Speaking of Hopping…

A couple of weeks ago, I got an e-mail from the director of the latest kids show for Loose Moose Theatre. She requested some help with the frog costume they had – one which has been used for years, the last show being The Frog Wife in 2007, and which they were needing to use again for the upcoming production of The Frog Prince.

It is made out of polar fleece, which got very hot under the stage lights, and it was designed for somebody shorter than the current 5’11” actor that was rehearsing in it. The interior foam padding is also kind of deteriorating, and she wanted something different for the feet.

After meeting with the cast, I also found out that they wanted the frog to “magically” transform into the prince – i.e. quickly and easily, which just wasn’t happening. Hmm… What to do, what to do. Plus, the costume had been sweated in a lot over the years, without ever being washed – because the spots on it had been glued on. Um… yuck much?

I decided that making a new costume would be the best route to take, so I dug out a pattern I had used previously to construct The Three Bears costumes.

I cut out the basic body and head, and then some froggy fingers and toes, and sewed the pieces together.

After making sure it would fit, I got the actor to try it on, and then I “nipped and tucked” in various places to give it a more frog-like appearance.

Then it was time to add the details – like spots. We have a frog in our province called the Leopard Frog, and I used its spots for inspiration (though, I left out the back lines to make it a bit more generic).

Now, as you can see, I chose to make the costume out of polar fleece again – it provides some nice, stretchy “bulk” to the costume and it was by far the best-priced material (especially in Spring). To solve the overheating problem, though, I made the spots and chest-plate out of a “sports wear” fabric – with tiny vents in it…

… and then cut away the fleece behind them so the costume “skin” can actually “breathe”.

I then made some “bloomers” to give the frog some strong looking legs. In the original costume, foam had been used – which was not really washable, and was now deteriorating. This go round, I used some old sheeting and made two sets of shorts, which I sewed together at the top, leaving holes at the bottom which were sealed with velcro. I stitched some vertical lines to keep the padding in place, and then stuffed the legs and bum with some Poly-Fil (which could be removed for laundering, or re-pouffed if necessary).

At first, I sewed these pants directly onto the costume, but it resulted in some strange looking lines where this was done – not that Monkeyboy Junior Jr. noticed. 😉

(Mumma working, as seen by Monkeyboy Junior Jr.)

So. I removed the front stitching and added some suspenders to hold up the bloomers instead. A lucky find for “frog slippers” later, and the feet were attached, the zipper was added, and the costume was D-O-N-E!!!

And given the “tadpole seal of approval”, I might add. =)

I am happy to report that the costume was a hit. Colourful and fun. Easily performed in. Comfortable. Washable. Breathable. Quickly gotten out of (for the magical transformation). And frog-like! Yay!!!

I took some more promotional photos for the show that I’ll post later this week, and I think it’s going to be a good one. Check it out if you happen to be in the Calgary area. =)