Wacky Wednesday #7: Fran the Fruit Lady

 

So who knows where I come up with this stuff, but recently I got it into my head that I needed to make a fruit dress and of course, a fruit head piece to add to the fun. The headdress is kind of Carmen Miranda-ish. But Carmen wore fruit on her head only and I don’t want to limit the fruit-accessorizing to one part of my body. Clothes with something unexpected on them are just so fun to wear. Anyway, I’ve been having great fun sewing these fruit shapes. I’ve been coming up with fun names, too: Fruit Frau. Fruitenstein. Fruitopia. Fruity and Loopy. Fruit of the Loom. Any other ideas?

 

When I make these wacky creations, I often just start with whatever I have on hand in my studio. It’s fun to see  what kind of inspiration comes from supplies I already have. I had enough green fabric to make a skirt (a good background color for my fruit buffet, I think). But not enough for a dress. Of course, I had a green tank top I could wear along with the green skirt. The tank top had been in my “deal with later” pile. (As the name suggests, this collection includes projects that I’ve started but that haven’t gone as planned. No need to throw these projects away. Save them for future projects. Months ago I’d dyed the tank top green but it hadn’t turned out as I’d hoped. So this week I dyed it again, and now it makes for a good backdrop for my fruit shapes.) Trash to treasure. Voila!

Shoes seem like such a minor part of the equation but shoes that keep with the theme really tie the whole effect together. This pair of shoes has fruit on it today but that is a temporary effect. This is the third WW when I’ve used this pair of shoes.  

As for the headpiece, I knew I could buy plastic fruit shapes, but I prefer the challenge of making my own. I decided to make some grapes from plastic Easter egg halves and (of course) hot glue. I like that the effect isn’t 100% realistic. The whimsical nature of it appeals to me more than something realistic. I made other fruit shapes  out of felt and Styrofoam balls. Bust out the hot glue and some rhinestones. Let’s get our craft on! Here’s the bird’s eye view of my hat. Fun, fun, fun, with a cherry on top.

This morning I did my weekly volunteer work at my daughter’s school. I collect money that the kids bring in for their savings accounts and I bring it to the bank. The kids liked my costume and one girl offered to eat my candy gummy earrings for me. And then she offered again. And then she insisted. Thankfully, the school bell rang and my earrings were saved from digestion. The checkers in the super market loved my costume and my friends at the gym were also amused. Someone hadn’t eaten before his workout and threatened to nibble on my hat.

For anyone who is interested, here are the supplies I used in this creation:

·         Cotton fabric

·         Fabric pens

·         Sharpies

·         Styrofoam balls

·         Felt

·         Cotton batting

·         Plastic Easter eggs

·         Elastic

·         Hot glue

·         Humor

·         Gummy cherry candies (as earrings)

Just a random (ish) thought on the kind of costumes I like making: for now, I get a lot of satisfaction making something I know most people will recognize, rather than something more obscure. And I like that you don’t have to speak English and read my lengthy descriptions to understand what I’ve created. People from different countries and who speak other languages recognize a parrot, or fruit, or a nest, so I can amuse people even if we speak different languages. I’ve said it before: funny is the universal language!

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I’m now putting photos of some of my creations on Instagram. I’ll still be blogging here as well, because I have lots to say and this is a great place for my stories. If you have any chores you’re putting off (hee hee), you can check out additional photos I’ve posted at https://instagram.com/sarahconleyartist.  You won’t be procrastinating. You’ll be supporting my artistic endeavors. Win, win!