Happy Halloween!

Halloween is here. And I have approximately...hmm...nothing done in terms of decorations and prep work.

• There's only 2 (small) bags of candy in the house
• There's 1 pumpkin out on the front yard, whose paint has washed off during the snowstorm we got this past weekend
• The only "decoration" we have is a spider that we got from a playdate when they were doing crafts (I didn't even make it -- I've left by then, but they made one for Isabel)

BUT...

At least I have a semi-homemade costume for Isabel.

As I've probably mentioned, she's fascinated with princesses now. And she wanted to be a White Princess (switched from a Purple Princess. AFTER I made what I made. Tough kid, you're wearing it)

Using the Poncho pattern from Emma Hardy's "Making Clothes for Children" book as the base, and adding a hood that I altered from this tutorial that I found through Ucreate, I made a velvet princess cloak with fleece lining (because it's COLD out). I hemmed and hawed between the Emma Hardy pattern and the O&S red riding hood cape pattern, but eventually went with this one as the armholes slits on the O&S didn't jive with the mental picture I had in my mind.

To me, the cloak is probably the best part of the princess ensemble, as I love coats and outerwear in general, having grown up in a tropical country where I've had little chance of wearing anything heavier than a cotton cardigan.

It was a huge sigh of relief that it all worked out, as there was a lot of winging-it moments, and the fabric wasn't exactly cheap.

She was on the fence about it -- so I had about a week to convince her that yes, princesses wear cloaks when it's cold out. So, we've been reading Beauty and the Beast on repeat for the past week. Multiple times a night (her request)

We'll be going trick or treating tonight - will update with full costume later.

Just Cause We Are Awesome

;)

Thanks, Tsen!

By Jove!

I actually completed her costume.

Well, the main piece that I was envisioning.

The rest I've decided to use what we already have. 

Ballet Bag

It's been sooooooooo long since I've last sewed. And this year, I have lofty aspirations of making her Halloween costume. Yeeeah....maybe.

To ease me back into the game, I started on this little pretty that I wanted ever since I saw it on MADE a year ago. But I didn't have a use for it, so filed it away for future reference.

Now that Isabel's in tap and ballet classes.....it's the perfect excuse!

Of course, it still took me ages to finish the last 2% of it.

And the ribbons look like little elf ears when the bag is fully opened
(I was working with materials that I already have. I'm too lazy to drive to the store for just 1 item)

But, it's done.

Update

Or also known as "What Has My Poor Mother Been Up To..."

We went apple picking on one of the rare occasions where I plan to do something "special".

And now we are up to our ears in apples and the sight of an apple apparently makes my mother's stomach turn. So much for special.

And I have to admit this: Doing activities where the area is crawling crowded with young parents and their toddlers/babies puts me in a bad Scroogy mood. I want to waggle my finger at them and say in my best 'old woman voice' -  "JUST you wait...you think everything is fine and dandy now".

As I mentioned, some days are better than others. But I think it's a good idea for me to avoid those kind of activities for the time being *shrug*

But mostly, we do things that I typically do when I have my weekends kid-free.

That includes trollling around for junk unique items at thrift stores and yard sales. This past weekend, the haul seems to be mostly on books -- we bought about 45 books for a total of $18. Some are antique (I found an antique French version of Winne the Pooh! For 50 cents!), most are those trashy romance paperbacks (yes, I have an affinity towards them. I got to balance between Jane Austen and Penny Jordan)

She's painted furniture that I bought at above mentioned yard sales/ thrift stores

But most of all, she gets bullied by a 30 lb little person, who unfortunately has inherited the stubborn and opinionated streak that I have

Don't be fooled by her chubby, kissable, snuggable looks.

She's a force to be reckon with (and she also needs a haircut)

 

Sorry for crap pictures -- all are taken through the phone. My big showy camera decided to try diving and the lens broke. Need to drag myself to the shop and see if they can repair it.