It looks like I may be taking my first shot at a home-grown Halloween costume this year. Fun! (Sarcasm, there.)
El Burrito is on an elephant kick, so we asked if he'd like to be Horton for Halloween. "Yes" he said (although he'll say yes to almost anything). So, DH and I went hunting around town for a Horton costume, had no luck at six stores, and ordered one over the weekend from Meijers.com, since they were having a sale. Well, we ordered the non-Deluxe version and it was delivered today. And, quite honestly, I'm glad I got it cheap, because if I'd paid $30+ for it, I'd be even less thrilled with it.
It's blue. Pale, baby blue. Meh. It's made of the flimsiest, practically see-through fabric I've ever seen. And while it opens all the way down the back, there's just one tiny piece of Velcro to hold it closed. Oh, and to top it off, it's not the right size. I'm pretty sure El Burrito doesn't need a "5-7 yrs" sized suit. Now, the only part of that that Meijers is responsible for is the size, because their website was pretty murky on whether the costume was using the Baby, Toddler, or Child size chart. Should have emailed, I guess. Other than that, it's the fault of whatever company tossed this thing together. I paid $30 for a Cookie Monster costume last year, and it was better quality than this one. He'd still be wearing it around, if he could fit into it anymore. Horton, as is, wouldn't last a week.
So. There's a Deluxe version out there, but it's running about $50, plus shipping. ($36 if I get it at Meijers) Or, we can go the DIY route. Which is how El Burrito and I ended up at Walmart this morning, searching for grey pants and shirts in his size. Garanimals fit the bill, although the 3T pants may be kind of big. $7 for pants and shirt, $2 for a skein of grey yarn. Now we just have to hunt down some grey-ish felt and see if my very dusty Home Ec skills can produce a pair of ears, tail, and a trunk. As a backup plan, my sis in Detroit is going to her local Halloween store to see if they might have the Horton hat or ears at a semi-decent price, although a little boy in a headband might look odd.
Did I mention that I have no sewing machine handy? And that my Home Ec classes resulted in two trips to the doctor? Oh, and two nice scars (three, technically, since one scar spreads over two fingers). At least I've got a thimble now.
2 comments:
Were you looking for advice? I have advice.
Return the gray shirt and get, instead, a gray hoodie. Make ears from felt (enlarge a coloring book or cartoon and trace) and sew 'em onto the top sides of the hoodie (with, I'd suggest, a BLUNT :) needle and thread).
For the trunk, get a pair of gray tube socks. Stuff one inside the other (to give it body -- you might also want to stuff it a little). Push the tip of the toe back inside the sock and stitch or stable it shut (This will give it a flat end instead of a pointy one. Pay no attention to its resemblance to an uncircumcised ... er ... well, never mind that.) Attach it just below the neck of the hoodie.
I'm a glutton for punishment, so I'd also make "feet" by putting a rubber band (not too tight!) around each ankle and wrist, about 4 inches from the end, then painting (I was thinking white-out might work) or somehow attaching 3 white ovals at the end of each for nails. The "too big" stuff will actually make this work better, since you can remove the elastic from the ankle and allow the cuff to hang down over his shoes.
I don't know if he'll look like Horton specifically, but it'll bear a remarkable resemblance to an elephant costume.
Thanks for the tips! I didn't see any grey hoodies at Walmart - solid grey was hard to find at all. (They also didn't have any of the cute H'ween shirts in El Burrito's size. Twits.) If I can get the ears shaped right, this mouse costume should be a pretty good base. It's at least the right color. :) I'll probably have to take the whole hood off - it probably won't fit a certain large-cranium'd boy anyway, and the eyes look wrong.
I've got a spare grey sock around here somewhere, I know. It's got a hole that I've been meaning to sew up. Maybe I'll find my missing Breyer horse while I'm sock-hunting, too.
Post a Comment