Ghosts of Halloweens Past: Part Two

Brace yourself for the next round of previous Halloween hauntings.

The Ghosts of Woody, Woody Two, and Jessie



2007 - We had so much fun doing this family costume theme. We got these pictures taken at Target since our regular Halloween pictures are usually dark.


Yes, there are two Woodys. Here's the story: I had told Marito a few years before that we should be Woody and Jessie. By the time we got around to it we had a kid. I really wanted Monkey One to be Woody, so I started planning. When Marito found out he said, "But I thought I was going to be Woody!" in such a sweet, sad way that I had to let them both be Woody. Who'd have thought that Marito even cared? I just think he's a good sport for letting me get him all dressed up in the first place. And by the way, here's the secret, I figure: If you make a big effort to make family theme costumes he won't want to (a) spoil it for everyone one and (b) waste all that time I spent sewing.


Here's the pattern I used for the shirts. I've found it's just as effective to make your own patterns from existing shirts, so this is the only time I've used the pattern.


2007 - Jessie detail. The yoke and cuffs are actually separate from the shirt. They just button on top of any white button-down. I love the cuffs, but I forgot to wear them for the Target pictures. I was so bummed when I realized. So here they are in their full glory on Halloween night. Cuffs, you shall not be forgotten! The faux Jessie chaps are just safety pinned to the front of my jeans. The Jessie pin is from Disneyland. I also got the boys Sheriff stars with their names from Frontierland.


2007 - It was impossible to find any variation of yellow and red plaid fabric that year. So I made my own. I used red Sharpies and a ruler to draw lines on plain yellow fabric. It worked pretty well!

The denim trick-or-treat back I made from a pair of Marito's old shorts. The Woody hat and holster came from the Disney store, and the boots were from Old Navy. The Toy Story fabric for the bandanna came from Walmart.


2007 - This wasn't necessarily for Halloween. It was just a fun dress up shirt to wear anytime. Again, it was just a plain yellow tee that I drew stripes onto. The knit "cow print" (if you look carefully you'll discover it looks more like dalmatian print) vest was sewn right onto it, along with the big white buttons.


2007 - Want to know how to get your kid attention at Disneyland? Dress him up like his favorite character. Of course there are crowds of little girls in princess costumes, but it's less common to see boys dressed up. My husband would say there's a reason for that. But I'll ignore that hypothetical comment and keep gushing. Isn't this picture the cutest thing?

These are "professional" pictures a Disneyland photographer took.

Ghosts of Halloweens Past

In honor of Halloween tomorrow, I thought I'd revisit some older costumes I've made. These ghosts keep reappearing every other year or so. You may have seen them in my Flickr photos. If they are haunting you here for the first time then I hope you enjoy.

The Ghosts of Tarzan, Jane, and Monkey



2005 - The Tarzan wig is made from fancy yarn. Marito was a good sport for wearing it. Also, that leafy thing is supposed to be a vine. When we walked into the Halloween party someone thought he was a tree! Tree, indeed. Hmmph. The Jane costume is so much fun to wear, but has so many pieces to it! There's a bustle pillow and a fluffy petticoat under that flounce in the back. Just in case you thought that was me. I just want to keep that clear.


2005 - Jane detail (this monkey costume was purchased).


I used this pattern for Jane. It is a very complicated costume, so I simplified it a bit and made it shorter like Jane's. I also made a puffy petticoat for fun.


2007 - Here we used the costumes again (we had moved to a different state, so these was new to everyone who saw us). This time Tarzan wore his costume leopard-side-out.


2007 - Here's the monkey costume I made.


Here's the pattern I used. As you can see, I modified it for an older toddler (he's almost 3 years old here). I left off the obnoxious fringe.


2007 - He still frequently wears this costume around the house.


2007 - It's difficult to see in this picture, but there's a curly tail in the back. It's attached to the top. That fuzzy white part is just a camera thing.

Indian Family Peg People

I remembered to take these pictures before I put the finish on so there wouldn't be a glare. The woman's clothing is from a painting in a library book about Plains Indians. The little boys' clothing is from a costume pattern we are using to make real costumes for the boys.




My son and I made these as a homeschool activity. I keep finding them in his pants pockets. These would be fun to play with together with the Little House on the Prairie play people I made for my niece.

Olive Kitchen Set and New Look!

I love this Santorini olive fabric. I hope my mom does, too, because that's what she got for her birthday. I made her two hanging kitchen towels, and since I was having fun I made a couple of reversible hot pads. I have a little fabric left over, so I'm hoping to make some for myself, as well.

The little white ball trim came from (curtains? A bed spread?) something I got at the thrift store, which I bought only for the trim. As soon as I got home I pulled out my handy dandy seam ripper and yanked the trim off that ugly fabric. It's cute on the towel, don't you think?

And speaking of Jack the Seam Ripper... I fixed up my blog! I've had a makeover in the making for a few months. That's one reason I haven't been posting much. I couldn't decide on the many slightly varying versions I made of the header. Finally I decided just to pick one. It's much better than before. My amazing, wonderful, brilliant brother Will made the seam ripper for me. It turned out even cooler than I hoped or imagined. I'm sure I'll keep fixing up the layout as time goes by, but I'm just glad to have something new, fresh and cute for now.

(By the way, can anyone see the favicon? I'm having trouble with it, as it only seems to show up in Chrome on my own computer.)

On the left are some of the other headers I was considering. I almost chose the one with the green rick rack but in the end decided to go for the chosen frame for it's retro look. My "about me" picture looks a little freaky, but it's kind of fun, too. It's from a picture of me at my sister-in-law's wedding this summer. So now I need some feedback: Which header do you like best? Do you have any suggestions for my blog layout? Are you having trouble seeing the images? You love the pot holders and towels so much you want to go visit my mom this instant so you can see them in person?

Play Shoes

I'm on a shoes kick. Can you tell?








This little monkey desperately needed new play shoes, as his old ones had wholes the size of silver dollars in the toes. I think I've finally gotten down a good pattern and method for making these soft shoes. The key? Simplicity. I love them. I made these out of vinyl because I needed something more durable than the soft leather I used for his green and brown church shoes. This is marine-quality vinyl so water won't soak through it. Although the vinyl is not very breathable I'm hoping the vents on the sides will help with that.