Apron Headboard: Souvenir Decor

Apron headboard, daytime

I have a long-standing fascination with aprons as iconic societal objects. In my Science Apron series I focused on vintage aprons from the U.S. embroidered with musings about a range of scientific theories and discoveries, combining a love of textiles with ongoing documentation work for science museums.

Then, during my travels, I began to notice what an integral part aprons still play in so many cultures around the world and started visiting local markets and artisans to collect a few aprons along the way. They remained in a drawer until I thought of this headboard idea. The embroidered aprons at the bottom are what you will see many women wearing in Oaxaca. The one at the top, featuring a bunch of nifty pockets (some zippered and hidden) are what female street vendors wear in Nicaragua.

Apron headboard, late afternoon

The souvenir decor here doesn't stop with the aprons. In the top picture above you will also see embroidered pillowcases from San Cristobal de las Casas and a tiled mirror from Puebla, as well as a couple of painted wood alebrije lizards from Oaxaca. And yes, that is a fish dangling from the ceiling. For info about some of the other objects seen in these photos, including lampshade and quilted bedspreads see the Decor category on this blog.