Hi, I'm Sally...{Halloween Costumes, Part II}

Ultimately, Sally was the reason we even agreed to make Halloween costumes, after adamantly saying, "Halloween costumes are a job that is too big for us". So, while a moral of the story should come at the end....Ours is: "NEVER SAY NEVER!"

 Maybe it was Sally's blonde hair.

Maybe it was her curls on the ends.

Maybe it was because we think EA resembles Sally.

Maybe it was because we found the perfect fabric in our stash

(and were in a quandry over what to make with it).

Maybe it was because "Aunt Emmy" had the perfect lunchbox from her childhood.

Maybe it was because Sally's "costume" could be worn again.

Maybe it was because making something that involved a bubble was just too alluring to us.

Or maybe it was because when the pieces fit so neatly together,

we just couldn't tell our "baby" sister, no.

To make Sally's costume, we began with the Children's Corner pattern, Carol.

Instead of leaving it full length, we shortened the dress to approximately hip length. Once this was done, we simply cut 2 rectangles as long as our fabric would allow and made the height to hit EA at about the knee plus seam allowances. Then, we used the technique that Liesl used in her Oliver + s, bubble dress pattern. The lining was cut 1/2 inch shorter than the outer skirt, and elastic was added for the 'bubble effect.'

While, it ended up being a tad big; overall we liked the concept and would like to try it again with some minor adjustments being made (narrowing the Children's Corner Carol dress a tad more).

Although Linus and Sally never actually saw the Great Pumpkin in the movie,

in our version, Sally did.

But not before finding....

a big stick!

And although she thought this Great Pumpkin was a wee bit small to live up to such hype....

basically. . .

she couldn't...

get enough....

of her!!!

The rest of the Peanuts gang was completed by Charlie Brown {yellow shirt painted with fabric paint} and Peppermint Patty, who as you may recall had a crush on good 'ole Charlie. Poor "Peppermint Patty" didn't decide who she was going to be until the 13th hour, so she missed out on costume assistance! Truth be told, she would have been left out in the cold anyway (since we sewed until the wee hours of the morning to finish the rest of the gang).

Then, we 'crashed and burned' after completing the costumes.....

Now, all that is left to do is our Happy Dance and sing, "Yea, yea, yea, Halloween is through!"

And check the 50% off racks for next year's Halloween attire!!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! {Halloween Costumes, Part I}

You are probably aware of the legend of The Great Pumpkin, a holiday figure (comparable to Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny). The summation: Every year, Linus sits in a pumpkin patch on Halloween night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear. Invariably, the Great Pumpkin fails to turn up, and a humiliated but undefeated Linus vows to wait for him again the following Halloween (source: wikipedia).

 So, this Halloween, we opted to recreate a version of The Great Pumpkin.

Our starting point in making The Great Pumpkin was the Oliver + S, Bubble Dress pattern.

We had made a previous outfit using this pattern, and had been pleased with the result....so, we opted to make a second outfit - but this one with a little twist.

Our goal was to make a practical pumpkin outfit - one that can be worn at times other than Halloween. 

To do this, we made subtle 'pumpkin section' divisions to create a pumpkin appearance.

The first step was in the cutting phase. We added 2 inches (total width - to do this, add 1 inch to the fold) to the front bubble skirt portion and 1 inch to both back pieces (add to the center, straight portion), for a grand total of 4 inches width increased around the entire skirt. This was to account for 1/4 inch seams for piping...with 4 areas of piping on the front, and 4 areas on the back. This cutting increase was ONLY done on the outer bubble skirt layer....NOT the lining portion.

Then, we marked our piping lines, using a fabric marker. This line was to show where we wanted the finished piping on the garment. The photographs below will walk you through the piping process between back pieces, B2 and B3.

We drew a parallel line from the piping line 1/4 inch to the right, allowing for the seam. 

Cut along the 2nd line drawn - splitting B2 and B3 into two separate pieces.

Pin the piping to the right side of B2 and stitch your 1/4 inch seam. Reattach B3 (right sides together with B2....piping will be sandwiched in the middle).

Our feeble minds only allowed us to do the above steps ONE AT A TIME....we did NOT cut all the sections apart in the beginning. On both the front and the back, we worked inwardly - toward F3 (on the front) and the center seam (on the back).

Once the back piping sections have been attached, repeat process for the front of the bubble skirt. *Be careful to work inwardly, toward F3 from F1 and F2, as well as F4 and F5.

When it is time to attach the bodice to the skirt (as stated in the directions), please NOTE: piping doesn't like to be gathered. So, we gathered the skirt portion between 'pumpkin section' pieces: gathering the fabric between each piping division. Past that little snafu, the pumpkin assembly went smoothly.

Here's a little sneak peek at the paired lining we chose for our Great Pumpkin.

We couldn't find a cream colored shirt for CL, so we bought a 3-pack of onesies and tea-dyed one to a cream shade.

To keep the Great Pumpkin theme going, we bought a brown knit cap and added a green curly ribbon tendril on the top. 

Easy to be removed....easy to change back to a typical, fall outfit.

Ahhhh, but that is just the beginning of the 'Peanuts Gang.'  

"Charlie Brown, who will be featured next?"

"None other than my little sister, Sally, of course!"

Green Acres is the Place to Be...

For one day of the year, a Local Living History Farm opens its door gate to visitors - allowing them to get a glimpse of daily farm life from the 1930s and 1940s. The program theme is "Life and Living on a Working Family Farm." The focus is that the barnyard and animals, the house and garden, the field, the woods and the horses all have an important purpose in helping the farmer make a living for him and his family.

This year marked EA's first.....and definitely not last....visit! To say she had a great time, would be an understatement of the century.... SHE. LOVED. IT. Every last second of it....Looking back at the pictures, it was obvious how much we rushed her through the activities of the day...

Take the pumpkins, for instance: our first stop of the day. Ummmm, she got pretty comfortable in the pumpkin area - all the way down to laying on top of a group of them....

Then, it was on to the one-room school house. When she stepped inside, she found one of her favorite items: CHALK! She could have easily sat and drawn for a good hour, but we rushed her out the door and on to the next event.

Birdhouses.....who could ask for more? EA "made" a birdhouse, with the help of a local woodworking guild - by hammering four nails to the house, and calling it her own. She later had it branded in the farm's blacksmith shop.

As you can see, a farm girl's life is pretty busy....so she was off to split wood. But not before waving to EVERY SINGLE TRACTOR showcased in the tractor parade....

In the animal area, she made friends with a turkey...

and a bunny...

and a goat...

After establishing all those 'new friends,' EA had a bit of trouble understanding why she couldn't sit on Tiny, the Bull.....She kept saying, "Sit here." (and pointed to the larger than life bull). Honey, the fence is there for a reason....

A trip to the farm wouldn't be complete without going to the fields for harvesting the crops. The concept of cotton was such an educational experience for her. She enjoyed telling us about her cotton shirt, as well as picking some of her own. 

Then, she made her way to the sweet potato rows. Her daddy made sure she worked to stuff a bag full of his favorite vegetable...

Before calling it a day, this little farm girl took a stroll down the okra row....looking for the perfect picking to fill a skillet of one of her (and her mommy's) favorite vegetables!!

What an educational experience for our niece from beginning to end! It was amazing the facts and information she was exposed to....and how much she retained from the information given. You can rest assured, this little lady has some country in her blood after all!