Costumes and playing Dress-up

My kids love to dress up! I mean they really love it. Matthew especially, there are weeks at a time that the child goes everywhere in costume, and not just in late October, but all year long! So when they announced in our homeschool co-op that this past Tuesday was going to be costume day the boys asked for new costumes to wear.

Matthew's costume started last Christmas. My mom made him and Ethan these really cool crocheted chain-mail helmets.

 

 Matthew asked then and there if we could make him a knight costume to match. His Grandma obliged his request by making him this cool outfit. The tunic has a medieval lion embroidered on the front. The sword was one of his Christmas gifts that Rodrigo and I made for him last year. And he also requested a leather sheath for his sword... I had no good idea how to make one, until I remembered the old leather bomber jacket that I had saved to upcycle into something else. I was worried about sewing it with my machine, because I've never sewn leather with it before... so I simply cut a sleeve off of the coat and hemmed the bottom. I wasn't totally happy with how it looked, but he was thrilled with it, and that is what's important. He also designed his own crown. 

Ethan asked me for a cape. He picked out the colors and I used the pattern for the reversible hooded play cape from the book "Growing Up Sew Liberated" (Side note, I am loving this book! I borrowed it from the library, but I might just need to get it for my self!) 

 If you click on the picture you can zoom in and see the button we used to close the cape. I made them from one of the sticks Ethan is constantly dragging home from the woods! 

He went as a forest elf.

 Claire found the wig that we were getting ready to cut and shape for Logan's costume. I turned around and she was standing in the middle of the table with this giant red wig on. Little Miss H was standing on the floor behind her watching the show.

Sadly, I don't have any really good pictures of Logan's costume. And it was really my pièce de résistance, I worked for weeks getting every detail just so...

 He asked me to make him a Mad Hatter Costume! He went with me to the fabric store and picked out the fabric for his coat. We discussed at length every single detail of his entire outfit. His hat was also entirely handmade. He helped me make the costume, he strung the thread spool bandoleer, and helped decorate his hat. I'll try to get him dressed back up in it in a few days sans the makeup so I can get some better pictures of it. It was a lot of fun making this outfit, it really seems a shame that he will probably only wear it once... But Matthew already has his eyes on it! So all of my hard work wont have gone to waste!

Posing as a truly mad Mad Hatter! 

 It was very dark in the room where I took his picture, but he looked awesome! He won first prize in the costume contest! 

 My sweet little Claire and Little Miss H dressed up as Ballerina Fairies. I made both of their tutus. Rodrigo snapped some pictures of them in front of the house before we left. Claire was a red fairy.

Check out these dimples!!

Little Miss H was a white fairy. Their wings were store bought. 

They were adorable! And they felt so pretty, both little girls kept twirling around in circle singing and giggling when I let them try on their new tutus. Claire kept saying "Pretty dress!" and "Pretty H!" and patting her foster sister's head. H just smiled and smiled. 

Trying to fly...

I love making things for my kids, they really enjoy getting mama-mades. Those tend to be some of their very favorite things to play with and wear!