Little Red Riding Hood

I had a five year old looking over my shoulder all weekend saying, "Hurry up there are only two more weeks until Halloween!" Oh my, only two more weeks. So I put the sewing machine in overdrive and finished Little Red Riding Hood's red riding hood.

It was a bit tricky because there aren't many free patterns out there for a child's hooded cape. Most of the patterns that I found were for toddlers or adults. I was also looking for something sturdy. Sicily is lacking a fitting fall jacket for this year and I realized that if I made this well it would be an adequate wrap for our mild southern autumn.

I decided to make my own pattern. This was my first experience with pattern making. It was a little daunting. I'm good at baking because I like to follow the rules. I like having a pattern in hand before I start a sewing project. But I hated to buy a pattern for something that seemed like an easy sew. So I jumped in with what I knew.

I started by tracing out the hood of one of Sicily's hooded sweaters. I traced it out bigger to account for the seams and because we wanted a more fairy tale look. Then after taking some measurements, I made a rough sketch of the half circle that would be the cape. The outer red is flannel and it's lined with a cotton floral print that she picked out. It's very cozy. I had originally planned to make a button closure but there were bound to be mistakes in a roughly estimated pattern. Mine was making the neckline a bit too small. So I improvised and made a tie closure instead. It actually looks a little more story book so it worked out in the end.

Little Red Riding Hood is very pleased. She spent most of yesterday afternoon twirling in it. (Girls will twirl in anything that resembles a skirt.) Then she stopped and reminded me that Little Red Riding Hood can't run the streets naked. She wants a dress and an apron just like the one in the book. Yes ma'am, I'll get right on that. Tomorrow. Today, I promised the boy that we could walk down to the creek and get started on his costume by destroying a dress shirt and some khakis. If that messes with your mind a little, don't worry. It will make more sense later.

No rest for the weary. Oh well. After all, there are only two more weeks until Halloween.