2016 Halloween Costumes

Ben has been in a tizzy for the past few months over the task of selecting the perfect halloween costume. We went back and forth, over and over, through hundreds of pinterest photos; the kid could not decide on a selection. Actually, it wasn't that he didn't like them, it was that he wanted to be them all: ninja, police officer, lego man, knight. 

First he was going to be a cop, and Emma an escaped convict. Eh, ok, except that our wee girlie would quickly grow tired of being 'arrested' multiple times a day. 

Then he switched to ninja, except that I couldn't come up with a good costume for Em. 

So finally we got back to the medieval theme and I started in on costumes so he couldn't change his mind again. It worked, he is completely over-the-moon about his get-up. whew. 

May I present:

A Knight and his Friendly Dragon

Behold, all rise for Sir Benjamin!!!

I was sewing pillows with my sister-in-law and she left me a few lengths of this gorgeous velvet that turned into the base for Ben's surcoat. 

We bought the sword and made the helmet (foam sheet) and shield (cardboard and poster board)

He's trying to look tough; I didn't have the heart to tell him that he looked like a sad little puppy.

The dragon image is from Freepik and it totally rocks. We used it both on the surcoat and shield. 

 Emma didn't get much of a choice in costume selection this year. I'm sure she'll have a strong opinion when the next Halloween rolls around.

She loves the dress. It's too small, but she loves that it's frilly and flouncy and has a silver belt. So my sure-fire way to get her to like her costume involved incorporating the dress. It..mostly worked.

Actually, we were in the grocery store the other day and ran into a few girls from Emma's old co-op. The elder one proudly announced that she was going to be a princess for Halloween. Emma lit up like a christmas tree, eyes wide, and turned to me: "Emma princess too!!!"

"What about your dragon costume?"

"NO DRAGON! EMMA PRINCESS!!!"

So we compromised: we've been calling it her princess dragon costume. She seems satisfied. 

This is the third costume that has used the navy pilot hat. 

Emma likes that she can 'wag' the tail.

 The hat is actually a last minute addition. For the past few weeks we've been working on a dragon mask in blue and silver.

But I should have known that masks are not great for toddlers. Especially heavy ones with lots of protruding pieces. Soft felt would have been ok but this one was too much for our little girlie. So we made a quick hat and ditched the mask.

 I'm going to wear it and be the Dragon Queen, along with our little Dragon Princess. 

Can't wait to go trick or treating with these little munchkins. Also can't wait to levy the candy tax on all collected goodies. I hear it's at about 50% these days. Wowza. :)

xo, 

Sonja

Resources

The costumes adapted from several online resources. 

Knight

-Cardboard shield

-Helmet (This one was great! I reduced the size to 87% to fit Ben's head)

-Surcoat and chain mail sleeves  - my own design. 

Dragon

-Dragon tail

-Dragon Wings. I read this tutorial, but based the shape on this gorgeous pair from Etsy. Regardless, these were a pain and I will never again sew dragon wings. Or fairy wings. Or anything winged that involves sewing in wire for structural support. 

-Mask. Sort-of based off of this stunning leather creation. Mine was made of paper mache and playdough. We're classy like that.