Something Archaic This Way Comes...

The Ren Faire starts in a few weeks! It's been a while since we went, so I think this year we'll have to make a point of going. I was digging the costumes out of the closet, and realized that the kid had, like all her other things, outgrown hers. This'll mean some serious reworking of it on my part, again. I think I've reworked her original costume from when she was a baby maybe 3-4 times so far. She's 10 now, and I'd still like to incorporate bits of the original baby costume where I can. I have a lot of fun making costumes when I can, although I'm strictly an amatuer.

I don't have pictures handy of the original, but it was a light brown dress with a muslin shift underneath. The bodice and the bottom 1/3 of the dress were quilted in a diamond pattern I'd applied brass studs and ribbon to the quilted dress bodice, bottom 1/3 and sleeves, and fixed up a lace cap for her. It worked up pretty well, all things considered.

Well she got older and started walking, and while the dress still fit her body, it was laughably short. When she reached age 2, I cut the bottom 1/3 of the dress off and spliced in a dark green skirt, adding the quilted 1/3 back onto the hem.


Here is her costume when she was age 3. She got a blue underskirt and inherited my first muslin blouse. The original dress/skirt was tucked up, and I made her a new muffin cap. The sides of the bodice and top of the shoulders of the dress were slashed, I placed grommets there and threaded ribbon through the grommets, joining the pieces that way so they could be adjusted.

With her older cousin.

And with her dad and I. I also made my costume but not his, except for his boot covers and hat.

When she was 5 it got a major revamping, I switched to a purple corduroy bodice/overskirt but I attached the original baby costume's beaded sleeves. She also got another skirt, a light purple one. Everything else stayed pretty much the same.

Here she's on stage with The Merry Wives of Windsor.

 And playing with bubbles...

And a dove!

In 2006 she wore it again as it was. The following year was a furnace, so we went in street clothes and survived the day. The last two years we've missed going entirely, what with one thing and another.

So now...I don't know. Luckily she tends to grow up and not out, she's of normal height/weight. After school today I'll get her to try on the parts she can, and hopefully it won't take the jaws of life to get them back off her again.