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Archives for December 2018

DIY No-Sew Saint Lucia Costume

December 28, 2018

Does your little girl have a long, white nightgown in her pajama drawer? No? Neither did mine! I had to get a little creative on this one. Let’s look at how I put Emma’s Saint Lucia outfit together with thrifted and Dollar Tree items.

First, we made a crown with Dollar Tree supplies. *Disclaimer* This post contains affiliate links. Any purchases made through these links will earn me a small commission. I am careful to only promote products that I personally use and love!

Then, I happened to find this women’s nightgown at Goodwill. It would be shorter on a woman, but it was floor-length on Emma. Score!

This find reminded me, yet again, that I often don’t find what I’m looking for in the store section that I would expect. Most children’s clothing is very contemporary, with a few vintage finds tucked in. It is highly unlikely to find a long, plain, white nightgown with the kid stuff. However, I may find one that could be altered in the women’s section. It’s all about thinking a bit outside the box while I’m shopping!

This nightgown has a tie to shape the waist in the back. (The back hem got a bit dirty during our photo shoot. I need to soak this in OxiClean!) The nightgown has a very wide and low neck, so I had Emma wear one of Elliott’s white dress shirts, underneath, to fill it in. It’s often tricky to find girl’s blouses, so my default is to use boy’s dress shirts, which are relatively common in thrift stores. Elliott often has to wear “girl” items in his historical costume outfits, so it was about time for Emma to take one for the team!

For the sash, I used the last length of Offray, red, 1 1/2 inch-wide grosgrain ribbon that I happened to have on this spool.

I tied the red sash around Emma’s waist. The white robe stands for purity. The red sash stands for martyrdom.

Where would Saint Lucia be without her tray of breakfast? I found the perfect, child-size “silver” tray at the Dollar Tree.

Put it all together!

As a Protestant, I have not spent a lot of time thinking about saints. However, there are many things to learn from Saint Lucia. She was an early Christian who was martyred because she was caught while bringing food to fellow believers in hiding. Her story was revived, in medieval Sweden, when a woman brought food to a neighboring village during a famine. She wore a wreath of candles on her head and came over in a boat, lit with torchlight. Her bravery and kindness reminded people of the old tradition of Saint Lucia. This is how an Italian, Catholic saint came to be celebrated in Scandinavia; Sweden in particular.

Lucia’s enduring message of being a light in the darkness has led to her special day still being celebrated in Sweden, even though it is now a nominally Lutheran nation. For more, this is an excellent article in the Post-Gazette. It includes a more detailed history of the origins of Saint Lucia (*warning* it may be too gory for wee ones), and yet another recipe for Lussekatter. Lucia, Child of Light and Lucia Morning in Sweden are also excellent and interesting sources. The latter is the most entertaining for kids, due to its wonderful illustrations.

So, while I do not pray to, for, or through Saints, learning about Saint Lucia opened a conversation between Emma and Elliott and me about the cost of our beliefs. What, ultimately, is so important to us that we would risk everything? As a Christian, I believe that all fellow believers are saints (with a little “s”). We are called to serve and to love and to be lights pointing the world to Christ. This is what celebrating Saint Lucia represents to me.

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Filed Under: Uncategorized

Christmas Cookies! Pepparkakor (Swedish Gingersnaps)

December 25, 2018

These little Christmas elves helped me bake some traditional Pepparkakor (Swedish Gingersnaps)!

First of all, we followed the recipe in Lucia Morning in Sweden. This book is an all-around great introduction to Scandinavian Christmas customs for children! *Disclaimer* I am an Amazon Services LLC Associates Program member. Any purchases made through my Amazon links will earn me a small commission. I am careful to only promote products that I personally use and love!

Honestly, the best part of making the Pepparkakor dough was teaching the kids about spices. “You mean cinnamon comes from bark?” Their minds were blown! I like to cook Indian and Asian dishes, so I already had whole cardamom pods and ginger root in our pantry to show them.

The only thing missing from the recipe was cardamom. This delicious, lemony-smelling spice is found in most Pepparkakor recipes I have made in the past. So, we added one teaspoon to this recipe. Yum!

What cookie shapes should we make? This decision is the only hard part about making Pepparkakor!

Here are the finished cookies! They are slightly soft when they are first baked. After a couple days, they harden to a crispier texture. Both are delicious!

So, where do costumes come into making Pepparkakor? I mean, this is a costuming blog! Well, Emma and Elliott needed Christmas outfits for a themed night at our church’s AWANA club. I had already bought this adorable box of TeeHee Holiday Knee Socks for my costume in The Nutcracker. I knew we could use the silly socks for lots of other occasions, too. Check out the adorable packaging! This would make the perfect gift for someone.

One of my favorite things (aside from cookies) is creating impromptu costumes! We already had all of these clothing items. Green dress? Silly Christmas sweater? Vintage apron? Socks and hats? YES! Just combine them and create adorable Christmas elf costumes! (The Dollar Tree is a great place to pick up cute Christmas hats!)

I think taking dance helps them come up with such fun poses!

Well, Merry Christmas, dear readers! I hope you have a wonderful day celebrating with your family and friends. Thank you for joining me on this blogging journey. I can’t wait to make more costuming magic with you in the new year!

 

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Filed Under: Holidays with the Hemingers

DIY Saint Lucia Lussekatter Rolls

December 24, 2018

If your kids are like mine, it’s all about the treats! We had so much fun making these sweet Lussekatter (Lucia Rolls). It was basically a sensory romp for them; like playing with Play-Doh…Only they could eat their creations, afterward! What’s not to love?

Our Lussekatter were made following the recipe in Lucia Morning in Sweden. This delightfully illustrated book gave our kids a great intro into how Saint Lucia is currently celebrated in Sweden. *Disclaimer* I am an Amazon Services LLC Associates Program member. Any purchases made through my Amazon links will earn me a small commission. I am careful to only promote products that I personally use and love!

Cracking eggs is always an adventure with these two!

I followed the recipe to the letter except for one ingredient: The saffron. It was $25 a bottle at our grocery store. In fact, saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. It is more costly, per ounce, than gold! Forking out that kind of dough for our first attempt at this dough seemed like risky business!

What did I use in lieu of saffron to give the rolls their signature, golden color? Six drops of yellow food coloring! Yes, this was a major cheat. Our rolls were also missing the flavor of saffron, as a result. Maybe we’ll go for the real thing, next year, since our kids liked the rolls.

Things took a dramatic turn when Elliott struggled to scoop enough flour.

Rolling the dough was Emma and Elliott’s favorite part of making the Lussekatter.

Lussekatter basically translates as “Lucia’s Cats”, due to the curling shape of the rolls. They resemble curling cat tails. We brushed the rolls with an egg and water mixture and placed a raisin in the heart of each curl.

Ta-da! Emma and Elliott could hardly wait to try their creations. They were so excited to share these rolls with their Nana and Papa, their siblings, and their teachers. And, that’s part of what the celebration of Saint Lucia is about. It’s about service and bringing light and physical comfort to those around us. That includes treats!

On the left: Snooty Saint Lucia. “No Lussekatter for you!”

On the right: Sweet Saint Lucia. “Saint Lucia comes to bring you breakfast!”

 

 

 

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Filed Under: Holidays with the Hemingers Tagged: Holidays with the Hemingers

DIY Dollar Tree Saint Lucia Candle Crown

December 20, 2018

So, I know Lucia Day has come and gone, but the spirit of Saint Lucia and the theme of light in darkness holds throughout Advent season, right? Plus, you may be like I was as a child and celebrate St. Lucia on Christmas morning. We did this because:

A. It was the only morning we wanted to get up early. (I mean, HELLO. Presents!)

B. It was one of the few mornings we could wake up before our parents, since my dad was an early commuter.

Regardless of when you celebrate, this tutorial will show you how to make a Saint Lucia crown. Even better? Nearly all the materials come from your local Dollar Tree!

First, I found these 15 inch wreaths! They are very basic, but I saw their potential as the foundation for a Lucia Crown.

Luckily, I had a model with me to check the fit of the wreath! It was a little large on Eliza, but I figured I would attach the candles inside the crown. This would reduce the internal circumference enough to fit a child’s head.

Speaking of candles, those were next on my list! I opted to use these 6-inch, battery-operated ones instead of real candles with flames. Fire + hair = no bueno. Ask my nine-year-old self after blowing out my birthday candles…Let’s just say, I was blessed that the worst that happened was that the tip of my braid was singed and very stinky. I could have gone up in flames!

                                                                                                 

Eliza is the perfect shopping companion, by the way! She is so methodical and eager to help.

Each candle required two, Triple-A batteries. Yes, the Dollar Tree also sells packs of batteries!

I also picked up this roll of Christmas ribbon to wind around the wreath.

I decided that the Lucia Crown needed some additional interest, color, and texture. So, we went back to the Dollar Tree on another day and bought some gold, artificial foliage.

Before you start making your Lucia crown, open each package of candles and test them with batteries. Occasionally, a package will have a defective candle. All of my candles passed this initial test, but one inexplicably failed after I finished making the crown. I was glad that I bought an extra package of candles to replace it. I recommend doing the same!

Here’s a collage of the basic supplies needed to make this wreath. I also used wire to wrap the around each candle and to secure them to the wreath. I already had this wire in my stash. Unfortunately, I am unable to tell you its grade or material, since its packaging was missing. However, I recommend getting something sturdy!

This next bit takes some patience and experimentation. I cut the wire into six lengths (one for each candle) and began by twisting the middle of the wire around each candle. Then, I wrapped the remaining tails of wire around the wreath, from above and below. I crossed it in an “X” shape and wrapped around the wreath again. I repeated this until I had no wire left.

If your wreath looks like this, at this point, Do. Not. Panic. (Okay, I panicked a bit!) It looks rather dreadful, doesn’t it? Maybe this is because I should have used stiffer wire. However, I remembered that I had bought this ribbon for a decorative effect and to secure the additional foliage I was going to add to the crown. Maybe it could also help to brace the candles upright?

Sure enough, it did! I tied the end of the ribbon around one of the candles. Then, I twisted it around each candle a couple times and wrapped it around the wreath 2-3 times between the candles. I used almost the entire spool, which contained three yards! The candles were much less floppy and much more upright. I figured that they would probably stand up even more when the crown was worn and the candles were trapped between the wreath and the wearer’s head.

Next was the most enjoyable part of this project! It was fun to snip apart the clumps of gold foliage with the pliers. I tucked the shortened stems into the ribbon wrapping, making sure to place the stems in the same direction around the wreath. I recommend adding a few drops of hot glue inside the ribbon wrapping to secure each bit of foliage. You can skip this step, but you may lose some foliage when the crown is worn.

Here is the finished Saint Lucia crown with the rest of the outfit I assembled for Emma! I will share how I put this whole look together in my next blog post. Emma said the Lucia crown was somewhat uncomfortable because the faux pine branches were scratchy. The candle ends also dug into the sides of her head, and the wreath was still loose and prone to slipping. SO, it looks like this crown will be a work in process. I am going to create a fabric “doughnut” of padding inside the wreath. This will hopefully solve all three of these issues.

A friend from church delivered a fresh, beautiful wreath to our door right before we were going to take pictures. What a perfect photo prop!

This is what the wreath looks like when it is lit at night! The battery candle in Emma’s hand was also purchased at the Dollar Tree.

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DIY Pilgrim Pants from Khaki Pants

December 13, 2018

Breeches don’t usually fall from the sky, like the pair that I used for Elliott’s Pilgrim pants. So, what are we to do? Well, look no further than your child’s old khakis.

Oliver is modeling such a pair of outgrown khakis with one of his favorite cars and a “coon-skin” cap that he has appropriated as his lovey.

I played with where I wanted the breeches to land and placed a safety pin to mark the spot. (I knew that I would also be adding an under-knee cuff to this length.)

I planned on also using these breeches as part of Oliver’s Alan a Dale rooster costume for our Disney’s Robin Hood-themed family Halloween costumes. This rust colored hoodie was also destined to be part of his Halloween costume. I was trying to kill two birds with one costume fitting!

I measured the excess material that I planned to eventually cut away. Then, I wrote this measurement down for later reference and removed the safety pin.

What did I do next? I dyed the breeches, of course! I know, I know. I have been dyeing a ton of stuff. It’s addicting!

I had some dark green powdered dye on hand, so I went with that. I decided to use only half of the packet and to pre-mix it in hot water before adding it to the washer.

It’s times like these that I am especially glad we have a laundry sink RIGHT next to our washer!

Swirl and mix! It’s always interesting to see the different pigments that are part of the dye.

I needed to dye several things green, so I threw all of them in the washer with the green dye. Doesn’t the new, natural-looking green of the breeches look nice?

This definitely looked like a green that could have been produced using dyes that would have been available to the Pilgrims. It also suited Alan a Dale’s outfit.

Now it was time to remove that excess material from the pant legs! I matched the front and back of the pants together with pins at the hems. I marked my cutting line with my Dritz Disappearing Ink Marking Pen. *Disclaimer* I am an Amazon Services LLC Associates Program member. Any purchases made through my Amazon links will earn me a small commission. I am careful to only promote products that I personally use and love!

Snip, snip!

Next, I cut open the excess material from each pant leg along one side seam.

I measured around the widest part of Oliver’s calf to determine how long each under-knee cuff needed to be, plus 1/4 inch seam allowance. Then, I marked and measured the length and width of each cuff.

Each of the cuff pieces were squared during the cutting process and then serged.

I folded each cuff in half, length-wise, and sewed each into a cylinder.

I gathered the breeches into the cuffs and stitched them together, matching right sides. Then, I turned the cuffs right side out and folded the cuffs over and into the breeches. Top-stitching the cuffs was a slick way to cover the seams on the inside of each breech leg while giving a finished look.

Here are the finished breeches! I have so many costumes planned that will incorporate this very versatile piece! This is a good front view of the finished breeches.

And here is a rear-view!

 

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Filed Under: History with the Hemingers Tagged: DIY, Easy Costume, History with Kids, Kid Costume, Pilgrim Pants, Pilgrims, Thanksgiving, Upcycle

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