[little disclaimer- I've been having some technical difficulties with this post. I had always thought myself fairly tech savvy, but I can't get my images resized/organized the way I want them- I've been trying since oh, the day after Halloween- and this is me throwing in the towel. You get what you get.]
We love Halloween, and lucky for us, so does Hawaii. We always have a few parties to go to, and a big trick-or-treat hullabaloo to attend night-of. And every year I make the kids their costumes. In trying for something a little different this year, I thought we could go as famous paintings. It looked so great in my mind, but turned out kinda, meh. So for actual Halloween night I dressed Kenzie in another costume (made the night before), and Asher wore a three year old hand-me-down. I know they could have really cared less, and it all sounds kind of OCD. But, it made a difference to me, and, really, that's what counts ;)
So, this post is a multi-part share. The original Painting themed costumes, and then the night-of costumes. Followed by a Mishap Sob Story to round things out.
Costumes, Pt 1
The paintings I chose for our costumes (here's the part where the formatting is all mucked up):
So a Salvador Dali, Jackson Pollack, Roy Lichtenstein, and Van Gogh. I think part of the issue I had was the painting selection- the Dali and Lichtenstein turned out to be unrecognizable to all but a very few people. I think it was also that the kids weren't cute. You know- they were pretty, interesting, different- but not cute. And I like to see cute costumes.
Anywho. Here's Kenzie's Starry Night outfit. She also had a mask and a moon and star sequined veil.
For her dress, I took a velvet dress from the thrift store and added fabric from a satin pillowcase to make the skirt, and then painted it with acrylics. Once she tried it on, though, it was a bit of a blob, so I added a sash belt. The pictures above show the before and after. Kenzie likes things to be fancy, so we sewed some starry tulle underneath to make it poufy. She enjoyed showing that off.
For Asher's melting clocks costume, I just velcroed sewn clocks onto a black sweatsuit. I tried to make the clocks look liquidy- and used this slippy gold material for the clock backs. I will NEVER use that crud again. I really think it killed my machine, and I stayed up way too late one night fighting with it. Yuck.
Mr's outfit was simply a white shirt and pants splattered with paint. Kenzie helped a fair amount with that one, and it was a fun, messy family project. We now need to pressure wash the deck.
My costume just involved face paint. Here's another area where things went awry. I used goopy face paint, which couldn't get the detail I wanted, combined with a q-tip for application. Add the fact that I was sensitive to the paint so my eyes were red and watery? Insta Scary Zombie Girl with Chicken Pox costume. I had children running in tears at the Fall Festival we attended. It's kinda funny how off it was.
Here's a family portrait of the Paintings:
The best thing about my costume? Washing it off :)
Costumes, Pt 2
A while back I started this skirt, using a fun Japanese import fabric I had. Like, two years ago *blush*. I loved the other side of the skirt, as well- one of my grandmother's fabrics (remember that I inherited her collection?), it was bright candy-cane striped and slightly sateen in finish. Loud, fun, and cute. I stumbled upon the pieces I had cut and decided to make it into a costume. Using some felt birds as applique, I made her a "birds in a cage" costume. Yea, I know- I went from obsure to obscure-er- but it was pretttty darn cute! :)
Two blue birds, in their cage.
Fully reversible! I love this. I love it so much that I've made another for a Christmas present. And I loved that one so much that I'm going to make another for another Christmas present. AND, as a special gift to you guys, I'll do a tutorial for you. It's pretty easy! So stay tuned for that.
Her fascinator. I want one for me!
MacKenzie was classroom helper on Halloween. She took her job very seriously.
Mr. Asher, as his sister was "birds in a cage", was "free-flying bird". See, it all makes sense. Right? I made this parrot costume for MacKenzie three Halloween's ago. I had to make some adjustments to make it fit him as he's sucha little guy, but I'm so happy I remembered it. It used to have a parrot hat complete with eye patch and feathers but I found it destroyed in the back of the drawer. Sigh. Kids. He wouldn't have kept it on anyway, though, so for the best.
Fly, Ashman, Fly!
First time soliciting. I'm so proud.
And with that, we now arrive at:
Mishap Sob Story
You know what babies like? Bright shiny things. And my dear son is no exception. He is also curious, and fast as heck. These qualities create a horrible combination, the perfect storm really, for injury. Halloween night, after we had finished trick-or-treating, we reconvened on a friend's deck. Who had jack-o-lanterns. Asher thought they were pretty (they were!) and stuck his hand inside to investigate further. It's now three weeks later and that burn is just now looking like it's healing. The screaming. The blisters. The endless doctor's appointments and consultations and bandage changes and crying (from mommy). He has another surgical consultation on Monday to give the final word on skin grafts, so send a little luck his way then. He's been a happy boy, and fully cooperative during examinations and bandage changes, but I am so ready for him to get a clean bill of health. And for us to be allowed back to the beach.
So, Happy belated Halloween, and Happy early Thanksgiving, in case I don't catch you in time. I'm thankful for all of you!
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