DIY Felt Flamingo and Peacock Costumes

     For Halloween this year, we have a bit of a bird theme going on this year. One child wanted to be a peacock and the other a flamingo. I love how creative they were in their choices so using a little bit of creativity and about $10 of supplies for each costume, I made each girl their respective bird costumes using a LOT of felt and a few other things.

    When my daughter told me that she wanted to be a peacock for Halloween I knew that I had my work cut out for me but I was excited to try. This costume is not for the faint of heart. It is time consuming but the supplies cost me less than $10.  I saw some amazing ideas on Pinterest using real feathers but the costumes must have cost a fortune and I really don't think that is necessary for Halloween. Really time-wise it didn't end up being too bad because I just threw on a show on Netflix and binge watched. The great thing about this costume is that it can be worn like a cape (feathers down) or like a backpack (feathers up) so your child is comfortable during their Halloween activities. 

     My youngest wanted to be a flamingo which I knew would be a fun costume to make. The flamingo costume was even easier and took far less time!  We added a flamingo head wall hanging from Hobby Lobby that my girls wanted for their bedroom (we just tuck it up under the tutu and tie it around her shoulders with ribbon but it isn't necessary to have this part of the costume.) 

Supplies needed for the Peacock Costume

1 1/2 yards green felt

Stretchy elastic (for straps--enough to create two shoulder straps and possibly two wrist straps and for headband)

Royal Blue Felt

Aqua Felt

Tan Felt

Dark Thread

3 Sheets Plastic Canvas

Ribbon + Velcro for cape straps

1/2 Yard Fabric (Doesn't matter what kind, it is to secure the plastic canvas to the peacock costume.

2 Small "peacock" feathers + Black Peacock Head Feathers (I bought all of mine at Hobby Lobby)

Peacock Costume Simple Instructions

-Measure the length of your child from their shoulders to their waist. Also measure their wingspan with their arms out.

-Using about a 1/2 yard of the green felt (give or take, it depends on how long and wide you need your base piece to be.)

-Trace peacock feather parts and sew them together, offsetting the layers slightly so each shows, with royal blue on top, aqua, tan, and green. I made about 120 of these. Trim excess thread.

-Starting with the curved part of the base, sew the feathers onto the base in rows. 

-Trace the plastic canvas to fit the curve of the base. You may have to sew a few sheets of plastic canvas together. 

-Cut a piece of fabric to the same measurements as the curve plus a half-foot to create a pocket for the plastic canvas. Sew the plastic canvas inside of the pocket.

-Attach straps to the feather side so that your child can wear the feathers like a backpack.

-Attach ribbons with velcro to the bottom to create the "cape" version for the feathers. 

-I attached two pockets on either side of the peacock costume to hold dowels to help the tail stay up. We haven't actually had to use them though because it stays up on mostly by itself thanks to the plastic canvas. 

-To create the peacock mask I looked at a few pictures of peacocks (both real peacocks) and peacock masks on Pinterest. I then just sketched this mask that I thought might work well enough. On the part where there are feathers sticking out from the side I added actual peacock feathers as well as some black peacock looking feathers on the top. Basically I just cut the different colors for the mask and leveled them. I used the fancy stitch options on my sewing machine to make some cute patterns. Next I measured my daughters head and attached the elastic.  

Supplies and Instructions for a Simple Flamingo Costume

Wings + Mask

1/2 yard hot pink felt
2 squares shiny salmon sparkly felt
1 1/2 yards light pink felt
Elastic for wrists and shoulder straps and headband
Small piece of black felt for Flamingo Eyes and Nose
Pink Feathers (Optional, I just had them sitting around)

Tutu
1 yard hot pink felt
1 yard light pink felt
1 yard other pink felt
Elastic for waist

Simple Instructions
-Cut out the base for the wings (from 1/2 yard of light pink felt) in whatever shape you desire that generally looks "bird shaped." I measured my daughter's arm-span before doing so as well as the length between her shoulders and waist.
-Cut out tons and tons of feathers (about 1 yards worth) from the light pink felt + hot pink + shiny felt.
-Starting with the bottom of the wings (curved part) attach the feathers in layers using a sewing machine.
-Attach either a ribbon or elastic shoulder straps and wrist straps
-To make the mask I just looked at pictures of a flamingo and layered the feathers in levels then added a beak and eyes and the elastic.
-The tutu is so easy, measure the waist and sew the elastic together.
-Using a paper towel roll, put the elastic band around it and then loop pieces of felt through. (Cut the felt the length and width you wish the tutu to be, generally based on how tall your child is.)

Pretty pictures and random photography thoughts.

     Fall is such a fun time to wander around downtown and take pictures. It is not too hot and even though the sun sets earlier, it usually means there are less people to unintentionally photo-bomb. The weather allows for versatile attire, and I don't freeze to death.
     Here are a few photos I took a week ago downtown. It is hard not to post them all because my photo subject is so photogenic.

This is one of my favorite walls, it is a hidden treasure located between a parking garage and an alley. 

This is one of those instances where I honestly cannot decide which I like more, the color photo or the black and the white. 

Sometimes when I take pictures it is fun to try and recreate an inspiration photo. Things like determining the angle, pose, lighting, and lens can be pretty straightforward, but sometimes those factors can be tricky. Take for example the following series of photos. I made her toss her hair about fifty times before we finally got a few shots where her hair wasn't covering her face making her look like Cousin Itt from the Addams Family. When I got home and was editing the photos, my husband pointed out that perhaps the inspiration photo used a fan to make the hair blow... that didn't even dawn on me while we were out taking pictures. 

Also I really love it when stores have interesting facades. It is so fun to walk around any downtown street and find color, and light, and shapes. And it doesn't hurt when they sell delicious pastries either. This is the front of Eva's Bakery in Salt Lake City and I first went there upon the recommendation of Sunset Magazine. Sadly they were closed when we were taking photos, but that was ok because it meant we were able to stop for some pumpkin cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory! But back to the point, really wonderful photo backdrops can be found anywhere you go. Simply pay attention to the light, background distractions, and safety and you can find some amazing places.

A Ride on the Snowbird Tram

This week we spent an afternoon up at Snowbird Ski Resort, riding the Ariel Tram to the top of Hidden Peak. Located at an elevation of 11,000 feet, the views were gorgeous but it was sure cold at the top! The weather and temperature  at the top were drastically different from where we boarded the tram. I bought discount passes this summer but decided to wait until October because I thought that the Fall leaves would make the views even more gorgeous, and indeed it did so braving the cold was worth it. Here are a few pictures from our trip. Utah is definitely beautiful in the Fall!