Wacky Wednesday #10: Toys and Trees

 

Jeopardy-style answer: What is purple?

Jeopardy question: Toys and trees have this in common.

 

Jacaranda trees. Here in Southern California these trees bloom in May and June. Their colorful lilac blossoms are the inspiration for this week’s Wacky Wednesday.

 

At first I imagined this costume being all about the Jacaranda. But then, inspiration struck, and I made a purple necklace to go with my purple outfit. The necklace is made out of Shopkins bags. In case you haven’t spent time with school-aged girls lately, Shopkins are the big toy this season. They are tiny rubber figures and each comes in a purple rubber bag. Our daughter is obsessed with Shopkins (as evidenced by the growing number of purple rubber bags here). Since it’s Jacaranda season and purple is on my mind, suddenly I had the idea of negotiating a loan of the purple bags for a Wacky Wednesday costume. The owner of the Shopkins and their bags was not interested. I had to devise a system of using them without changing or harming them in any way, and you should see the iron-clad contract she had me sign. The bags are temporarily in my possession, and I think they make a delightfully wacky necklace.

My headpiece: jacaranda seed pods, fabric, and jacaranda blossoms I made from fabric. 

My outfit: random purple clothes from my closet.

My apron: Jacaranda seed pods, painted in various shades of purple and lilac.

For years I’ve collected these seed pods. I saw their potential as a material long before deciding that they could become part of a costume. I painted them shades of purple, like the Jacaranda blossoms, and then hot glued them onto a tulle apron. (Isn’t this what everyone thinks of doing when they see Jacaranda trees?)

There is a lot of contrast in my themes this week: flexible rubber and firm tree pods; natural elements and manufactured ones; something bought and something found for free. I like this contrast, too: a tree discards pods it no longer needs, and I pick them to turn them into something I can use. This Wacky Wednesday isn’t as funny as some, but that’s okay. Sometimes WW will be funny. It always will involve creativity. This week I’m reveling in the wackiness of turning seed pods into clothing and toys into accessories.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to unravel Shopkins bags from my embroidery thread necklace. The bags must be returned to their owner before the clock strikes midnight--or else!