Poodle-less Poodle Skirts

A few years ago, my sister (Borg #7 of 8) bought some fabric and patterns to make costumes for one of our nieces.  That niece has since outgrown dress-up, but the fabric was still around.  She gave it to me in hopes that I might find the time to make up the garments before we ran out of nieces little enough for dress-up play.

One of the costumes was a poodle skirt  for which she had bought pink felt.  I happened to have some lime polyester green felt sitting around from a time when I had planned to make a tree skirt with it.  (After purchasing the felt, I realized this fabric choice may have been fine in the 70s but fleece would be a better fabric for a tree skirt since it is much more washable, has a nicer hand and comes in a greater variety of colors and patterns.)

So I had it in my mind that I had the fabric on hand to make a pair of poodle skirts some day when Maggie announced that the theme for her birthday party this year would be a Cat and Dog Birthday “Pawty.” Now "some day" had a deadline.

No poodles here. 

Neither Maggie nor Lily are really poodle people, so I was inspired to use the cat appliqué in the pattern for Lily and the Scottie for Mags. 

I envisioned designing the skirts to coordinate by using this lime green polka dotted ribbon (from my stash) to make a bow around the neck on the pink skirt and a matching hot pink ribbon for the green one. I had pale pink soutache on hand from the Victorian velvet coat which was perfect for the traditional leash. (Probably the one traditional element left by the time I was done)   The cat appliqué pattern included a face, but it looked too much like those mean Siamese cats in Lady and the Tramp.  I came up with this design for green eyelashes and a little hot pink embroidered nose which I adapted to the Scottie as well.  (These are clearly not faceless Amish pets.)

Detail of embroidery and matching ribbons

I mailed off the skirts in time for the party. Their mother (Borg #6 of 8) reported to me that it is impossible to wear a poodle skirt and not spin around in it until you’re dizzy if you are Maggie.  

Dizzy Maggie kerplops with her Scottie skirt

Here, she and her friend Caitlin take the skirts for a spin. (Lily is boycotting dresses at the moment.)  

 

They just can't help themselves.

I wonder what it will take to get me to make the other costumes my sister entrusted me to finish for her.  Tick-tock.  Maggie and Lily are not getting any younger... 

Day 7, 93 to go: Robot PJs and Gnome #1

The first thing I made today was a batch of Ghirardelli brownies.  Nothing special, but a good source of warmth and chocolate in the kitchen (which is also where I sew.)

Just the right size.

Then I whipped up the robot pajamas.  They went really fast.  My sister sent me her kids’ measurements and I am kind of proud that I predicted what size her kids would be now when I cut them out earlier this year.  (I must have cut them out too late for them to get any use out of them last winter.)

I learned that another of my sisters is reading this blog because she guessed the general concept of the tree skirt.  Of course she had an incredibly unfair advantage since she is Zoe’s aunt.

Gnome #1?

This is Zoe.  She loves GNOMES.   No one can really explain why.  She just does.  So she dressed up as a garden gnome for Halloween in this gorgeous costume my sister Barb made for her. (Barb is her mom.)   Zoe is an incredibly creative person.   

Dressing up as a garden gnome is one thing.  Having the leadership skills to convince all your friends to dress up as lawn ornaments is even more impressive, don’t you think?  The group included a Kissing Dutch Girl, Flamingo, Lawn Jockey and best of all, a BVM.  Because no lawn is complete without Our Lady of the Lawn.

So the official name of this design is The Amish Gnomes of Whoville.  Amish because, like Amish dolls, they won’t have faces.  Whoville because it occurred to me that a bunch of gnomes holding hands around a Christmas tree was an awful lot like the big musical number in How the Grinch Stole Christmas. (The Boris Karloff cartoon version, NOT the horror show that involved Jim Carrey. Anyone want to sing along? Dahoo Doris, Fahoo Foraze Welcome Christmas, Christmas day.  Just wanted to make sure it was stuck in your head too if it was gonna be stuck in mine)

There are a total of 21 gnomes who will encircle the tree.  My plan is to make each one different and individual somehow.  This is the first gnome.  She is at the far right end of the skirt. Hopefully my design process will come together better as I work my way toward the front of it.  

Gnome #1

This one is very loosely based on Zoe’s Halloween costume.  Green waist cincher, red hat, braids, white peasant blouse and then a skirt with a kind of miniature PA Dutch print I had in my stash.  I don’t have any yellow in my stash. Or orange.  So I went with the red heart fabric for the apron.  It seemed Christmasy. Hearts are big in German folk art.

So from here until Christmas, you can expect to meet the rest of the Gnome Collective.  If you have any ideas for gnome costumes or tributes, I welcome them.  Should there be a Miss Piggy gnome, for instance?  Or perhaps a Browncoat gnome.  Zoe won’t know what it is, but I will.   Maybe I will include characters from musicals she loves. Wicked, maybe?

Anyhow Grubsneerg, you came the closest.  You want pajama pants or a sleep shirt?