Halloween is Oishii This Year

Last year's Halloween included a store-bought peapod costume for Ms. Punkin Q. Pie -- because, really, too tired.  But as various superadorable costume ideas got circulated on Facebook and Twitter (my social networks of choice), I was inspired to try my hand at knitting something cool.

Sushi gets lots of love and noms at my house, so I was excited when this onesie costume was featured on the Martha Stewart show.  It would be perfect for a kid in a warmer climate, but even the mild Mid-Atlantic states get chilly in October, so we needed something warmer, or at least more adaptable.  These drawstring bag nigiri costumes on Etsy were closer to spec and I loved the idea of the condiment headband!

Ravelry has a lot of interesting sushi-inspired patterns; none of these were costumes, however, so I got to work digging through the stash, searching for existing patterns to adapt, guessing my daughter's size while she slept, and doing math.  A mess of Lion Brand Homespun fit the bill: the right availability (as in, already in my house), the right amount (gobs of it), the right colors (lucked out totally).

 

I've based the apple green wasabi dollop on a free Coats & Clark Knit Rolled Rose pattern; it's a funky nautilus shape because I couldn't surmise the correct way to roll it.  The ginger strip I invented on the spot using the closest color match I could find, which turned out to be 104 Blush Heather from the non-stash/stash-adjacent Wool-Ease collection.  The black nori headband took a couple tries to figure out, as the first incarnation fit me perfectly (!).  All "pattern" specifics can be found on the Ravelry project page here.

 

The costume is a tamago nigiri (sweet egg omelet on top of rice) by necessity.  If I had had Homespun in Tumbleweed or Spice (for tuna) or in Saffron and Deco (salmon), I could have easily done something fishy.  But "Sunshine State" was within arm's reach, so hurray for eggs! Tight gauge garter stitch looks omelette-y, right?  The same black was used for the nori belt, knit the evening before its debut; given more time, I might have changed the belt design, but at this point, whatev.  Details are on the Ravelry project page here.

My original intention was to copy the brilliant drawstring idea and I totally had a bag that would work!-- except it was much too short, like a full year's growth too short. SO I cut the side seams, basted them down, and cut a hole in the bag bottom for the costume top.  It kinda works like a cloth sandwich board, good for layering over street clothes for indoor wear and over a coat for trick-or-treating.  I wish I had taken the weight of the stuffed-with-more-yarn tamago into account, though; there is a lot of drag in front and it makes it difficult for her to walk around without it sloooowly inching its way floor-ward.  What I'm saying is, smart people will come up with some sort of counterbalance in back, because the belt doesn't do much in that way.  :)

And I'm in costume at work today, as "Rosie the Riveter or Some Kinda Farmer."  Happy Halloween, everyone!