I've been working all week on my two little fantasy costumes. My fingers are sore from sewing leather - not the sewing hand, but the other one from holding the leather so tight. I kept running into issues with my boy's outfit. First his tunic wasn't quite right, so I made a new one, and the original ended up as the first pice in my smallest Celtic Maiden outfit to date. Byuri looks very cute in it. Then there was the issues with the boy's belt and wrist guards - they were just too ornate. So I made new wrist guards and decided he needed a plain belt. But I didn't have any good small buckles. So after hunting all over town, I ended up buying some cheap used sandals at Value Village. Two pairs of old shoes yielded ten perfect-sized buckles. 

I've been resisting taking pictures of my boy all week because he isn't painted yet, and I really wanted to show him in his outfit AFTER he had his face up,  but that could still be awhile, so I gave in and so as not to end up with really great photos with him with a blank face, I opted for studio shots. And of course I had to include my McBeth, whose been hovering over my work space all week like a doting grandpa...

The two small costumes aren't completely finished yet - I'm waiting for the arrival of some finer glovers needles in order to sew on some really tiny beads.

I'm not normally a big fan of long hair on a boy, but in this case I find my boy needs it. KIDs have very slender necks (even thinner than the smaller BIDs) and a short wig made him look too 'bobble-headed'. I had ordered him a short regular boy-style 'Johnny' wig, but also a 'Red' wig the same colour. I figure he can wear the 'Johnny' wig when he's a 'regular' boy, and the longer 'Red' wig is better for when he's a fantasy character. The high turtle neck he wears under everything also helps bulk out his neck..... Now all he needs is a face up!

Next costume to make is a KID elf archer in greens using the discarded belt and wrist guards. I've chosen the fabrics, and now just have to decided which one of my three girls will be an elf.

One thing you may notice is that the belt and wrist guards have snap fasteners. They are harder on the hands to sew (and messier-looking) than eyelets or buckles, but these costumes will be going on and off a lot, so whatever makes that easier is a good thing.  My JID fantasy characters rarely ever get changed out of their costumes, so for them it's fine to go the more 'authentic' way.

This morning Natalya said it was her purple Pony's birthday, 
so of course we had to have a little birthday garden party.....

It's very handy having so many 'cakes' available for special occasions like this.  
I just sent Natalya to the cupboard to choose one...

Rachel even brought a doll along, and she seemed quite happy to be visiting on a special day ...

...as usual, Teagan's girl did a great job serving everyone...

The party didn't last very long since it was very hot and humid out there, and we were all melting.

Next to dolls and photography, my greatest love is flowers. So, last night after dinner, we went to the Oshawa Peony Garden to see if the tree peonies were in bloom yet. I love tree peonies. They have such beautiful 'artistic' flowers. And they are HUGE! The sun was very low in the sky, but still shining on a few of the plants. Here's some of my favourite photos.....

...and finally my favourite.....

This morning I roughed up and dirtied some of the costume parts. I can't have my little fantasy troupe looking like they just got brand new clothes from the village tailor. The clothes need to look old and lived-in. So I rough up the bottoms and after washing and a good soak in fabric softener, I add 'dirt' coloured paint to all the bottoms. Then I hang everything out on the porch to dry...

Cloaks get hung up draped as they would be positioned on the dolls in hopes they will dry like that.

The skirt and cloak for my BID Celtic girl are very thin tartans so they won't be too bulky.

I've done a major switch from blossoms and ball gowns to Braveheart and Barbarians. From pristine, fluttery pastel ruffles, to leather, dirt, metal studs, and frayed edges. I've finally started the costumes for my gang of diminutive fantasy characters. 

Miles will be their leader, and his costume is inspired by my MacBeth, whose outfits was inspired by Mel Gibson's Braveheart costume. His 'armour' is made up of little bits of leather attached with tiny bead 'studs at each corner, reminiscent of ancient Roman armour. The silver beads were a bit too bright, so I painted them down...

So far I've completed a pair of 'Hobbit pants', suitably dirtied. I figured out how to make wrapped leggings as part of Miles' pants. The first navy blue tunic I made for him didn't seem quite right. The sleeves were a bit too narrow, so I decided to make a new one. But I'd used up all the navy blue crinkle gauze, so the new top is wine red. However, the navy blue one is perfect for my BIDs, so it looks like I'll be making a teensie Celtic Outfit for one of my BID girls. 

I have plans for half a dozen costumes including an elven archer or two. It's actually quite enjoyable. It brings me back to the old days of costuming OOAK historical figures and goblin characters. It doesn't go fast, since it's mostly hand-work, much of it using a glover's needle and thimble. I have just one glovers needle left, so I have to be careful not to break it before the new ones arrive.  I ordered the smallest size needles in the hopes that the size 12 will go though the 2 mm metal beads. The smallest my current needle will go through is 2.5 mm, but on such small costumes, the 2 mm beads will look better scale-wise. The two tunics have the smaller beads, but those were sewn with a beading needle - and much trial and error trying to find the holes. My eyesight isn't what it used to be!

It was finally nice weather for Peach's Princess Garden Party yesterday afternoon. 
The older girls came dressed as Princesses, while the younger ones came as Fairies.

Mostly I just took official birthday portrait shots....

Peach's castle cake was a huge hit....especially with the little girls....

Everyone was eager to taste it....

It was the perfect opportunity to take some photos of the girls in their new dresses....

...and now, two of my favourite photos....

"Wow, is that really a cake?"  "I want one just like it for my birthday!"

Our star magnolia finished blooming awhile ago, but now there's still a few stray flowers left blooming. The interesting thing is that the last few stragglers are really tiny - like miniature versions of what they should be. I let Nami pick one so i could take a photo of her with one, since they are just her size - barely 2" across.

And finally, a picture of Peach in her 'Princess' dress. She wanted to be Cinderella, 
so I made her a gown like the blue one in the recent movie.

Lisa's 'Princess' dress is a more sophisticated design, all in pink....