Scary Hallowe'en Kids

OK, so I'm a week late with this post but it's not my fault - honest!! The school Hallowe'en disco was a week late as the kids moved into a fabulous new building. So I didn't get to unleash my creativity until this week!

Hallowe'en isn't my favourite time if year. I stress about my kids costumes and I hate how it's become so commercial like Christmas. I also don't like the American-isation of it. We used to dook for apples and go 'guising' which meant dressing up (in disguise hence the name) going round to your neighbours and performing a joke or a song for a wee treat. Half the kids coming to ours just held their hands out for loads of sweets (needless to say, I made them at least tell a joke before they got a thing!)

Anyway, rant over and onto my kids costumes...
Now sewing and are are not bosom buddies so the costumes were a combination of shop bought and distressed by me. I was quite chuffed with my face painting efforts though...

We’re Witches (and Wizards) of Hallowe’en – the Sequel

Well, after frantically spending days putting together Cheeky’s Harry Potter outfit -  which involved, finding a cape in the wardrobe in my room and adapting it with a Gryfendor Badge, printed from the internet; purchasing a burgundy sweater from ebay; buying burgundy material to make a school tie and face paints for the scar – Cheeky decided he’d rather wear the ghoul outfit we got from Tesco last year!!!

Hope you all had a good Hallowe’en.  The kids were stuffed full of sugar after not one but TWO parties on 31^st followed by a stint of guising (as we call it in Scotland) or trick or treat as it’s known across the water – and bed at 8.45pm (on a school night!!)

Oh well, here’s to next year.  Perhaps he’ll allow me to unleash my creativity then!

What about you?  Did you have a good Hallowe’en or were there any homemade disasters?!

We're Witches of Hallowe'en Whoo Hooo!

Cheeky Boy has a school fancy dress party on 2^nd November (phew, gives me a bit longer to plan!) and he’s decided to go as Harry Potter.  Excellent idea.  Not least because he wears specs not dissimilar to the aforementioned boy wizard so I don’t need to worry about making those. 

Speaking of Harry Potter, he is fantastic!  OK, I know he’s fictional but the boy wizard has done wonders for spec wearing children the world over.  I remember when I was at school no-one wanted to wear glasses and those who did got picked on relentlessly (or maybe that was just my school?!).

Anyway, fast forward twenty years (OK, OK, thirty) and they’re practically begging to wear glasses!  I had no idea that Cheeky had any problems with his eyesight.  I just happened to ask what age the optician recommended starting checks for the kids when I was having my own eyes tested only to discover that his nibs met the starting age (which is 3 and a half to 4, in case you were wondering).  So one eye test later we discovered that he has an astigmatism in both eyes which means (I think) that he’s both long and short sighted.  Or in other words, where eyes are normally round like footballs, his are shaped like rugby balls.  And his right eye was seeing so little that his brain was ignoring it – which isn’t good.  Spectacles were quickly prescribed. 

I had a certain feeling of dread, worrying about how he would react to the news that he would have to wear glasses.  ‘Brilliant!’ he exclaimed, ‘can I have Harry Potter specs?’ 

So, he’s been wearing them ever since.  Not the same specs you understand, that was three years ago, he’s been through at least 9 pairs of specs since then! 

Anyway, back to the fancy dress checklist: 

Specs – check. 

Harry Potter wand – check (I’m going to cheat with that one as he has a wand). 

Broomstick – check.

Apparently, I have to source (i.e. make) a cape – even I should manage that - and a ‘proper’ Hogwarts badge and scarf.  So, it’s off to the fabric shop for me today(where the scary intimidating lady will no doubt scowl at me as it becomes instantly apparent that I’ve not the slightest clue what I’m talking about!!).  I will post a wee photo here to show you the results. 

Please let me know what you're making for Hallowe'en and post your pictures too!


Image by Dunleavy Family reproduced under Creative Commons Licence
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dunleavy_family/4053118635/