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Uh-oh…You just found out that your child needs a pioneer outfit…Most of us are going to face this conundrum at some point in our children’s school careers.

Some pieces are relatively easy to find. Dress? Check! Boots? Check! Bonnet and Apron??? Sometimes the accessories are the hardest to find. And YET, these pesky little costume pieces are usually the very ones that you really need to create that iconic “look”. Well, have no fear! After reading this post, (and my next one on aprons) you will be just one pillowcase away from making your very own matching bonnet and apron for your little pioneer!

Supplies

• Fabric (1/2 yard, or a pillowcase)
• 3/4 inch-wide elastic, about 7 inches long
• Stiff, sew-in stabilizer (optional, but it stiffens the brim)
• Thread
• Scissors
• Safety pins (2)
• Paper
• Tape
• Pencil
• Ruler and rounded shape for making lines and curves
• Sewing machine (I mean, I guess you could sew the whole thing by hand!)
• Sewing needle

What is my deal with pillowcases? Well, of course I could select a few yards of any fabric I want! However, I am really drawn to pillowcases for four reasons:

1. They’re cheap! I can usually find them at thrift stores for a dollar, fifty cents, or even less!
2. Some of them already have interesting trim, i.e. lace, ric rac, piping, etc.
3. They take the guesswork out of planning how much material I need.
4. There’s something freeing about working within limitations. (This is all the fabric I have!)

That being said, it can take a while to come across pillowcases with cute prints. Solid ones exist in abundance. Ones that look like gingham and calico? Not so much. However, I eventually found two, plaid pillowcases; one for Emma and one for Eliza. I liked the contrast in prints between the geometric lines and their floral dresses.

I used this vintage bonnet from my collection as the basis for the pattern. While it is darling, the colors and print of this bonnet are too 1970s for pioneer times. (I’m persnickety.) As you can see, the trimmed hems of the pillowcases were almost exactly the same length and width of this bonnet brim! This really got my wheels turning.

Next, I measured the different parts of the bonnet to come up with the basis for my own pattern. It’s a little tricky to measure a 3D object to render a 2D paper pattern.

Are you ready to see my super fancy pattern-making tools and methods? (I’m joking!) First, I taped two pieces of printer paper together.

Using my bonnet measurements as a reference, I made marks to create the pattern piece for the crown (poofy, back bonnet pattern piece). Yes, that is Oliver’s foot, and yes, that is the splatter cover from our microwave. (I like using random, rounded objects in our kitchen as my tools for grading curves. The long, vertical edge of the paper is the center back of the pattern piece, designed to be placed on a fold of fabric.

I re-examined the vintage bonnet and realized that the side of my crown pattern needed to swoop outward a bit more. So, I marked additional measurements, graded a new curve, and drew a connecting line to join the new curve down to the base of the crown. To do so, I used this metal t-square. It was a required purchase for my scenic design class, in college. (We learned to draft theatre sets the old-school way!) My dad absolutely loves this t-square. He covets it every time he visits. Sorry, Dad. You still can’t have it! (I guess I inherited some of the family engineering genes, after all.)

After marking the bonnet crown pattern piece with fold lines, etc, I began to make the pattern for the brim. I started by tracing the curve of the original bonnet brim and drew a straight line for the side.

With pattern pieces drafted, I snipped open the side and top seams of my washed and dried pillowcase.

Next, I played with the layout of my pattern pieces to get the most use out of the fabric. (I was also going to eke an apron out of the remnants.) The brim piece was placed along the bottom edge of the pillowcase so that I could take advantage of the double-layer of fabric and ric rac trim that was already there! Extra stiffness and prettiness in one step? Yes, please!

After cutting these pieces out of the material, I moved the brim pattern piece up to cut another piece of fabric for the brim lining. I also measured and cut two strips of fabric, 19 1/2 inches by 2 1/2 inches for the bonnet ties.

This next part is optional, but I wanted the bonnet brim to be stiff. I have had lots of bad experiences with fusible interfacing, so I prefer to use sew-in varieties.

I stocked up on my favorite kinds of interfacing when Jo-Ann had a 50% off sale! You can also find them on Amazon. I especially like Pellon’s 50 Heavyweight Stabilizer.

Once I had all my fabric pieces cut out, I serged along the straight edge of the brim lining. I did the same with the main brim, but serged the interfacing piece to its wrong side, at the same time. One and done!

And here are what the brim pieces looked like from the backside. At this point, I proceeded to serge the brim, lining and interfacing, all together, along the curved sides. This turned out to be a mistake! I should have waited until I sewed on the bonnet ties, first, since they are attached to the brim.

Oops! It’s not fun to have to unpick serger stitches. Live and learn! So, before I went on, I stopped to prepare the bonnet ties. There are no pictures of these steps, but it’s quite easy! I sewed the ties into long cylinders, wrong side to wrong side. Then, I mitered and stitched the ends closed. I popped them right side out with this handy Quick Turn tool. You could use a pencil or pen to poke the ties right side out, but the tool makes it sooo much easier!

With the ties read to go, it was time to sew them to the bonnet brim. I placed the ties 3/4 inches from the corner edge, stitched them down, and then finally re-sewed the bonnet brim lining and top piece together, wrong sides together, along the curved edge. I used a 1/4 inch seam allowance.

At this point, I lay the finished brim aside and started to work on the bonnet crown. I began by serging all the way around its raw edges. Don’t worry if you don’t have a serger! The way I put this bonnet together ensures that all the raw edges are enclosed, which minimizes raveling.

I folded the serged bottom edge up along its serged line (1/4 inch) and stitched it across. Then, I folded it up another inch and stitched it at the very top of this new fold line, to make an elastic casing. I checked the back of my vintage bonnet to see how long I should cut the elastic to cinch the bonnet in at the back.

At this point, I would do things a little differently if I could do it all over again. The vintage bonnet’s elastic was only about 4 inches long, so that was the length I cut and stitched into Eliza’s new bonnet. However, this made the bonnet very snug on her, and much too tight to fit a larger child. Since it still fit Eliza, (and I didn’t want to have to rip out any more stitches) I decided to let things be. When I made Emma’s bonnet, I learned from my mistake and cut her elastic 6 1/2 inches long, which gave much more ease.

Next, I secured one end of the elastic to one end of the casing and used a second safety pin as a giant needle to scrunch the other end of the elastic through the casing. Afterward, I stitched the elastic down at each end with lots of back and forth stitches. That elastic isn’t going anywhere!

Next, I used my sewing needle to make gathering stitches along the top (curved) edge of the bonnet crown. I used red thread to make the gathering stitches easy to see. Now, I am not O.C.D. in most areas of my life, (take one look in my house, and you’ll see what I mean) but I am O.C.D. about creating nice, even gathers in my sewing projects. To achieve this, I divide the material to be gathered (the crown) and the material it will be sewn to (the brim) into even sections. Then, I pull the gathering threads to bunch the gathered crown material to fit evenly between these pinned points on the brim. From there, I often add a lot more pins to reeeaaallly finesse where each gather will land. This is probably overkill, but it’s what I do!

We’re getting sooo close! Okay, so I removed the red gathering threads, and all that was left to be done was to fold the brim over and hand-stitch the brim lining to cover our newly-sewn, gathered seam. I always find this finishing work to be so satisfying! It creates a final product that has no raw edges. All of them are safely tucked away, which makes a garment that is both beautiful and durable!

Here are some different views of the finished bonnets. First, Eliza:

And Emma:

These photos of the girls are teasers for a future post I’ll do on this beautiful photo shoot. We drove out to Entiat City Park and played along the Columbia River as the sun set. But before that, I will also show you how I made their matching pioneer aprons from the pillowcase remnants. Until then, have a creative day, my friends!

P.S. Someday, I hope to create a downloadable PDF of this bonnet pattern. Email me at info@yesyoucancostumes.com if you’d like me to pursue this. I need some motivation to venture into learning how to create printables!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our family recently had the super fun opportunity to be in a local, promotional video! It is for Link Transit, our public transit company.

How does this relate to costuming? Well, let me tell you…Getting five small children dressed in their cutest winter attire, complete with coats, hats, and boots, is definitely a theatrical production! Up to this point, our kids hadn’t rode the Link Bus except during “Touch-A-Truck”. This is a fantastic event put on by the Women’s Service League of North Central Washington. All sorts of vehicles assemble in a giant parking lot, and kids can touch them, and even climb inside! There are fire trucks, police cars, a S.W.A.T. tank, helicopters taking off, and so much more. I hope your community offers something similar, because the event is pretty much heaven for little kids!

Here’s a photo of our family from “Touch-A-Truck”, back in 2013. I can hardly believe how little Emma (4) and Elliott (3) are in these photos! I had just had Oliver, a month prior, and Eliza was 16 months. During this same time, Jeff was Bert in Music Theatre of Wenatchee’s production of Mary Poppins. (Hence the significance of the banner on the bus.)

Alrighty, back to the present! Some awesome friends we know through our theatre connections gave us this opportunity, and our kids were sooo excited to ride the “Rainbow Bus”, as they call it. So, I went through all of our closets and dressed the kiddos in all the Hanna Andersson clothing items and vintage coats and hats they could stand, and we toodled on down to the bus station. (Can you tell how excited they are by their classic “scrunchy faces”?)

The bus was decked with garlands, ribbons, and ornaments. It was pretty magical! The kids couldn’t wait to climb aboard. (Don’t worry. I re-tied Emma’s boot lace.)

“There aren’t any seat belts?!?!?” The kids were both thrilled and perplexed by the lack of restraints during the ride!

Piped in Christmas music added to the festive mood. Okay, I have to stop for a moment and acknowledge this gorgeous, red, wool vintage coat I found for Annika. Five dollars at Goodwill, people! Five. Dollars.

Oh, and this Hanna Andersson dress that Emma wore, that I also found at Goodwill for five dollars. These sweater dresses retail for at least sixty dollars. And, they’re Swedish. And they’re gorgeous. So, yeah. I couldn’t grab it fast enough!

Okay, now we can go on. Sorry, I just get sooo excited about great finds!

Once we were settled, we were handed prop presents. I was sure that Oliver wouldn’t be able to control himself and would rip one open…But he managed to leave the packages intact…With lots of little reminders! The kids just loved viewing familiar streets from the higher perspective and large windows that the bus afforded them.

After a bit, we were dropped off at a bus stop, so that the camera guys could get video of us both exiting and boarding the bus.

Since we had by far the most kiddos, they had us get off at the first stop so that we would also be the first group to be picked back up.

They couldn’t have picked a better day to film! It was crisp, outside, but also gorgeous and sunny!

Santa himself boarded the bus for the last leg of our trip! He and his elves gave the kids candy canes and Christmas ornaments.

Back at the station, the Link Transit crew served us a delicious pizza lunch, and the kids enjoyed some coloring. All in all, it was an amazing, memorable morning! Once again, I have fallen even more in love with my community. Oh, and the actual holiday video? You can view it here!

I hope I’ll be able to make a few more posts before Christmas, but just in case…All of us at the Heminger House wish all of you a merry, blessed Christmas!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Valley has several, amazing cultural and historical treasures. The Cashmere Museum and Pioneer Village is, perhaps, the best of all! So, when our friends invited us to the annual Apple Days event, we jumped at the chance to participate…In costume, of course!

The only costume piece I made for this event was Emma’s pinafore apron. It started life as a pillowcase, and went on to become part of her Alice in Wonderland Halloween costume. But, more about that in a future post. For now, here are all the elements that went into putting these cute pioneer outfits together!

Emma’s dress was a great thrift store find! It’s hard to find long sleeve, longer-length dresses, and this purple, floral, corduroy number was perfect!

Elliott has worn these gray, twill pants for lots of costume looks, including during our most recent post: Hopi Harvest. It can be very difficult to track down pants like these, so I ended up buying them on eBay.

Vintage clothes formed the foundation of Eliza’s look. Her favorite color is red, so of course I HAD to snap up this darling, calico dress! The hand smocking around the collar is so sweet. The dress needed some minor repairs, and then it was good to go. The pinafore apron came from another vintage outfit.

Oliver has worn the pieces of this pioneer outfit on several other occasions, as well. The suspenders were purchased for the boys to wear in my sister’s wedding. They have come in handy, ever since. How ever did we function without them?

Oliver’s knicker pants came from this adorable, five-piece outfit set I found at the YWCA thrift store. Even better? The cashier told me that she thought they were over-priced, and gave them to me for $5, instead of $9. I would never have dreamed of asking her to do that, but I wasn’t about to turn down her offer!

Annika’s little ensemble is similar to Eliza’s, in that it is pieced together from items in my vintage collection. The dress was part of a “lot” that I bought on eBay. I’m tellin’ you, buying a “lot” can be the best way to snag a deal!

Okay! Where were we? Oh, yes. Pioneer Village!  The ladies at the gate seemed a little confused about whether we were just visitors, or if the kids were reenactors. I’ll take that as a compliment!

Photo-op!

One of the kids’ favorite parts of the Pioneer Village was the stretch of train track and a real train car that they could climb inside.

Train ride to the past? All aboard!

Sometimes, it’s nice to get a back view of the costumes. After this outing, I adjusted Emma’s apron shoulder straps so they wouldn’t slip down.

Perhaps the most unique installation at the Pioneer Village is the Stoffel Waterwheel. It was built to irrigate an orchard in 1897, and had just been restored in time for this year’s Apple Days festivities. It still turns!

The schoolhouse was probably Emma and Elliott’s favorite spot in the village. I mean, how many times is one able to not only see really old buildings, but to be able to go inside, handle items, and even participate in an activity? Usually places like these are cordoned off.

There were desks, slates, chalk, and all sorts of antique educational materials, inside. The museum even provided a delightful, young, “teacher”. She posed authentic math problems and spelling words of the period.

I’ve never seen the kids so excited about school. (And on a weekend, too!)

Some friends from church also filled the school desks. I loaned them costumes for the day, too!

Please try to ignore the Transformers Band-aid and the neon green admissions bracelet…

“Where’s Washington?” Even geography is more fun on a gigantic, old map!

Annika spied the water bucket and the ladle that would have been used by all the children, in lieu of a drinking fountain. You can practically read her mind. “Can I touch this? Okay, now I’m grabbing it…You’re not stopping me…Oh, goody! I have the giant scooper thing!”

And, here’s the proud, pioneer papa! (Annika was mad that I wouldn’t let her bring my caramel frappé  into the schoolhouse.)

In the Saloon, the kids were wary of the peanut shells on the floor, and, as Elliott put it, the “creepy cowboys” playing cards. However, the presence of a piano made them feel right at home.

I wish I’d gotten more pictures of the outsides of the buildings, but I was too busy chasing small children! Each of these structures is a real, pioneer-era building from our region. One by one, they were carefully moved to the museum site.

Eliza’s not above taking a ride in the stroller, from time to time. I fondly refer to it as our “Conestoga Wagon”. It looks like one, and it creaks like one, too!

The kids loved running across the green, in between the rows of cabins. It was easy to imagine them really living here.

Another really special feature of the day was a Native American dance performance. Some of the peoples represented were the Wenatchi, Nez Perce, and Okanagan Nations.

We were mesmerized by their intricate ceremonial regalia. Some wore Jingle Dresses (center), and one girl wore an antique dress that was spangled with carved elk teeth (right)!

“Where’s Oliver?” He felt a little too at home. He happily scampered between the train car and this general store, flashing his dimpled grin and sporting a gnarly black eye. Perhaps, that just added to the authenticity of his scrappy look.

I should have known I could find him cranking on a wheely thing. This antique cider press and butter churn could have kept Mr. Ants-In-His-Pants busy all day!

In case you thought this place couldn’t get any cooler…It has a mine!

“Say what??? There are still old mine shafts in the area? Pan faster, kids!” Unfortunately, the only sparkly stuff the kids found was “fool’s gold”.

Too late! I caught Annika in the act of tipping water all down her front. This seemed like our cue to wrap up our amazing day.

I hope we will be able to return, next year! The kids had a blast…And. our visit inspired me to make the girls new aprons and even some bonnets. I’ll write about that process very soon. Until then, happy trails, dear friends!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday was Indigenous Peoples Day. I wanted to use this post to honor the native peoples of our continent, both ancient and present. When Jeff and I took our Ancestry DNA tests, I was hoping to find some more colors in our family story. I was a little sad when it was confirmed that we don’t appear to have any Native blood in our family.

These images of Hopi girls give us a haunting glimpse into an ancient way of life. Though I can’t claim kinship with them, I feel connected in some small way, because I was born in Arizona. My parents have told me stories of their childhood hikes and trail rides through very isolated and nearly inaccessible regions, where they stumbled upon sacred sites, petroglyphs, pottery fragments, a cache of clay necklaces, and a stone metate for grinding corn. Today, most of these locations have carefully limited access, and rightly so. Anything I can do is so inadequate, but I wanted to include our children in an experience that would be respectful, educational, and honoring to the people of the First Nations.

As I often do, I turned to our garden for inspiration. It didn’t disappoint. When we studied the Mayans, Aztecs, and other ancient Americans, last year, we learned that many of the foods we now take for granted were “New World Crops”. They were virtually unknown to Europeans until they were introduced to them by the Native Americans. Lots of these fruits and vegetables are represented in our garden, so I decided that we would have a Hopi Harvest.

First, we needed costumes. (Of course!) Hopi women and girls traditionally wore one-shoulder, woolen dresses, that were woven by the men. I made Emma and Eliza’s dresses from pillowcases, trimmed with bias tape.

Elliott is wearing an outfit that reflects settler influence, i.e. trousers and a shirt, but with Native elements of a turquoise-studded belt, and a head-cloth. The “turquoise” in the belt are plastic beads that we glued onto a thrifted necklace that was missing its original stones. (I’ll do a tutorial on that, later.)

Corn (maize) was the most vital crop for the Hopi. Emma has the iconic, “squash blossom” hairstyle worn by older girls, and she is holding a woven basket I found at Goodwill.

Checking for earwigs. . . The Hopi would consider our garden to be incredibly lush. They were masterful at adapting their corn to grown in a much drier climate. They grew the maize in shorter, bushier clumps, as opposed to rows.

However, the Wenatchee climate is warm and dry enough for peppers to flourish!

We’re wusses when it comes to spicy food, but we love a sweet, crisp Bell Pepper!

Eliza was partial to the red pepper.

Lots and lots of tomatoes!

Eliza made a friend.

Sunflower seeds were also a part of the Hopi diet.

Our sunflower stalks were snapping from the heaviness of the flower heads, full of seeds.

We will save some of the seeds to grow another “sun forest”, next year.

Squash also played an important role in the lives of the Hopi.

We started to gather everything we picked.

The real fun began as we started to husk the corn.

Even Oliver and Annika couldn’t resist!

So much beauty and plenty.

We combined most of our harvest, including the corn, into a delicious Hopi stew.

We spent the day in thanks for the peoples of the First Nations, and their love and care for the land. We recognize that we are but sojourners, here, living in a kingdom that is ultimately not our own.

What is my favorite part about costuming? It might be this part! I love putting the entire vision together and seeing my kids explore their world, while in costume. And I get to stand back and capture the experience.

The shrub-steppe landscape of the Columbia River Basin, complete with dramatic cliffs and rock formations evokes an epic, Biblical landscape, for me. Plus, our Classical Conversations home school curriculum was going to focus on ancient civilizations, that year. So, the kids strapped on their sandals, and we struck through the wilderness for the “River Jordan”.

Our summer family activities often revolve around visiting extended family at Lake Chelan. On the way, I am always making mental note of future photo shoot locations. There are so many beautiful views! Actually finding a good place to pull over, from the highway, and access said views is a bit of a challenge, though!

Getting there . . . As the kids were walking through all this dry brush in sandals, I was thinking, “Gee, I hope there aren’t any rattle snakes around here”.

River sighting! I’ve been talking a lot about sandals, but didn’t discuss footwear in the costume tutorials. Elliott is just wearing his fisherman sandals that he wore everywhere, that summer. Emma is wearing a pair of white, hand-me-down sandals that had seen better days. I spray-painted them brown, which immediately transformed them. However, they looked awful after this photo shoot! Spray paint might hold up for a church play, but it doesn’t stand a chance in actual shepherd-like conditions!

Speaking of church plays, Emma and Elliott love acting as shepherds in our church’s annual Living Nativity. It was eye-opening for them to have this experience. (Minus the sheep, thank goodness!)

This might be my favorite shot of Emma, during this expedition.

I wish I knew the name of the rock formation, behind her. It’s so majestic. Oops! Look at Emma’s feet, and you can see that the spray paint is already wearing off her sandals.

Just a shepherd boy, hanging out with some sagebrush.

Looking for that promised land…

Did you know that I love plants? Like, really, really, REALLY love plants? Well, I do. I still have a lot to learn about Wenatchee flora, after growing up near Seattle. So, I had to look up what this gorgeous, yellow, flowering, sage-like bush is called. Turns out, it’s “Rabbitbush”, or “Ericameria nauseosa“. No, I am not making that up!

Something was funny…

Cover from Vogue, Shepherd Edition, October, Year 1, A.D.

Props can make or break a photo shoot with kids. In this case, the staffs (fallen branches from our yard) totally enhanced the experience.

We hopped into the Suburban and drove a bit farther along the river so that we could get a little closer to this amazing rock formation.

“As I went down to the river to pray, studying about that good old way. And who shall wear the starry crown, good Lord, show me the way . . .”

You gotta be tough to make it as a shepherd.

Charleton Heston in The Ten Commandments *may* have influenced me, just a little bit.

Just a kid, with a stick, surrounded by lots and lots of rocks. Does it get any better than this? The kids could have played out here, forever!

I don’t know why, but wistfulness is a quality I like to hear in music, and it’s something I like to capture in photographs.

Maybe the elusive has an appeal.

 

“Look, I found some leaves!” I later learned that these leaves come from the “Great mullein” plant. It is a tall, imposing plant, with lots of healing properties attributed to it. The leaves were velvety soft, and they looked nearly pristine for months afterward, in the car. (Elliott had a kind of natural history museum going on, back there!)

To be honest, the last part of our photo shoot felt a little dodgy. We were heading back towards home, and I really wanted to get some shots on a hillside. I couldn’t find any good place to park, so we totally just pulled over onto the shoulder and began to climb.

The light was fading, and the kids were skeptical. I was also not so sure this was a good idea. However, those gorgeous rocks and red bushes were calling to me!

Let’s do this!

This is when the staffs ceased to be props and actually became tools!

The hillside was steeper than it looks in these photos. Emma was a little freaked out.

Me: Act natural!

Emma: . . .

*sigh*

I’m not sure if this “natural” either, but it looks cool.

We made it up to a more stable spot. Kings of the hill!

“There were shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night . . .

. . . And lo! The angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them . . .” Handel’s Messiah, anyone?

The sun was setting, and it was time to go home. Elliott did a good job helping Emma down the hillside.

Thank you for joining us on our shepherd costume adventure! I hope this journey has inspired you to see God’s handiwork in your surroundings, and to explore them with your children.

“I lift up my eyes to the hills – Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2 NIV

To see how I made these Biblical costumes from pillowcases, head on over to my Part 1 and Part 2 tutorials.