Sewing for Halloween: DC Comic's Green Arrow and Killer Frost
/This week we are featuring Halloween costumes and crafts! What a fun week it is for the ladies to pull out all the stops and let their creative juices fly. The first feature is Jackie’s version of the DC Comic book characters the Green Arrow and Killer Frost.
Each year, my kids like to challenge me with their Halloween costume choices. This year, they chose characters from the DC comics Arrowverse on the CW. The Boy loves Green Arrow. Once he decided, he hasn’t changed his mind once. Usually he changes his mind three or four times before settling on his final choice. Miss 10 wanted to be Killer Frost from The Flash. I watch these shows with them so I knew what the characters look like, but I still needed to do some research about the clothes each character wears. Thank goodness for Google images! Once I had a clear idea of how each character dresses, I got to thinking about how I could recreate them.
Green Arrow was easy. His superhero suit consists of a jacket, his hood, and pants. I spent the most time getting to colors right, ultimately settling on two shades of green softshell from Fashion Fabrics Club. I started by making the jacket using the Softshell Jacket from Gracious Threads. I chose it because it already had the colorblocking I wanted on the front, so the only alterations I would need to make was to colorblock the back to match. I’ve made this pattern several times before, so I had no difficulties sewing it up.
The pants required more thought, mostly because I realized just how hard it was to color match the exact shade of green I needed to make this look work. I decided why agonize over finding a third fabric when I could use the same fabrics from the jacket. I looked through my pattern collection and realized that the Alpine Trousers from New Horizons would be a great way to use the two fabrics from the jacket and would add some edge to the Green Arrow look. I really do love how the color blocking in this pattern maintains a consistent curve across the legs. Terra, the designer of New Horizons, is a genius with those details! I only slightly modified the pants by turning the patch pockets into welt pockets. I bought a mask and dug the bow and arrow set out of the closet to accessorize, and The Boy was transformed.
Killer Frost isn’t a title character, but she is one of our favorites from The Flash. She’s inclined to be a baddie but she chooses to fight with the “good guys.” She has a biker chic vibe, complete with leather pants, bustiers, and motorcycle jackets. I toned it down for Miss 10, but she still looks the part.
I started by making moto-jeans in black denim. I used the Phresh Jeggings from Winter Wear Designs and added the moto styled modifications on my own. All the pintucks, piecing, and topstitching took extra time, but it was absolutely worth it. The small details are critical to achieve the Killer Frost look.
Killer Frost wears a blue leather motorcycle jacket in season 4. While I couldn’t replicate it exactly, I knew that I could use the Hey June Conifer jacket to pull off a great “inspired by” jacket. I chose a blue softshell, also from Fashion Fabrics Club, I have sewn this jacket previously, so I was confident with all the pieces and zippers. I skipped the in-seam pockets in favor of zippered welt pockets to amp-up the rock & roll biker vibe. Lastly I added the finishing detail of heavy duty snaps at the points of the collar. The more bling, the better! If I had had silver toned rivets, I would have added those too. We accessorized the look with thrifty store biker boots, a white wig, blue lipstick, and an icicle made from plastic food wrap.
My babies look amazing in their costumes, if I do say so myself! They had great fun slow-motion fighting for the camera. They had the hardest time not smiling, because superheroing is serious business. I’m so pleased with the little details that I chose to use in each piece, which helped elevate their whole looks. The best part of their outfits is that each piece can be worn again and again as everyday clothing. If you sew Halloween costumes for your littles, you know that is not always the case. Miss 10 has been begging to wear her moto-jeans every day since I finished them and is annoyed that I am withholding them from her until Halloween. All told, they love their Mama-made outfits,and that alone makes every thread change and topstitch worth while!
Happy sewing!
In honor of Halloween and the creativity it brings out, we are featuring a new guest on the blog. Chance explains how he uses patterns, foam and household tools to bring some of your favorite characters to life. Whether costumes or cosplay, his techniques and tips can help you kick your next project up a notch!