Amelia Earhart Costume

Monday, October 31, 2016

There is nothing like waiting until the last day to post a Halloween costume!! 


In a way, this costume may not deserve such a long post. Avery's Amelia Earhart costume is more assembled than handmade, but the assembling was fun and the photo shoot was even more so. 


We found the "Who was...?" series of books at our library, and Avery has been gobbling them up. She started with all of the females, and is now moving on to some of the males. Amelia Earhart was one of her favorites, and I could not have come up with a better costume idea myself. Everyone keeps telling Avery she even looks a bit like Amelia.


The only items I sewed were the leggings and the aviator hat. I used the most wonderful brushed poly from Finch Fabrics for the leggings. Avery wanted to sleep in these they are so soft. The contrast fabric and hat came from a thrifted faux suede skirt. I used the Jennuine Designs Dressage Leggings pattern, but due to limited suede fabric, I only color blocked the front portion of the leggings.  


I started with this tutorial for the aviator hat deviating slightly to fully line the hat with flannel. I knew I wanted to use an interesting buckle for the closure. When I went looking for an old belt to cut up, I spotted Avery's school shoes. That sent me on the hunt for Tandy's outgrown pair. The buckle / velcro portion was easier to unpick from the shoe than I thought it would be, and my sewing machine handled it perfectly too!


As soon as Avery landed on the Amelia Earhart idea, I turned to my friends at Wee Rascals for their hip and historical tees. The Amazing Amelia tee just happened to be on sale too!! It has been unseasonably warm here, so I love that she can wear this look with or without the jacket. 


Speaking of jacket, I spotted this one at Target. In the midst of costume sewing and party planning, I was thrilled to grab this instead of making one. If you are inclined to make one though, I think the Jennuine Design Moto Jacket would be great. I am eagerly waiting for Adrianna to release this pattern as well. The aviator style goggles came from Amazon.


Have you seen the recent Chick-fil-A commercial featuring Amelia Earhart? We were inspired to grab and industrial fan to try for a scarf blowing shot. I love it!!


We needed some last minute family costumes, so Todd decided to go as Avery's wing man. Did you know that Amelia Earhart didn't actually pilot her first famous flight across the Atlantic? She was an instant hero non-the-less for attempting the dangerous flight. 


Todd donned a tactile suit and a name tag that read, "Hello my name is Pete Mitchell" for a Top Gun reference. Had we planned this in advance, my dad could have properly outfitted him with fighter pilot gear. 


Avery had so much fun getting into character!! I love how she learned along the way. Here are some interesting facts we found:
  • Amelia fought for women's rights as pilots and citizens.
  • She established a women's pilot group calls the Ninety-Nines.
  • She set 3 speed records for flying in 1930.
  • Later in 1932, she made the first solo female flight across the Atlantic Ocean.
  • Amelia studied sewing as a young girl. 
  • Amelia became a clothing designer with a line of clothes sold at Macy's in New York City. The designs were for "active living." I found this article about her clothing line very interesting. 


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