Every year and every season brings with it new challenges and new opportunities. This season, my big sewing projects were Gigi’s patchwork dress in When Grandma Goes and four vests for the singers of “Them Not-So-Dry Bones” in Schoolhouse Rock Live Too!
I had a great time with Gigi - finding the fabric was the toughest part as I needed over 40 different fabrics to make each square different! I also had to figure out the pattern for the dress, which ended up being a series of squares cut and serged and sewn together in strips that were then gathered to fit. The description within the script was “no elastic, metal, or waistbands” so having a the dress accomplish all that and, as noted, SEVEN pockets was a big undertaking. I am so happy with how it turned out!
The vests took me back to my sewing roots; in college I made what felt like so many vests that I joked I could have my own website called Imakesomanyvests.com. They were the perfect addition for the number, mirroring the barbershop look of the cartoon but built in the color of each of the characters to keep it within the world. We also made a hat for the final number, “Conjunction Junction,” which was later cut but used in our 4th of July parade!
This summer we also adopted a new mascot - Adalia the Porch Goose. We made her outfits for each show and I also altered one of our t-shirts to fit her as well.
