This
is a first for this blog: a Kidnap the Magic
entry about something other than a themed party! I have numerous
Disneyland-related craft project ideas, some of which I've actually
done, but I haven't shared any yet because I haven't yet gotten in
the habit of photo-documenting my works in progress. I did get a few
good pics of this one, though, and the time is definitely right!
So
a couple years ago, I was fortunate enough to attend Mickey's
Halloween Party, the separately ticketed event that runs at
Disneyland during the Halloween season. It's pretty much the only
time when adults are allowed to enter the park in full-on,
unambiguous costumes, and boy, did the guests ever take advantage of
the fact. Practically everyone there was in some kind of Disney
character costume. Many were obviously store-bought, but quite a few
more were just as obviously homemade. Some people even went as
Disneyland
characters, such as the Haunted Mansion's Tightrope Walker AKA
Alligator Gal, or recognizable individual buccaneers from Pirates of
the Caribbean.
I'm
pretty sure I'm the only person who showed up dressed as a ride,
though.
I
decided at the outset that I wanted to have a costume directly
related to Disneyland, and not just to Disney's film library. When I
hit on the idea of going as the “it's a small world” Clock
Tower...I couldn't not
do it. That's the sort of inspiration that strikes maybe once a year.
Suddenly my head was full of ways to translate all those blocky
shapes and clock gizmos into clothing on a human figure. I knew I had
a winner.
I
also knew I had my work cut out for me. The problem with choosing
such an offbeat, niche-interest costume as the Clock Tower—or any
other Disneyland icon that didn't originate in a movie—is that
there are few to no pre-existing resources to help you out. From
design to execution, you have to come up with it all yourself.
Wait...did
I say “problem?” I meant invigorating
challenge.
There's a lot of satisfaction in creating your own unique costume and
wearing it in a setting where it will be appreciated. If that sort of
challenge sounds like your spinning cup of tea, read on while I walk
you through the phases of my own such project.
Phase
1: Design
The
first thing you'll need to do is decide how the costume should look.
In the case of a character, this will be obvious. Get a few clear
images that you can bring to the fabric store for reference and
you're good to go. If you're going for something more abstract like I
did, you'll need to do a little design work. I recommend making a
pencil sketch so you can play around with ideas in a visual format.
It doesn't need to be detailed or even correctly proportioned; it
just needs to be roughly human-shaped so you can work out how to
transform the design elements into articles of clothing.
This
phase is also when you'll get an idea of the fabrics you'll need.
Take into account not just color, but weight, drape, and texture.
In
my case, the whole design grew out of the idea of making up my face
to resemble the clock face and using a vest to represent the doors on
the front of the clock that open to display the time. Expanding from
there, I decided to decorate a pair of pants as the lower side panels
and the sleeves of a shirt as the upper side panels. Since I was
going to be walking around Disneyland for hours in this getup,
comfort was a priority—hence the pants and vest would be loose and
the shirt a knit pullover.
Unfortunately,
this layout left out an important feature of the Clock Tower—the
lower doors through which the parade of dolls emerges. I came up with
the idea of representing not just the doors but the doll parade
itself on a sash—since the parade goes around
the tower. This decision wound up creating a lot of work for me down
the line, but it was worth it!
The
colors were obvious—bright white for the base, pale blue to line
the vest, and
various colors for the embellishments. I already had an idea of what
sorts of fabrics I would need, but saved the final decision for the
shopping excursion.
Phase
2: Gathering Materials
Once
you know what you want to make, you can collect the things you will
need to do so. If you don't sew, you might still be able to use the
Disney-Bound method—assembling an outfit out of purchased garments
and accessories in order to suggest the character or ride you are
dressing as without copying its appearance exactly.
But
let's say you plan to sew a costume. First you'll need one or more
sewing patterns. If you're experienced enough at costuming to create
your own patterns from scratch...then there's really no further
advice I can provide. Go nuts, and more power to you! But most people
need to work from a pattern created by someone else. Any fabric store
worth shopping at will have several big fat pattern catalogs from
different design companies for you to peruse at your convenience.
Find the pattern(s) that comes closest to your design while still
being suitable for your skill level. The pattern envelope will tell
you how many yards of material you will need. Pay attention to the
recommended fabrics as well as any notions required to complete the
pattern and be open to adjusting your plans.
Since
I intended to make very basic garments for my costume, it was easy to
find appropriate patterns. For the pants, I used the trousers from
Simplicity
pattern 5446, while the vest came from Butterick
pattern B5359, with snap closures in place of the buttons to make
opening and closing faster. For the shirt, I decided to save myself a
little time and trouble by buying one instead of making it. I found
one that suited my purpose at Target.
I
did my fabric shopping in downtown Los Angeles. A store called
Michael-Levine is usually my first stop, and there I found a bright
white polyester poplin that was not only the right color, but
suitably lightweight,* easy to work with, and agreeable in price! I
found an even lighter weight, pale blue cotton to line the vest, and
picked up several squares of mottled dark gray felt to make appliqués
of numerals and cogwheels for the pants. I already owned the other
colors of felt I would need, as well as a few other materials such as
ribbon.
Phase
3: Making the Damn Thing
Follow
your pattern instructions. Measure twice, cut once, don't step on
your pincushion, etc. Every costume is different, so you're on your
own for detailed pointers here. But here are some of my details (with
photos):
- By far the most time-consuming part of making my Clock Tower costume was all the graphic design work I had to do in order to get good images of the parade dolls to print out. For each doll, I had to a) obtain a clear, relatively forward-facing photo, b) painstakingly trace over it in a graphics program, and c) resize it so they were all of uniform proportions. I enclosed each one in a colored oval in order to make them easier to cut out and reduce the risk of tearing.
- I basted on my felt appliqués before machine-stitching them, to keep them from shifting during the process. After removing the basting stitches, I brushed the numerals and outlined the cogwheels with silver glitter glue in order to give them that “it's a small world” sparkle.
A rare look inside my apartment.
- I realized that if I attached all the “clock bits” directly to the shirt, I would risk damaging them every time I put it on or took it off. Plus it wouldn't be machine-washable. So instead, I sewed half of a Velcro patch to the shirt at each attachment point and then glued or sewed the other halves to the accessories. When I put on the costume, the shirt goes on unadorned and the embellishments go on afterward. Likewise, I peel them all off before removing the shirt.
Phase
4: Test Run
If
possible, try your costume on and wear it around the house for a
little while at least a week in advance of the main event.** This
gives you a chance to suss out and fix any weaknesses in the design
or construction. In the worst-case scenario, you might have to buy
more fabric and re-make part of it. If the costume includes any
“special functions” such as my vest-doors, practice them so you
can perform smoothly when the time comes.
I
was lucky—my costume came out all right on the first go. But I
realized that my makeup job didn't look as much like the clock face
as I had hoped. So I made a handheld mask to underscore the point. I
found an excellent high-definition graphic of the clock face, printed
it on sticker paper, stuck it to a cardboard cake circle, and went
over the lines with metallic gold and silver Sharpies. For a handle,
I glued a dowel to the back.
Was
it worth all the time and trouble spent? Definitely. I got a lot of
compliments, mostly from Cast Members. The ones working “it's a
small world” itself were especially impressed.*** All the same,
there are aspects I'm not 100% pleased with. I wish I'd made the
“doors” on the vest larger, and most of the accessories came out
pretty makeshift. Someday I'll do an improved version of the costume.
Before
I end this post, I'd like to share a few more Disney theme park
costume ideas that I might try if I ever get to attend the Halloween
Party again. Feel free to snag any of these if you're so
inspired!****
- Matterhorn: Make a long conical skirt out of gray felt and sponge-paint white snow from the waistline to about halfway down. Add a few pine trees (self-adhesive felt patches in a variety of shapes can be found in most craft stores) and, if you can manage it, some model bobsleds like the one in this set. Then dress your upper half as a Yeti. The simplest way to do that is probably with a hoodie made of shaggy white faux fur and a good makeup job. Don't forget the scary ape fangs!
- Enchanted Tiki Room Emcee—Human Style!: This is more of a Disney-Bound outfit than a pure costume, with some Dapper Days vibes thrown in. It will work best if you can get three more people on board so there's one of you for each host—José, Michael, Pierre, and Fritz. Each of you will need, at a bare minimum, a long-tailed suit coat and trousers in the dominant colors of the bird's plumage (Here is a fantastic piece of reference art for their colors.), a white or cream shirt, and warm brown wingtip shoes. To this ensemble add any or all of the following: an ascot or bow tie, a hibiscus corsage, a straw boater, and feathers to tuck into the hatband and anywhere else they might look good and bring across the avian nature of the character. Finish it off with a name tag made from a scallop shell and be prepared to cop a ridiculous accent all day.
- World of Color: I don't often address California Adventure on this blog, but I'm pretty proud of this idea. Start with a dress or tunic with a flared skirt, made from variegated blue satin or something similar—fabric that resembles water, in other words. It should have a high fanned collar and long billowy sleeves with big floppy cuffs. Dot it with an assortment of Disney character patches...and then add as many glow bracelets as you can lay hands on, in as many colors as you can find. Stitch them to your hems, arrange them so they spray out from inside your sleeves, link a bunch of them up and write “World of Color” in cursive on your skirt...and if you have any left over, wear them as bracelets (and necklaces)! (If you don't have any left over, buy more and wear them as bracelets/necklaces.)
I
hope these ideas have gotten your creative motors running when it
comes to your costume for Halloween or any other dress-up event! Have
a terrific holiday!
*
October is usually considered a chilly month, but in Southern
California it's still practically summer.
**
I realize that it is already too late to do this even if you made a
costume in less than a day after reading this. I sort of ran out of
October.
***
That was how I learned that the Clock Tower is nicknamed “Chester.”
****
For that matter, if you want to make your own Clock Tower costume,
let
me know.
I will be more than happy to share my image files with you so you
don't have to spend as many hours slaving over a freeware Photoshop
knockoff as I did.
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