Halloween Goodies

We're a week away from All Hallow's Eve (Halloween) and I decided to share with you my pick list of neat DIY Halloween stuff, to inspire (some of the articles are mine, and some are by Cintia), and perhaps, give you a giggle. So let's get into it, shall we?

First up are simple costume ideas:

{My Poppet Makes: Chat Noir Costume}

{My Poppet Makes: DIY Koroku Mask}

{Kidspot: GITD Skeleton Costume}

{Kidspot: Superhero Costume}

And for costume ideas that are a bit more advanced... in other words let's dip our toes into the world of cosplay:

{My Poppet Makes: Linkle Cosplay}

{My Poppet Makes: Bellatrix Estrange Cosplay by Cintia}

Let's not forget the awesome Halloween decorations that you can make:

{My Poppet Makes: Pumpkin Gift Box by Cintia}

{My Poppet Makes: Upcycled Halloween Wreath}

Last, but not least:

If you're a sewing nut check out the Halloween themed sewing projects listed at Coloured Buttons.It's a smorgasbord of spooky, sewing fun.

Book Week Prep + Fluff 'n' Stuff

{Kidspot: Book Week}

Book Week is cometh. Oh come on! No moaning, people! This is a walk in the park for cosplayers, and think of this as a warm up for Halloween. But don't you worry, because I've put together a craft video for making an easy as pie (Cherry? Apple? Chocolate?)super hero costume. Head over to Kidspot for the details.

Last weekend my family hosted a craft party, as part of Sew a Softie in July. The kids sat on the floor with baby blankets under them. My eldest supervised making Pusheen Mermaid softies. My youngest supervised making Kero (Cardcaptor Sakura character) softies. Home baked cherry-raspberry slice was served. And it was the easiest event I've helped the kids organise. In other words I let the kids handle the hosting responsibilities, while I rested and had a coffee in the backyard. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for all. One which the kids hope to repeat.

Sew a Softie

DIY Legend of Zelda Cosplay

{My Poppet link}

For the average ghosty it is that time of year – Halloween! But for some it's Halloween all year round. That's right! I'm talking about cosplayers. And for all you cosplayer wannabes I've written an article tailor made just for you. So head on over to My Poppet and read about my design journey when I made a Linkle cosplay outfit.

DIY Legend of Zelda Character Costume

Ballet Meets Burlesque

© Melissa Gaggiano

The unveiling of my latest BJD concept. A nod to the Snow White fairy tale this doll is wearing a crystalline outfit made of emeralds and sapphires. I call her Snowdrop.

The concept is a little ballet and a little burlesque. In fact I could picture Dita Von Teese wearing a stage costume like this.

Plagg, Claws Out!

my poppet.com.au

Well, look at that! There's a DIY Chat Noir costume over at My Poppet. Just in time for Halloween. One of the neat things about this costume is that it can easily come together with bits and pieces from around your home.

A Week of Total Kickass Creation

Photo, photo design and costumes by Melissa Gaggiano

    This has been a mad of week of making and creating. From developing a doll making lesson plan, staging a product photo shoot and making sample dolls for said lesson plan, writing edits, to costume making for a fairy ball. Yeah! So, I was very tired this week. But I got a lot done, so, happy me.

© Melissa Gaggiano

Future Fantasy

Today I was working on a Future Fantasy doll costume for the Pidgin doll. It went from this…

© Melissa Gaggiano

To this…

© Melissa Gaggiano

#PidginFanArt

Expecto Complete

    The Hogwarts-Gryffindor robes are now complete. I even made a special loop hidden within the robe for holding the wizard wands. The girls are mucho happy with their robes, now if they can only wait till the HP birthday party to wear these.

HP Mania

    We still have Harry Potter mania in this house. I don't mind though. Harry Potter is a relatively untapped source for the kids, so it makes a nice change to say… Frozen mania.

    The kids will be attending a HP themed party so today I began making basic Hogwarts robes [completely from scratch]. I finished making a robe for the youngest, and since that worked fine I shall repeat the design process tomorrow when I make a bigger robe for my eldest. After all that, if I have the patience, I might try making Gryffindor badges to go with the robes.

    In addition to all that I have almost finished putting together the birthday present for the host of 'said' birthday party. After I made the HP doll I also made a broom stick accessory.

Harry Potter doll making by Melissa Gaggiano

Harry's Uniform

Drawing by Melissa Gaggiano

    I began my day with a uniform concept board for the Harry Potter doll. Even though there are many movie photos that I can go by, I still need to see the costume in my own hand to make the design process easier.

Of Owls and Pirates

    March would appear a time of change. A new month clicks over and the weather suddenly realises that it is not meant to be hitting us with 35° plus days. Thank the goddess for the cool change. 

    The other day, wanting an opportunity to do something crafty with my eldest I found a wonderfully easy paper owl activity. Together we made a team - I cut, my eldest glued. We now have four paper owls decorating her bed and she has plans to add more owls to her collective. We'll probably be doing that next week.

    Click here for the paper owl tutorial.

    I have also been designing and sewing a pirate costume for my eldest's pirate dress up day coming up at kinder. I made a pair of elasticated pants, a sleeveless jacket and a felted heart eye patch. I am pleased to say that not an extra cent was spent, as I used the materials already in my possession.

Original pirate concept.

Finished pirate garment.

My Sketchbook

    Here are some items from my sketch book. My eldest has a pirate costume day next week at kinder, so I was thinking of making something like this.

Sketch by Melissa Gaggiano.

    I do try to steer away from owls in my work, but let's face it, inspiration wise I am surrounded by owls. Whether it be the owls in Harry Potter, Owl from Winnie the Pooh, the owl on my kids' learn farm, the owl statues in neighboring yards, the crafters whose blogs I follow. And so it would seem I am drawn to owls.

Sketch by Melissa Gaggiano.

Welcome to the Archives

“We're gonna party like it's nineteen ninety nine.” —

Now these pictures really are a step back in time — like, more than a decade. I created these illustrations way back when I was in fashion school. I was heavily influenced by both Chinese and Japanese clothing. It was also meant to be fantasy wedding garments for an Empress and Knight.

And, what have you found in your archives?