Electric Cowboys at Electric Forest

Electric Forest is definitely the biggest event in our household every year, and every year we go harder. I started planning my Valentines Cowboy costume late last year and was still working on it until the week of the event (the last weekend of June). That’s also due to other life stuff getting in the way, but I am so glad I got to mostly take my time on this and get the fit (almost) perfect and really play with beading and stuff.

Our group (not shown) chose “Cowboys and Wizards” as our theme and I really wanted to design something super campy and flashy. The Barbie craze hadn’t started back then, but from the few photos I’d seen of the costumes I was getting pretty excited about the color pink as a portrayal of over the top girlishness. I wanted something that said “Hey, it’s okay to be into pink and glitter and frivolity. It doesn’t mean you’re stupid” which is something I wish my teenage self had known.

The first piece I worked on and the only pattern review I have today is Gertie’s Patsy blouse. I’ve been using Gertie patterns like crazy lately and it’s because I finally found the perfect style and fit. Before I found out about bust adjustments I used to in every pattern choose a size too large and was always agonizing over weird pulling and armhole issues. No more! Because Gertie offers multiple cup sizes in their patterns, I can choose the correct size with the FBA already done for me. Then I just pinch out a smidgen in the pattern at the waist since I’m short waisted which also increases the waist measurement for me slightly and I’m done.

The fabrics I chose were a cheap quilting cotton (since I was agonizing over the perfect fabric that I just couldn’t find in the right shade of pink) and a faux suede for the yoke. You can also see in the picture above I attempted to make my own fringe in a faux suede and it just did not work. I was so unhappy with how it was fraying and laying no matter how I tried to burn or fray check the edges. I bought a fringe on etsy which ended up being the perfect match and moved much nicer though it did catch on the glass rhinestones.

This year I also purchased an embroidery machine and designed my own patches to incorporate into my design. I’m getting better, but you can see my first iteration here definitely had some tension issues and there are some unsightly wrinkles.

The skirt was a pattern that I hacked and changed so much that the original pattern isn’t even worth mentioning and it still ended up not sitting right. This is why you use a similar weight material for the mock ups… I am, however, happy with the random placement of patches, rhinestones, buttons, and beads. It feels really playful and fun and I watched soooo much TV during this process. The fabric is the same faux suede but in pink.

A last minute guy that I made. My long and fuzzy son Fitzwilliam. He may deserve his own blog post, especially once I fix all the design elements that caused him to break during the festival. He’s just a little toooo long (about as tall as me 😳) and the way I was gripping him was ripping out his wiring. My partner had helped me rewire his battery to a rechargeable cell and added a power button and a volume knob which I had sewn into a pocket in his back. (Btw if you’ve never added a zipper to a faux fur, it’s very weird but surprisingly doable).

Also a moment of appreciation for his tummy fabric which was a remnant at Joann and all the folks in the store were jelly that I got the last bit that day. Which reminds me of the fact that I did indeed have to stock up on supplies back in February since I was doing an out of season Valentines look lol.

And there we have it! I didn’t actually make my partner’s costume this year except for the giant three eyed smiley patch on his hat and the bolo ties I made for us and a few of our group. He wore vintage 70s pants, a vintage cowboy belt, his actual grandpa’s disco vest, and a fast fashion button up he’s had for years (plus, you know, the required Camelbak for hydration and snacks).