I like to pretend I can sew. Why??? yeah, I wonder myself sometimes - but I think that in my heart of hearts (or maybe it's the spleen?) I equate sewing with being a good mom. When reality breaks back in I remember that buying my kids clothes is MUCH much MUCH more time efficient and (dare I say it?) "cheaper" than making them myself! Yes, I've made a number of dresses for the girls and before M.O.T.H. forbade it I even made a cute outfit or two for those boys (when they were much younger)
Now that the girls are getting older my dresses don't quite cut the mustard...
Why? you ask??? (you did, didn't you???)
It's because I am what is affectionately called a "Halloween Seamstress"
There are three things you must understand about your typical Halloween Costume:
1- it's going to be worn ONCE, maybe 2 or 3 times if you're really lucky... how good do those seams have to be??
2- if you live somewhere North of... well, me... when those kids go out to trick or treat they are going to need something to wear over the costume... light jacket, heavy parka... whatever - the point being that you could probably skip the costume entirely and just do a funky hairdo, maybe a little make-up - and ta-dah... grab that pillow case and get out there!
3- it's dark when you're trick or treating - nobody is looking closely at your seams - and especially nobody is checking out the uber-crooked zipper on the back of the Cinderella Dress that you slaved over.
See - when you're a Halloween Seamstress you can get away with a TON of little errors. What? you say you made the puffed Cinderella sleeves out of backing fabric??? Pshaw... it'll make it through the night right??? Heck yeah - it actually made it through the next year too!
So there you have it - I'm a Halloween Seamstress... I sew, but only enough to make it look good for a day or two. You want REAL skills??? yeah, talk to Sue Q or Tracey... because if I ever want something that will look nice, I'm going to get THEM to do it :)
(and this is where I USED to have the description of the kids and their costumes... it was very witty... but it disappeared into the ether...)
To sum up: #1 - The Waffler - from Mystery Men... yeah, nobody at school knew either...
#2 - Road Kill... same as last year - no skill involved in driving over some stuffies and shirts.
#3 - Draco Malfoy - made that costume when Harry Potter 3 was released!
#4 - Pirate - picked up that costume 3 years ago on a 90% off after Halloween sale - ch'ching!
#5 - a cheerleader - proof that borrowing is better than sewing - a neighbor had this costume in her costume box completely unused... and it fit perfectly! (well, after a tuck here and there because little M is such a skinny-mini!
and thus begins our holiday season... I'm not ready at all... are you???
Helaman 4:8 -- On Siding With God
3 days ago
13 comments:
I struggle sewing on buttons so I think you're good if you do anything beyond that!
I am going to be a bad mom. I won't be sewing anything. I can sew on a button, and I found out that my husband was taking his shirts to a tailor to sew them on!!! Come on!!
Do you read Jillybean's blog? She is an AMAZING seamstress, and her kid's Halloween costumes last year were incredible.
now I have to head over to Jillybean's to remind myself that I'm not the coolest mom on the block :) (okay, and because her comments always make me smile)
I sew and I only made my boys costumes when they were young....I got smart!!! It's so much cheaper to buy them AFTER Halloween! I just bought myself a witch's costume for $15!!! I can't make it for that! But then I look at it and think, I can make one better than this. It makes my head hurt!
"Amen!" to being a Halloween seamstress! But I think even better is being a costume plagiarizer! You just have to move around often enough, and you can use the same ideas over and over--and if they aren't your own, no one will ever know...bwahahaha! No that I condone that kind of behavior. yeah. And honestly--is it really November already? yipes.
I slaved this Halloween over E's costume and it turned out beautifully. Then she tried it on. I made a miss size 8, not a child size 8. Lesson: check the pattern size before beginning.
I sew, I even sewed my wedding dress, but I have to admit that I have given it up in my old age. So I am like you, I like the low expectation level of a costume. I did have to sew up a little under slip for my daughters costume and finished 15 minutes before her activity day party. Nothing like sewing under time pressure constraints. Just glad it is over for another year.
Better a Halloween Seamstress than a No Seamstress.
I'm all for the borrowing of costumes especially since everybody seems to be a little more detail oriented than me (got lots of raves on your HP costume--so thanks again!)
I went for easy and fast for costumes this year! Can you believe we are headed for the holidays!!
P.S. By sewing your costumes you are SUPER woman not just a good mom...SUPER woman!
Awww, shucks. I'm blushing! ;-) I have to say, though, that some of the best costumes I've made were made out of chicken wire and duct tape and refrigerator boxes and old blankets, with no sewing required. I figure since I sew all year long, Halloween should be my one vacation!
I used to be a Halloween seamstress. That was the only time I was motivated enough to go through the agony of it all. I turned out some pretty awesome costumes, if I say so myself. However, I am now old and decrepit and my youngest (YOUNGEST!) is eight and is starting to think he is too old for this stuff. (And the word verification is brood.)
I would have totally got The Waffler. One of my favorite movies. PS. My husband does the sewing.
This year I made Calla a costume, the first in a few years. She was a cave woman, she ratted her, wore flip flops, and the costume was a cinch!! :)
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