Making Pip

I had mentioned previously that I wanted to turn my Build a Bear "Bear-o-Lantern" into Pip from The Halloween Tree, and I started on that project this week.

For those unfamiliar with The Halloween Tree, Pip is the young boy in the center here. He wears a green/blue shirt, red overalls, cuffed jeans, and red high tops to complete the look. I wanted to try and modify some existing items if possible, though I didn't have a chance to make it out to BaBW as I live about 45 minutes away from the closest one. I think the shoes will definitely come from there, but the other items are ones I could pick up or create from thrifted items. So I made a trip to my favorite thrift store on their 50% off Wednesday sale to get some basic items.

Here is Pip dressed up in the unaltered items I thrifted. BaBW bears do fit into some children's clothing, usually in the newborn-3mo range. I was able to get the shirt and pants for a total of $3, and the suspenders for another $2.

The shirt needs to be hemmed and dyed, the suspenders cut down and re-sewn, and the pants need a tail hole at the very least. I may end up doing some of the weathering/patching as well, though I don't really want to cut the pants.

I have started some work on the shirt (and cut the tail hole in the pants), so see below for the initial steps.

I used Rit Dye in Emerald for the shirt, and just gave it a light wash over in it. I wanted the color to be blue and green, given how the shirt in the movie is interpreted as both.  Once dyed I pupped it in a pot of cold water, and then hung it to dry. This is the finished color.