Where the wild things are
This Halloween, like every Halloween before, I made Hunter's costume.
Yes, I realize that it's only the second year, but I plan to do it for the rest of his life (just like my mom did).
There is something so wonderful about a home made costume (even if it doesn't turn out as cool as you thought it would.... sometimes it turns out way better!).
Last year, Hunter was a very tiny Oscar the Grouch, which turned out pretty awesome (if I do say so myself).
And this year, his costume did not disappoint (too bad Hunter is too young to appreciate all my hard work).
He didn't get to chose what he wanted to be, I did (ah the pleasures of being a mom).
I love the book Where the Wild Things Are, and one day it just came to me....Hunter should be Max from the book.
I googled around to see what a Max costume looks like, and there was a great costume that I considered buying from Pottery Barn.
But, instead of spending a cool $79 plus tax, I
figured I could tackle it for less than half that price (not counting my
time, obviously).
I gathered all the supplies I needed, then my mom and I got together and just winged it. No pattern, no nothing. Just us, a sewing machine, some wine and my little sister who was also sewing my niece's Halloween costume.
Since we didn't use any sort of guidelines or pattern, this it not going to be a tutorial on how to make your own Max costume.
Our process was messy and confusing and totally not replicable. So, instead I'll pass on my one word of wisdom.
When making a one-time-wear costume, don't spend a fortune on fabric.
When I went to look for "furry" fabric at the store, it was easily $25 per yard, and I needed 2-3 yards. Even with a coupon, I was still looking at a pretty pricey little costume.
So, I made the costume out of a $12 blanket.
Genius right? (patting myself on the back)
Here in Seattle, Halloween is always cold. It's actually a huge win if its not raining that day (same thing goes for the 4th of July), so making a costume out of a blanket seemed like one of those "duh" moments- why hadn't I thought of that before? Gosh I would have been a lot warmer on all those college Halloweens.
We used his jammies as a rough sizing guide and hoped for the best.
It's much easier to sew when my mom is around. She is amazing at sewing, and figures things out faster that I can. The only downside is that we were sewing late at night and both of our brains were fried. So, we ended up making a few mistakes that we had to undo, but nothing too bad. I was actually really proud of us for not messing up more!
Since the outfit was so cozy and it fit him like a glove, Hunter didn't even mind wearing it. I even was able to slip his hood on for a few pictures before he yanked it off. (He's in a nothing-on-my-head phase).
He actually ended up getting 2 wears out of it, which seemed pretty good to me.
He tested it out at the Pumpkin Patch at Remlinger Farm, where my niece wore her Madeline costume (made by my sister) and we introduced the kids to the wonders of a pumpkin patch and farm (that also has rides, a train and a millions of other cool things).
We had a blast.
Hunter LOVED the train.
On the actual day of Halloween, we went to QA Ave and the farmers market. Hunter loved watching all the kids in costume walk down the street.
We didn't actually do any trick or treating (none of us needed any candy), but we did hit up the Halloween photo booth.
I went as a "busy bee" and Chris went as a dad (super creative costume).
We finally got a picture of Hunter's scepter. Also known as a dollar store ball (spray painted gold- after Ketchum chewed it up) and a dollar store cheerleader baton with with ends pulled off.
All night I was calling him King Max, and qouting the book. It was a blast.
I've never really thought that Halloween as an adult was that fun, but now, having kids makes it so much cooler.
I can't wait for next year.
Yes, I realize that it's only the second year, but I plan to do it for the rest of his life (just like my mom did).
There is something so wonderful about a home made costume (even if it doesn't turn out as cool as you thought it would.... sometimes it turns out way better!).
Last year, Hunter was a very tiny Oscar the Grouch, which turned out pretty awesome (if I do say so myself).
He didn't get to chose what he wanted to be, I did (ah the pleasures of being a mom).
I love the book Where the Wild Things Are, and one day it just came to me....Hunter should be Max from the book.
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| Via |
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| Via |
I gathered all the supplies I needed, then my mom and I got together and just winged it. No pattern, no nothing. Just us, a sewing machine, some wine and my little sister who was also sewing my niece's Halloween costume.
Since we didn't use any sort of guidelines or pattern, this it not going to be a tutorial on how to make your own Max costume.
Our process was messy and confusing and totally not replicable. So, instead I'll pass on my one word of wisdom.
When making a one-time-wear costume, don't spend a fortune on fabric.
When I went to look for "furry" fabric at the store, it was easily $25 per yard, and I needed 2-3 yards. Even with a coupon, I was still looking at a pretty pricey little costume.
So, I made the costume out of a $12 blanket.
Genius right? (patting myself on the back)
Here in Seattle, Halloween is always cold. It's actually a huge win if its not raining that day (same thing goes for the 4th of July), so making a costume out of a blanket seemed like one of those "duh" moments- why hadn't I thought of that before? Gosh I would have been a lot warmer on all those college Halloweens.
We used his jammies as a rough sizing guide and hoped for the best.
It's much easier to sew when my mom is around. She is amazing at sewing, and figures things out faster that I can. The only downside is that we were sewing late at night and both of our brains were fried. So, we ended up making a few mistakes that we had to undo, but nothing too bad. I was actually really proud of us for not messing up more!
Since the outfit was so cozy and it fit him like a glove, Hunter didn't even mind wearing it. I even was able to slip his hood on for a few pictures before he yanked it off. (He's in a nothing-on-my-head phase).
He actually ended up getting 2 wears out of it, which seemed pretty good to me.
He tested it out at the Pumpkin Patch at Remlinger Farm, where my niece wore her Madeline costume (made by my sister) and we introduced the kids to the wonders of a pumpkin patch and farm (that also has rides, a train and a millions of other cool things).
Hunter LOVED the train.
On the actual day of Halloween, we went to QA Ave and the farmers market. Hunter loved watching all the kids in costume walk down the street.
We didn't actually do any trick or treating (none of us needed any candy), but we did hit up the Halloween photo booth.
We finally got a picture of Hunter's scepter. Also known as a dollar store ball (spray painted gold- after Ketchum chewed it up) and a dollar store cheerleader baton with with ends pulled off.
All night I was calling him King Max, and qouting the book. It was a blast.
I've never really thought that Halloween as an adult was that fun, but now, having kids makes it so much cooler.
I can't wait for next year.
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