Someone suggested, while myself and two fellow Mummies were planning our toddlers' joint birthday party, that we have optional fancy dress. Fools that we were, we thought "Yeah, that'll be fun! And since we're having an animals 2-by-2 theme, we'll have animal costumes! Easy!"
Subsequently, I spent many hours trying to think of an easy-to-make costume which Little R wouldn't object to wearing, which would obviously represent an animal, without being complicated. Rachel and I kept discussing it and coming back to the idea of a turtle (or tortoise), if we could make a simple little shell and attach it somehow.
Rachel had the very bright idea of phoning my Mum to run the idea past her, and within a few minutes she'd got a picture in her head of precisely how to do it, instructed us to order a metre of brown fleece and agreed that she'd "help" us to make said costume while we were down after Christmas. Never underestimate the power of a craftily minded mother.
So... the day after the day after Boxing Day, we got down to it. As I had expected hoped, my Mum's "help" involved me mostly watching her do it, and learning lots in the process. For example, I now know how to measure, cut out and create a head-hole in a simple tabbard. I'm proud to say I worked out where to put the button flaps all by myself. I felt under quite a lot of pressure, I have to tell you!
While I then flitted about choosing some big black buttons, Mum found a hood pattern from somewhere and adapted it to make it fit the tabbard. It's like magic watching her at work. I again had big responsibility though - I had to measure around the face of my wee cherub to work out how long the elastic round the front should be. I think I was Mum's legs, honestly, whizzing up and down the stairs!
Eh voila! Within half an hour, one well-fitted tabard complete with elasticated hood. And one toddler happy to gallop around in it...
... and play peekaboo with the hood, which was a little too roomy (I pleated it to make it a bit smaller before I stitched the eyes on, later).
Onward to the exciting task of creating THE SHELL. We agreed a size of oval, which Mum quickly knocked up, then stuffed with a large oval of wadding, and a slightly smaller over of wadding. Then she pinned like so, and sewed around to create the basic shape. (I like how this photo stars one of each of our feet - you can tell I'd been running up and down the stairs as I've removed my slippers, which in Mum's icebox house is BRAVE.)
Meanwhile, I sewed on two buttons. Sewing buttons takes a while, I'll have you know!
We were nearly there - one tabbard complete with button flaps, buttons and hood!
This part took a lot of discussion: arranging the hexagons on the shell. We used to have a tortoise (Dear old Sammy), which put as at a bit of an advantage. We decided to just pretend that tortoise shells have one big hexagon in the middle and others tessellating around the edge. Scientifically close, if not 100% accurate.
The Mum did some careful zig-zag stitching...
... and we were done! One adorable little turtle/tortoise outfit, which Little R loves.
Easy to move around in too!
On New Year's Eve, during my day of a million jobs, I handstitched on some HUGE eyes, like the turtles that Little R loves so much in Finding Nemo ("Duuuuuuude!").
And he happily wore his outfit throughout the entire party. One happy little turtle. Or tortoise. Whichever he fancied at any given moment.
P.S. As an ex-tortoise owner, I've always got really grouchy when people muddle up tortoises and turtles. The difference is so bleeding obvious. So when, aged seven, I'd bring a friend to my garden and they'd say "Oh wow! A turtle!" I'd be really facetious and say "Really? Where? We don't even HAVE a turtle!" So believe me when I say I know they are quite distinct animals. But for the purposes of his costume, it didn't matter.