Saturday, August 25, 2007

Two Months Early
I always like to get a jump start on Halloween costumes. My kids usually pick fairly easy things, but sometimes they are a little more complex. I hate spending a lot of money on something that they will wear for one day. So, we try to improvise as much as possible. Red wants to be Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter series. I'm game for that! We have Hubby's graduation robes which I'm going to hem up and then we will use an iron on patch for the Gryffindor coat of arms. He has a white shirt already. And of course, he has a wand. All we need is a tie. So, I started checking online... they are a tad on the expensive side... around $20. Please remember, I'm a total cheapskate. Anyway, today I headed to the second hand store and I got this:

It had the red color that I was looking for. I had seen online where a gal had painted a tie to make it look like the Gryffindor ties. So, I decided to give it a try. It was only $1.99... what could it hurt, right? I know it's not EXACT, but, it looks okay, don't you think? I'm pretty pleased... Halloween costume #1 is almost complete. Not sure how I'm gonna get Baby Girl's done... she wants to be a princess... I can make the dress, but the fabric will not be cheap. Anyone have some great idea?? I'm open for any suggestions.

7 comments:

Jean Knee said...

what size is she? If you go to walmart they have fabric for a dollar a yard in the fabric clearance aisle. lots of glittery fabric too.
you might be able to buy a cheap prom dress at a second hand store and cut it down

the tie looks great, i am a cheapskate too.

Justine said...

I'd absolutely look at a second hand store. Find a big poofy prom dress that you can cut up and use the fabric!

I made a princess dress one year, and by the time I finished, after a million trips to the fabric store for "just one more thing", I think I spent almost $40 on the dang dress.

Haven't done that again!

I'm all for letting the kids use their imagination to come up with something from around the house.

Good luck!

Anonymous said...

ebay? Just kidding. I know you prefer to make it yourself. I give you credit. Where do you find the time?

Melissa said...

jean knee - she's a 4 - I need to go to the WalMart across town. The one that's really close doesn't have anything suitable for a princess. A 70's disco dancer, yes. Great idea with the prom dress...

justine - HI! :) I'm going to have to see if I can find a dress... I did find a pattern I'd like to use. Technically, it's pj's, but it can be made up pretty fancy with lace and stuff. I'm worried that I will spend a lot on this too... I've checked out the princess dresses at Wal-Mart. If it's going to be more than $20, I'm just gonna buy one~

kailani - no, I love ebay! ebay is my favorite place in the world! :) And... you've given me the idea of looking for fabric there!! :D

elasticwaistbandlady said...

I took my daughters ballet recital costume and added wings and a tiara and called her a Fairy Princess. I got away with that for two years before passing it down to the next girl in line.

Sadly, now that she's 8, her ballet costumes look like Go-Go Dancer stuff with rhinestones, sequins, and fake suede. :(

Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

Wow...you're changing templates more often than me lately!

I think that outfit looks amazing! You're so smart to plan ahead.

Unknown said...

I love the tie! I have been looking for the same thing. Thanks for the idea.