A pinafore is a sleeveless garment worn as an apron. Pinafores may be worn as a decorative garment and as a protective apron. A related term is pinafore dress, i.e. a sleeveless dress intended to be worn over a top or blouse. A key difference between a pinafore and a jumper dress is that the pinafore is open in the back. In informal British usage, however, a pinafore dress is sometimes referred to as simply a pinafore, which can lead to confusion. Nevertheless, this has led some authors to use the term "pinafore apron", although this is redundant as pinafore alone implies an apron. The name reflects the fact that the pinafore was formerly pinned to the front of a dress. The pinafore had no buttons and was simply "pinned on the front".
Differentiations
Pinafores are often confused with smocks. Some languages do not differentiate between these different garments. The pinafore differs from a smock in that it does not have sleeves and there is no back to the bodice. Smocks have both sleeves and a full bodice, both front and back. A pinafore is a full apron with two holes for the arms that is tied or buttoned in the back, usually just below the neck. Pinafores have complete front shaped over shoulder while aprons usually have no bib, or only a smaller one. A child's garment to wear at school or for play would be a pinafore. More recently, other types of full or dress-like aprons are also occasionally referred to as pinafores. In particular, this is the case for an apron with a full skirt, bib and criss-cross shoulder straps. Further confusion results from some foreign languages, which, unlike English, do not have a distinctive term for the pinafore. In German, for example, there is no precise term for pinafore. Schürze means "apron" and thus Kinderschürze is used to describe a child's apron or pinafore. In modern times, the term "pinny" or "pinnie" has taken another meaning in sports wear, namely a training tabard or scrimmage vest, double-sided short apron, often made of mesh, used to differentiate teams. This usage is chiefly British, with some usage in Canada and the United States. Tabards are also used by large retail stores to indicate employees.
History
The pinafore was a type of apron that was pinned over the dress and easily removed for washing. Buttons were frequently damaged by lye soap, which was one reason why dresses were not laundered very often.
The Observatory Pinafore, a comic opera about the computers at the Harvard Observatory, inspired by the H.M.S. Pinafore, written in 1879 and performed in 1879.
At the Lowood School in Jane Eyre, the students are forced to make and wear their uniform which includes a pinafore.
Alice, the eponymous heroine of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, wore a white pinafore over a blue dress in John Tenniel's illustrations.
Granville, the errand boy of the British TV seriesOpen All Hours, frequently complains about his having to wear a pinny and his being unable to acquire a modern look because of the pinny.
The song "Emmy Lou", by U.S. Acoustic Americana band The Gravy Boys contains the lyrics, "Emmy Lou, I've been watching you, with your pinafore and custom shade".
