges stay in place. You will leave a small gap at the bottom of the apron open. This will allow you to flip it right side out.

Iron your apron flat and hand stitch the final opening shut. If you’re making an adjustable strap, thread the bias tape into the fashion slide adjusters, then sew the strap edge to itself to close the loop.

8. Sew 1-2 vertical columns of stitching from the bottom of the apron to the top lip of the pocket edge. This will create smaller hand pockets, plus it’ll further stitch the front and back pieces of the apron together.

9. Finally, paint on your gold belt buckles and iron the paint (according to the instructions) in order to set it.

You are now ready to whip up a feast fit for Hyrule kingdom!

Given that I’ve already made the project, I’m sure these instructions are much clearer to me then they are to you (sorry about the lack of more detail photos!). Please reach out and let me know if any of the steps are super murky or if you have additional questions!

This apron really is quite simple to make and I want to ensure you don’t get lost or confused during the sewing process 🙂

craft tutorial, geek craft, legend of zelda, nerdy cooking