In 1925, Ellen “Nell” Donnelly, Kansas City based designer and manufacturer of women’s clothing, patented this iconic apron design. It was designed to minimize waste of fabric, and economize assembly and production. For the wearer, the apron was designed to:
- easily slide over the head
- provide full front protection
- not slip off the shoulders
- accommodate large sleeves; and
- allow for maximum arm movement.
(Apron photo from Kansas State University.)
The company manufactured the aprons and also sold the pattern for home sewing.
Nelly Don led an interesting and sometimes dramatic life; always following her own personal code, and taking innovative care of her employees for the times. She used the apron to keep her manufacturing company going during the Great Depression, and thereby kept her employees working. She promoted women to management positions. She offered health care assistance, high wages for the time, a pension, and work breaks with food and drink. In 1931 she and her driver were kidnapped and held for ransom. When unions attempted to organize her employees, she fought the unions in a marathon battle, keeping them at bay by showing her employees were better off than union members. Here is a photo from her clothing manufacturing company in the Kansas City Garment District.
The story of Nelly Don, her garment manufacturing company, and her apron, have been expertly told elsewhere. Check out these links for more about her life and business:
- Nelly Don: Self Made in America https://www.seamwork.com/issues/2015/12/nelly-don-self-made-in-america
- The Bitterest Battle: The ILGWU And Unionization In The Kansas City Garment District https://www.pendergastkc.org/article/bitterest-battle-ilgwu-and-unionization-kansas-city-garment-district
- Nelly Don: Vintage Made Modern Inspiration from a KC legend https://indygojunction.com/blogs/indygo-junction-blog/nelly-don-vintage-made-modern-inspiration-from-a-kc-legend
- Costume museum to debut historic Nelly Don apron https://www.hhs.k-state.edu/news/2008/10/10/costume-museum-to-debut-historic-nelly-don-apron/
There’s a musical about Nelly Don’s life. More info here: https://nellydon.com/pages/about-nelly-don-the-musical
There’s a fact-based novel about her abduction and rescue. It’s a really good book. I call it a must-read. I recently finished the Kindle version, and as the Amazon reviews say, it was fast moving, well researched, and a quick read. I would have loved for it to last longer. https://amzn.to/2XFjGOY
The Apron Patent:
The Nelly Don apron patent itself is brilliant reading. Click on the image below to download a pdf copy of Nelly Don’s Apron Patent (4 pgs) :This 3-minute video has great images and footage from Nelly Don’s 1920s operations:
Nelly Don’s life in one minute:
Now, back again to the famous apron:
From reading about Nelly Don and her apron, I formed a small obsession with re-creating the apron from her patent diagram. After several attempts, I believe I’ve conquered the challenge! Stay tuned for the next post.