Looking Good in a $50 Apron

Would you pay $50 for a shop apron?  I thought the idea was crazy until I saw one in action during my recent workshop at Corning.  Ethan Stern was teaching in the hot glass shop and doing a lot of cold working as well.  He had a great looking apron and everyone was inquiring where he obtained it.  Come to find out he was selling them as well.  

So why buy one?  Three things come to mind.  First, the wonderful idea of turning up the corners to create a funnel for the water to drip down between your feet instead of directly on your shoes.  The second is the straps.  I've been using a decent $10 restaurant supply house apron.  It has a string that goes around your neck and ties behind your back.  I'm not good enough to tie it, and it digs into my neck after a while.  It constantly needs adjusting.  Ethan's have wide straps - about the size of seat belts that don't require tying.  Finally, the coverage, especially near the shoulders/arm pits are covered much more effectively.

Here is a picture of me modeling my cold working set up.  Note that the face mask is more for the total effect.  I usually use paper masks.  I find the Bose noise-cancelling headphones work amazingly well around grinding equipment.  Also, a fourth cool thing about the apron - it has a phone/iPod pocket on the inside!  I think it will take a little while for all the wrinkles to settle out.

And here is me working away.  

If you want one of these, contact Ethan via his email.  His website is here.