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Before we jump into this Halloween post, I’d like to remind you that our community is still healing after the storm. If you’re looking for ways to help western North Carolina, we’ve complied a list here.

After missing Halloween while I was away at Quilt Market last year, I’ve been scheming up a Halloween costume for this year. After a little thought, I knew exactly who I wanted to dress up as—Mirabel Madrigal from the animated movie Encanto. That was the first Disney movie my daughter June and I watched together and we both absolutely adore it. I has a moving story that honestly makes me cry each time I watch it as I think of my own family’s immigration story. Plus it has beautiful colors and costumes that I knew would be so fun to recreate.

I started working on the skirt weeks before Hurricane Helene hit our beloved mountain town. After being without water, power, and internet for a week my family and I drove south to stay with my parents until our utilities are restored. I brought only my sewing machine and completely forgot everything else I needed (including the foot pedal and power cord), so after finding a replacement pedal and power cord the blouse of this costume was completed without all my fancy tools and supplies. You can keep scrolling to see my childhood Sesame Street ruler put to use. Which goes to say, you don’t need a ton of sewing tools to make amazing things! A solid machine goes a long way.

I absolutely love the way this costume came out and I cannot wait to wear it on Halloween back in Black Mountain. Halloween is a big deal in our small town; thousands of families trick-or-treat on just a couple streets and it’s a magically time for kids and grown-ups alike. I feel like it will be extra special of our town this year as we have all been through so much with this storm. This quote from the movie feels fitting… “Even in our darkest moments, there’s light where you least expect it.”

Keep reading to learn how to make your own Mirabel-inspired costume and fill your Halloween with a bit of magic.

Supplies

For the Skirt
Tear-away stabilizer
Basting spray (or Elmer’s washable glue sticks)
Yarn (medium to bulky) in various bright colors
Crepe Back Satin, <1 yard each, in 3 colors (turquoise, royal blue, and teal)
2″ fringe trim in royal blue
Blue lace trim
Teal 3/4 wide ribbon, 2 spools
Pink mini tassels

For the Blouse
Black topstitching thread
White linen blend fabric (yardage depends on size sewn)
Tear-away stabilizer
Basting spray (or Elmer’s washable glue sticks)
Scrap of pink stiff felt
Fray check

Tools

Baby Lock Free Motion Couching Foot
Thread stand for your sewing machine (included with the Ballad)
Sewing machine, I’m using my Baby Lock Ballad
Fabric scissors or rotary cutter and mat

Making the Skirt

I started with the Cleo Skirt pattern by Made by Rae. It’s a basic gathered skirt pattern with a flat front and elastic back waistband. I Sewed view B as per the instructions but only made the skirt pieces about 10″ long.

Once that was assembled, I continued by adding 2 more gathered skirt tiers. Each piece was 2x the width as the one above it. I didn’t even take measurements for the width of each tier. I just held up the fabric to the skirt panels above it and tore rectangles that were approximately double the width as the once above it.

Once the skirt was fully assembled, I was able to add all the embellishments! First I sewed the blue scalloped lace along the bottom edge. Second was the blue fringe trim. And the last was the teal ribbon. All were sewn on my sewing machine. I hand stitched each tassel on which was a quick step since I used pre-made tassels.

Now to the fun part—sewing with yarn!

When I first got my Ballad sewing machine, I knew it could do a ton of different techniques, including free motion quilting. Admittedly I’ve only tried it once and on a scrap piece of fabric. But when I knew I wanted to make this costume I knew it would be the perfect opportunity to try a new, someone uncommon, technique—free motion couching!

If you’re unfamiliar with couching, it’s an embroidery stitch where thread is sewn around/into yarn so yarn lays on top of your fabric. It can be done by hand but did you know it can also be done with a sewing machine?

I put this test making this skirt and adding colorful yarn couching all over my skirt. I’ll admit there was a learning curve and by the end of it I felt much more comfortable doing it.

First, you have to check to see if your Baby Lock sewing machine is compatible with the Free Motion Couching Foot. If it is, you will need to follow the directions included with the foot to get your machine ready. This includes installing a thread stand and swapping out the presser foot.

I found 2 things to be crucial for couching success: 1) using basting spray to adhere tear-away stabilizer to the back of the skirt as I sewed and 2) It was easier with thick/bulky yarn. Before using a new yarn, I always sewed on a scrap piece of fabric with the tear-away stabilizer underneath. I found that thinner yarn required the needle to be in the furthest left position while bulky yarn could be in the default settings. I also found that the presser foot had to be in the lowest height setting when using thin yarn.

Making the Blouse

The foundation of the blouse was my tried and true pattern, the Helen’s Closet Ashton top with the butterfly fly sleeve expansion. I’ve probably made 10 of these over the years in various forms and so I knew it would be a great starting point.

I sewed the bodice as per the directions. However, before attaching the sleeves, I added the fun embroidery!

Just like with the couching on the skirt, I used spray basting to adhere the tear-away stabilizer to the wrong size of the sleeve fabric. I then put black top stitching thread in my machine (keeping white regular all-purpose thread in the bobbin). For the scallops, I used stitch 8-32 on my Ballad. For the butterfly style embroidery, I used stitch 6-312.

Since the sleeves pieces are slightly curved, I pivoted a tiny bit after each scallop arch. This allowed me to follow the general shape of the sleeve fabric. I did the same for the butterfly style stitching.

I applied Fray Check to all the scallop details before trimming away the excess fabric. This ensures the thread won’t fray when worn or washed. Tiny, sharp embroidery scissors are super helpful for this step as you want to trim as right next to, but not on, the stitching.

After adding the decorative stitches to the sleeve, I continued following the pattern and sewed on the sleeves and side seams. Before adding finishing the neckline with bias tape, I created cut out a 7″ wide circle piece for the neckline flounce. I found this tutorial to be super helpful in upstanding how to sew a flounce).

After cutting out the circle, I used the same decorative stitches to embellish the edges of the flounce. I placed it on top of the assembled shirt, right side up, and basted it in place. Then I applied a narrow bias tape (about 1 1/4″ wide) along the neckline and finished the neckline according the pattern directions.