Happy Halloween

Celebrating Halloween isn't really a big thing here in Australia.  Growing up on a steady diet of American sitcoms and movies, I was insanely jealous that kids got to dress up, roam the streets at night and get bucketloads of lollies.  My dad is a Type 1 insulin dependent diabetic, so the only lollies in our house were for emergencies and not for us kids - probably why I have such a sweet tooth now!

Retailers here are trying their best to get us into the Halloween tradition, but each year the predictable laments start about the Americanisation of our culture, which is quite funny given that Halloween is based on a pagan tradition from ye olde Europe.  Anna is too young to go trick or treating so it's not something I have to take a stand on just yet, but when her daycare decided to have a spooky dress up day I started to think up some cool costume ideas - Wednesday Addams, Pippi Longstocking or the like but Anna was pretty set on being a plain old witch.  Sure I could've gone and bought an outfit so plasticky it might spontaneously combust, but as an overachieving crafty mum I was loving the opportunity to make something instead.

And I just happened to have a costume pattern purchased not long after Anna was born just waiting for the day when I could start making dress up costumes:

Because it's pretty hot here, I made her witchy dress from a lightweight cotton voile and polyester organza both out of the stash, with short sleeves and a mid calf length so she wouldn't trip over:

Accessorised with a store bought hat she pilfered from her aunt (saved me messing around with boning and fabric to make a pointy hat), and some cardboard buckles she looks quite cute, if understated.  My favourite bit are the red stripey socks and black pointy shoes:

It seems the witchcraft community has undergone the feminist revolution too, and the broom has been left at home with the other cleaning implements.  The modern witch gets about town these days on a zooming scooter:

Little brother wasn't to be left out either.  I was given a Tigger outfit as a gift that so far has been too big, but is perfect for a Halloween dress up:

And the best bit about this diversion is that it's given me more time to think about what fabric to use for the cowl neck dress.  You all gave me so many good reasons to go in many directions that I'm still mulling over the comments - thanks everyone, I knew you'd all have some good ideas.  I just didn't realise there'd be so many good ideas.