Leather Straps on Aprons

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We are often asked for artisan style aprons and one feature that is always of interest is the straps. Customers who are looking for something unique and special often love leather, as it’s a great way of adding quality.

The main stumbling block with leather is it cannot easily be cleaned.  You can’t put the leather straps in a washing machine with the aprons, so we wanted to find a way for the straps to be easily removed for laundering.

The flexibility to remove the straps means that they become interchangeable.  As well as solving the laundering issue, it means that you change the look of the apron depending on which straps are attached.

The easiest way to achieve this flexibility is to attach the straps though metal eyelets, using heavy duty metal snap fasteners. At the point where the eyelets and straps are attached, an extra piece of fabric is sewn to reinforce the corner for extra strength. These can also be made into a feature with contrast stitching or fabric. The most popular choice of eyelet and popper is Antique Brass or Nickel.  Buckles can also easily be matched.

When cared for correctly, leather can last much longer than fabric and so this method means that one leather strap can be used for several aprons, therefore making it very economical.

A good intermediate design is to combine leather and webbing. The leather is used for the most visible part of the strap, that attaches to the apron. The webbing is attached to leather to make tying the straps easy and flexible, without the need for buckles. This option can also be less expensive.

Leather and Webbing Straps

We carefully source the best leather, that is both soft to wear against the skin, easy to adjust but very durable. Different colours can be sourced, we certainly don’t have to stick to the traditional browns and blacks.

Our customers love their bespoke aprons with leather straps and frequently return for repeat orders.

Branded Blankets

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Café culture has arrived in the UK and along with it, all the luxury extras that customers expect when spending their disposable income. The decadent interiors and exteriors, luxury crockery, expensive coffee and baked goods. Patio heaters and cushions blankets, throw and furs to keep the chill off.

Blankets being embroidered with a logo

At Impact Trading we have noticed an increase in the demand for branded blanket and throws. We have a wide range of customers who we supply with these items, from vineyards to beauty salons and bars to corporate gifts.

The requirements from each customer can vary from a specific brand colour, style of blanket such as fleece, wool or cotton. They can then be embroidered or labelled with a brand logo.

If you would like to contact us for a quote for branded blankets. Please ring on 01908 511051 or visit our website.

All the Small Things…

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Something that we have learnt over the years at Impact Trading and Cotton Roots is that the tiniest of details can make the biggest impact.

One garment that can be brimming with tiny details is our bespoke, made to order aprons. From metal accents and bold colours to tiny stitches and delicate prints, these are the some of the options our design team can offer, to help you find the best way to make your ideas really pop.  

Some of our Antique Brass Eyelets

If an industrial or vintage feel is what you have in mind for your brand, adding rivets, eyelets, poppers or leather could help you achieve this look.

Webbing and fabric straps with metal adjusters. A central line of red top stitching can really change the way denim looks.

Small accents of colour can be added to your designs from bar tacks or contrast stitching. Another way of adding colour to a simple apron could be to have your logo or signature printed onto your webbing straps like Michel and Alain Roux. A striped webbing or printed strap can add a flash of colour to a simple denim apron and adding different fastening such as toggles, poppers or dungaree clips can really make an impact.

One of our most colourful, fully printed aprons.

If plain isn’t really your thing then maybe a pantone dyed apron, or digitally printed apron might be more to your taste like the example above.

Pantone Matching Promotional Clothing

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Many companies have a specific brand colour/shade which identifies them to their customers. Big, well known brands have colours that are so associated with the brand, that many of the population would recognise the brand without even seeing the logo or the brand name.

Some good examples of this are Coca Cola, who have a recognisable shade of red which is Pantone 2347C.

and Cadbury’s who have a purple shade which is 2685C.


From these examples, you can see how important it is to get the exact colour when producing product packaging, graphics, signage, promotional materials and uniform, so that customers can immediately identify it with the trusted brand that they know.

Impact Trading and Cotton Roots are able to help customers with clothing/uniform to exactly match their brand colours, either by matching the Pantone closely to a stock colour garment or making bespoke clothing out of fabric which is dyed to an exact Pantone colour.
We can also Pantone match webbing, print designs, buttons and thread which means that embellishments, fastenings and logos can also be matched exactly to the brand colours.

We have hundreds of shades of stock coloured clothing to choose from. These products are ready made and for smaller runs of less than 250 pieces, this is a great, cost effective way of distinguishing your brand. It also reduces your lead times, with most orders despatched in two weeks.

For more information about Pantone matched clothing visit our website or call us on 01908 511051

It’s the Little Things…

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Sometimes the tiniest detail can have a dramatic effect on the way something looks. This is something we have learnt over the years at Impact Trading and Cotton Roots. Our production and design team pride themselves on accuracy and detail which gives our customers the confidence to come back to us over and over again.

These details are something that the design team can offer when developing aprons. For example, a plain apron can be given an industrial look by adding rivets, poppers or eyelets. Tiny accents of colour can be added with coloured bar tacks or contrast stitching or bindings. Leather or suede straps can give a feel of quality and nostalgia to an apron.

If you want your apron to really stand out, then interesting fastenings like poppers, dungaree clips or toggles can be a real talking point.

To see some of the details we have used in the past have a look at some of our aprons

Canvas Versus Twill

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When deciding which fabrics to use for our bespoke aprons, the two main choices are canvas or twill. So, what are these weaves and how do they differ?


Canvas

The yarn most used for canvas is cotton. It is a simple plain weave, which means that the warp and weft are woven in a pattern of “over one, under one.” A double filled canvas uses two yarns in the “over under” instead of one.

Generally, canvas uses much heavier threads than other cotton fabrics and so the combination of the plain weave and heavier threads creates a strong fabric that is resistant to snagging, tears and abrasion. The simple, rustic style of the canvas weave is also attractive and combined with it durable qualities, makes it ideal for our aprons.

Close up image of canvas fabric


Twill

Twill describes the weave design, which is more complex. The weave consists of going over one yarn and under two or three. The weave then moves across each row to create a diagonal effect. These diagonal lines are called a ‘wale’. The most common type of weave is a 2/2 twill, which is two warps crossing every two weft threads.

Twill is very tough. It is basically a plain weave with extra yarns added at intervals for extra strength. This makes its very difficult to tear.
One big difference between a canvas and twill is that a canvas is reversible, there is no visible difference between the front and back and this allows for more flexibility when cutting the fabric. Twill has a different front and back. The ‘wale’ pattern being the front.
Jeans are probably the most common example of a twill weave.

Close up image of twill fabric

Conclusion

Whilst canvas fabrics are simple and very durable. Twills are a more complex version, and the appearance is more sophisticated.

Both are perfect for aprons or, in fact any workwear garment. Twill adds that extra bit of interest and durability. The durability will always depend on the fabric weight. A canvas that is 300 grams will be stronger than a 200 grams Twill.

For more information about apron manufacture, and the design of bespoke aprons, click HERE

What’s a Bar Tack

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Bar tacks are a tiny run of stitches that are placed on garments to reinforce an area, which may receive extra stress or wear. This could include the side of a pocket, the end of a strap, the bottom of the fly or either end of a belt loop.

Bar tacks are one of those tiny details on clothing that you don’t really notice, but when they are there, they can add a unique detail as well as being highly functional.

One of the areas that Impact Trading and Cotton Roots specialise in are bespoke aprons and we often use bar tacks on the sides or corners of pockets to strengthen the join to the apron. From a design point of view, bar tacks create an opportunity to enhance the design. Adding bar tacks to unusual areas or by using brand colours that add a ‘Pop’ of interest, you can create an apron that is entirely unique to you and your business.

Bar tacks at the bottom a denim pocket

For more information about what we do, click HERE

Cross Back Aprons to Fit

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About 6 months ago, Liz from the design team came upstairs to the office to show us a new prototype apron she had made from striped navy and white denim with red straps.  I jumped up in excitement because I immediately fell in love with it.  I’m always one for a stripe, especially one that gives a nautical feel.  This, along with a pop of colour from the red strap had me completely smitten! 

Liz, seeing my excitement, offered to let me try it on and once I was strapped into it.  I realised that although I loved the look, the actual brilliance of this apron is the cross back which makes it fit like a glove.  I never really appreciated that the cross back, as well as creating a stylish look, is a fantastic way to make a standard apron fit all sizes of people.  The cross back allows the straps to shorten and lengthen at the neck which means all heights are catered for, this also applies to the width which accommodates all body shapes and most importantly makes it really comfortable to wear, almost like a dress.

For restaurants, cafes and hotels with a number of staff, cross back aprons are definitely the way to go to suit everyone.