Greatful Dead Bear Halloween Costume - feet

I traced the three pattern pieces for these slip on booties, so I could preserve the pattern.  Seam allowances were 1/4 inches.  No trimming needed. 

These bear feet were pretty easy to assemble and fun to make.   I really didn't know what length to cut the elastic.  I measured the width of the bootie and cut the elastic less 1/4 of that width.  I'd rather have them too loose than too tight.  I stretched the elastic across the fabric and applied it with a narrow zig zag stitch.  They appear just right. 

Miss Harper could use these booties through part of the winter to keep her toesies warm, since she won't be walking for a number of months. It would be nice to use some of the components of this costume once Halloween is over.

Greatful Dead Bear Halloween Costume - hood and pants

Except for the closures, I've fininshed the top half of the Greatful Dead Bear Halloween costume.  I looked through my children patterns to locate some type of pants pattern for the bottom of the costume. 

This is exactly what I had in mind.  The pajama bottoms consists of  one pattern piece and went together quickly.  The great part is that Miss Harper can wear them for warmth once Halloween is over.  I found that using multiple rows of elastic results in a more comfortable fit around the waist.

I purchased this bootie pattern for the bear feet, but they will have to wait for another day.   I may go into a bootie rampage later and donate them to charity.  For now, this appears to be a perfect solution for the bear feet.  The bottoms will be pink and the rest purple.

The final piece of the costume is the multiple point collar.  One for Harper and one for her dog.

Greatful Dead Bear Halloween Costume - coat

I've cut out the costume coat and hood. Fleece is treated like velvet, corduroy, and fur. They have nap, which means all pieces must to be cut in the same direction, or there will be different coloration in the pieces.  I always cut with the nap going in the down direction.  Of course, I learned this the hard way by making the mistake on a pair of slacks many years ago. 

Fabric should also be steamed and not pressed, which, admittedly, I failed to do.

Gingerbread Socks - heel

Our knitting group finally was able to meet again.  First thing that was noticed was the fact that I have been knitting my socks inside out, and I shouldn't be.  I don't know how this came about, but it was an easy correction.   On my next pair, and there will be a next pair, I will avoid this mistake.  I finished the heels after having to take out a few rows early on.   They were an easy task. 

Blue Striped Man's Shirt - collar and collar stand

I am really pleased with the results of the pattern matching of the collar for the blue striped shirt for my DS.  Admittedly, a striped shirt probably wasn't the best choice for producing my first man's shirt.  I made this piece twice.  I was looking for close to perfection.

For the interfacing, I used white woven muslin.  Interesting that the shirt collars I have taken apart for research purposes show they used two pieces of fusible interfacing.  One was the exact size of the collar.  The other one was fused to the first but trimmed to stay out of the seam allowances but caught in the top stitching.  I am not a fan of fusibles, but my DH seems to like it on his purchased shirts, so next time, I am going to give it a try. 

Here's the collar and collar stand attached to the shirt.

All that's left is the button holes and buttons.