A Free Writing Expirement

I really have nothing to say, and because it’s been so long since I have posted on here. What has it been, a week? More? I dunno. Anyways, I thought I’d just type until no more words come to me. My English teacher last semester showed this to me and I do it whenever I need to brainstorm for something. I usually end of doing the brainstorming the day or so before a paper is due or a short story contest deadline, but it works for me. And I get good grades. 🙂 I will also try not to hit the backspace button. And without further ado, I will begin with this statement:

Malt Chocolate milk is NOT normal Chocolate milk.

I don’t know what it is, but it is NOT the same. And as I sit here, sipping my NOT chocolate milk in my beautiful TARDIS mug and trying not to gag, I am struck by how not normal it is. It is…. Different. I realize here that all of these sentences say the same thing in different words. How logical of me. Anyways, I think I have placed  (just a second while I let my sister in; the door’s locked) what is wrong with it. It’s the malt! *feels incrediblyp rofound*

But the TARDIS is still awesome.

So the reason I’m drinking faux hot chocolate even though it is 60 degrees outside is because I stayed up late reading, lost track of time, remembered I had to take a shower because I really don’t like taking them in the morning, especially if the departure time is 7:30 a.m., and ended up sleeping with wet hair. Wet hair makes me cold for the rest of the day. Now what could have possibly engrossed me so that I forgot about personal hygiene? Why, the Hunger Games. The first one to be exact. Finished it in roughly one day and I’ve started the second. Words cannot describe how excited I am for the movie. Well, I can at least say that the amount of excitement is trivial compared to the almost nervous excitement of HP7P2, but this is the Hunger Games and that was Harry Potter. Anything that gets mentioned in the same sentence with HP means that it has something worth being excited for. Take Twilight, for example. My excitement that the last movie is coming out and that it will be over is close to the excitement I will have when Desperate Housewives finally ends. After years of having to sit through its commercials while watching LOST, I learned to despise it. As will as the KIA Sorento, which was also advertised to death. When Lost ended, Desperate Housewives was violently forced out of my mind, and I was happy. That is, until ABC decided to air Once Upon a Time in the slot right before that awful television show. Now it’s almost impossible to escape with all of those “A brand new episode of Desperate Housewives, coming up next!”s and horrendous images that make you want to fight to the pain with the Dread Pirate Roberts.

Drop your sword.

Wow, see what happens when I free write? The topic of chocolate milk has some how morphed into fighting to the pain. Perhaps I should give this to a psychiatrist and see what he makes of it. Might be entertaining.

Blegh, I just took a sip of that malt stuff. Why do I keep drinking it?

Now I can’t think of anything to say, but I am sticking true to the whole free writing thing and not stopping even though I’m writing about having nothing to write about. And now I’ve even run of things to write about that! This is pathetic.

So…. We’re getting a new dog. I suppose I could write about that. She another Corgi and her name will probably be Merry. That way we will have Merry and Pippin, our two Welsh Corgis. How adorable. Problem is, Merry is significantly smaller than Pippin, and as everybody knows, Merry’s the tall one, and Pippin’s the short one. Ah well, the dog’s also a girl, so the whole accuracy thing just got thrown out the window. And they’re both dogs. I think I should stop now.

Do or Do Not–The Movie Theater

There is a list, quite an extensive one as a matter of fact, of things one should not do in the theater. This is not just limited to the cinema itself, but includes the lobby, popcorn counter, ticket booth, and even the parking lot. My job of writing this post is to pass on the gems of wisdom so that others will not ruin the movie watching experience for others and themselves. We will begin when one plans to see a movie.

PLANNING TO SEE A MOVIE

Sometimes we just have to go out and see a movie, either because we have been waiting so long for one to come out and the midnight premiere is a necessity vital for our future existence, or because we’ve been in the house too long and seeing a movie is the only alternative to going 80s style shopping at Walmart.

When one plans to see a movie, be careful; movie theater internet sites may be confusing and lead you to give those people you are trying to coordinate with wrong information. While this may not directly endanger your life, it can come very close. Here are a couple rules to follow when planning:

1. Problem: Many theaters share the same name. Solution:Be sure you are looking at one located where you are, not in Poughkeepsie. (unless of course you happen to live in Poughkeepsie, than ignore this step)
2. Problem: If you are wanting to see a movie on a later date than the day you are looking at the schedule BE WARNED. Every time you refresh the page it will jump back to the current date with the stealthiness of a ninja leaving you completely unaware of the change. (This is very stressful if you are looking at, say, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 a couple of days after it came out and you are trying to plan a get together with your friends for the following Sunday but every time you change tabs and the page refreshes it jumps back to the current date and it says that the only available showings are after 10:00 p.m. which is a very impossible time to see said movie with said friends, but you are completely unaware that the only reason it says that is because you happen to be looking at it on the current date after 10:00 p.m., not on the Sunday you want, so OF COURSE THE TICKETS ARE ALL SOLD OUT.) Solution: Watch the date like you would a Weeping Angel. Don’t blink. Blink and it changes. It is fast. Faster than you can believe. Don’t turn your back. Don’t look away. And don’t blink. Good Luck.

The ninja that comes and puts the date back to the current one before you even know what has happened.

PURCHASING TICKETS

Imagine this:

You have decided to see a movie. You have decided which movie you will see. You have decided what time you will go see that movie. Something comes up. You loose track of time, you can’t find your keys, you get carried off by a horde of angry chipmunks, and you are running late. After madly dashing to the car, cursing every stop light you hit, attempting to legally speed, and contemplating the legal ramifications of giving that little old lady driving 20 under the speed limit a “friendly shove,” you arrive at the theater just two minutes before the movie starts. You sprint to the ticket booth and get stuck behind someone who doesn’t remember which movie they were supposed to be buying tickets for so they stand there trying to remember and muttering to themselves about all the bad things drinking Diet Coke does to your memory.

Solution: Don’t drink Diet Coke.

You see that guy sitting down in the front of the line? That's him.

LOBBY AND POPCORN COUNTER

If you are really lucky, you have reached this part without mishap. You walk in through the one way doors and you smell it, the aroma of buttered popcorn as it pops out of the magical, glowing kettle. You are drawn to the popcorn like a moth to a porch light. It hypnotizes you. You must have that popcorn. But when you order that bucket and see how large it is, you realize that that popcorn, with its buttery, salty, maybe even cheesy goodness, will effectively suck out all of the moisture in your body. You look around and see what you believe to be the solution, a gallon sized plastic cup full of Diet Coke, complete with bendy straw. It looks ideal.

Problem: Half an hour through the movie you have to go to the bathroom or you will die. The culprit: That half drunk gallon of Diet Coke.

Solution: Don’t drink Diet Coke.

THE CINEMA

If you have reached this point without experiencing any of the above mistakes, you deserve a medal. However, the amount of things that shouldn’t happen in the cinema itself is quite extensive, so do not let down your guard.

Problem 1: Elementary school kids sitting at the top of the cinema begin emptying their bags of popcorn onto your head the moment you walk.

Solution: Hold your own bucket of popcorn over your head to transfigure that artificial butter covered arsenal of grenades into a free refill.

Problem 2: The theater is not very full and the number of seats overwhelms you. Which one should you take?

Problem 3: The theater is nearly full and there is only a handful of options. The question still remains.

Problem 4: You have found a good seat and don’t want anyone sitting next to you. How would you prevent this?

The solutions to problems 2 through 4 are summed up very well here:

During the movie is perhaps the easiest place to make a mishap. Follow these simple rules for the optimum movie watching experience for those around you.

Circumstance 1: Justin Bieber begins “singing.”

Reaction: Refrain from throwing your bucket of popcorn at the screen. You will miss it when he stops.

Circumstance 2: You are watching The Woman in Black. The main character appears on screen.

Reaction: Refrain from screaming, “Merlin’s beard, it’s Harry Potter!”

Note: These two circumstances are perhaps the most difficult to keep from making mistakes. If experiencing difficulty, consider duct tape.

Unrealistic reactions of throwing popcorn in the theater

THE PARKING LOT

Imagine this:

You are walking to the theater to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2. A group of teenagers walk out, clutching Diet Cokes and half empty buckets of popcorn.

Girl 1 says to Girl 2: “OMG, that was so sad. I, like, messed up my mascara crying so much.”

Girl 2 to Girl 1: “Like totally! It was super depressing when Harry died.”

Your reaction

Solution: Don’t drink Diet Coke

You’re welcome, Olan Rogers, for all the free advertising.

Nerdy Projects of January

January is usually the time when I get most of my craftiness out for the year. There’s something about the sitting by the fire on a cold day with nothing better to do than knit, bead, or sew. My imagination kind of runs crazy, so I start more things than I can ever hope to finish. Here’s a list of the things I’m working on right now.

As I was flipping through Harry Potter from Page to Screen, I happened upon Luna’s page and saw a piece of jewelry I had never seen in the movies. It’s a dragonfly hair tie. I had to make it. It’s nearly done, I just need some long black bugle beads for the tail.

I actually finished this one. It’s Watson’s scarf from Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.

My brother epically swings the scarf over his shoulder

After seeing the season 4 finale of Doctor Who, I started collecting charms for a 10th Doctor’s companion bracelet. I also want to do a Harry Potter one eventually.

From left to right: A handy spare hand, Union Jack, a fob watch, London Bus, a Weeping Angel's wing, Big Ben, a cuppa tea, the Runaway Bride, a beetle on your back, the wasp from Unicorn and the Wasp, two hearts, bananas, werewolf/Bad Wolf

This one I thought of completely randomly. How about a bookmark that has the TARDIS appearing as you read down the page? This is the 10th Doctor’s TARDIS and sonic screwdriver, but I’m also planning to do the 11th’s as well.

Now here’s a list of the things I haven’t started yet but hope to soon.

1) A fez. Yes, a fez.

2) Bowties, both blue and red.

3)…. Well, I had a third, but I can’t think of it. I’ll get back to you.

UPDATE: I remembered the third thing! I sonic screwdriver bracelet! I finished it and will post a picture tomorrow. Or Monday….

Harry Potter and the Deathly Halloween Party

So I came up with an idea to do a butterbeer tasting. You know, kind of like a wine tasting, but with butterbeer. My brother suggested that his friend come over because he liked my butterbeer when I made it after HP7.5. So now instead of a simple butterbeer tasting, it should be a party. A Halloween party seems ideal because school is pretty hectic right now and will be until a few weeks before then. So that gives me plenty of time to plan for it.

First of all, I need butterbeer. Lots of it. I already have compiled a list of butterbeer recipes in a previous post to test, so those will be the drinks. And I will have my guests decide which is better. I’m guessing that my brother and his friend will like the sweeter ones better because, face it, they’re teenage guys. But that is purely hypothesizing. I shall have to see. I also found some awesome labels for butterbeer bottles, one from the Three Broomsticks and one from the Hog’s Head. I don’t think I’ll be using them for the tasting, but they would be perfect for gifts. The image is the link. Just in case you couldn’t find it.

Next, I need snacks to go with it. A sort of cleansing the pallet between tastings. So how about pumpkin pasties? I have two options here, one from a whole list of other Harry Potter treats (not the biggest fans of them, though, except the acid pops. I might just do those) The pumpkin pasties are the second on the list. I would post an image, but apparently it’s copyrighted. Blah. Click here.* Or I could do the recipe from The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook. I found the recipe on the internet, believe it or not, and it sounds pretty good as well. It has fewer ingredients, so that’s less shopping. Perhaps a mixture of the two recipes?

*Just a tip. I just made this recipe and I highly recommend NOT cooking the pumpkin as long as it says to! I would go so far and even say to cut the cooking time in half! Mine came out with a filmy layer on top and the pumpkin was not smooth. It tastes great, though, just not the texture I was hoping for. I would also suggest lightly coating the pasties with egg white and sugar before baking to give it a nice glace and sweeten up the crust. I also recommend making your own crust. I makes it just that much better. Utterly delish!

Next up is the cockroach clusters! According to the Harry Potter wiki, these contain real bits of cockroach. Ew. How about pretzels instead? Oh, and chocolate. Chocolate makes everything better. I have found a recipe for these as well, one that is much better than the ones that use low mein noodles. Ew again. The recipe is found near the bottom of the blog post which also contains a butterbeer recipe. I have already linked it it in that same butterbeer post found above. Sounds simple and super tasty!

And you simply cannot have a Harry Potter part with chocolate frogs. It’s a rule. You have to have them And, moreover, you HAVE TO HAVE THE BOX. HAVE TO. It’s another rule. So here’s a template for the box. The image will take you to the printable template. I’ve already made one and it is super awesome.

For the frog itself, you have to get a frog mold for your melted chocolate. I ordered one yesterday, and I hope the frog will fit in the box. It may be a bit big. One suggestion for the box is to have the other side of the paper gold, so that the inside is a bit more attractive.

And here is an awesome template for the cards. Very movie accurate. You’ll have to come up with your own picture and words, but I’m sure there’s a site with some suggestions if you aren’t feeling very creative.

And then there’s Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans. I have found a few free box templates for these, but none of them really struck my fancy except this one. As for the beans inside, BBEFB are actually sold by Jelly Belly. If, however, you do not want to spend the money (like me), regular Jelly Bellies will do fine.

And these are just adorable. I may just have to get them a shot. The creator of these brilliant candies but them on top of cupcakes, but I don’t exactly think that’s necessary. Sorting Hat caramels? Brilliant!

Licorice wands always sounded brilliant to me. Much better than licorice whips. However, I simply detest the taste of black licorice. It’s absolutely disgusting. So immediately when I heard of making licorice wands, I thought, “Twizzlers!” But still, the traditional strawberry twizzler is not appetizing, not to me, anyways. So what about cherry? Surprisingly, I think those taste better than strawberry when usually it is the other way around. Artificial cherry has a habit of tasting like…. Medicine. Blegh. It seems the most traditional way of making licorice wands is to get a twizzler or something similar, dip the lower third or quarter in chocolate for the handle, and decorate it with sprinkles. I may just get a little creative with this…. *edit* It turns out that there is such a thing as chocolate licorice. How very interesting. It would be perfect if it tasted good. I may have to test this out….

The creator of these used pecans for her cockroach clusters, which is great. If you like nuts. Most of my family does not, so I think the pretzels are a better idea.

Lastly, there are the cauldron cakes. I have heard of people making pancakes and simply calling the cauldron cakes, but I believe it takes much more than that. Apparently, so did the people who created Honeyduke’s shop in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The author of Bakingdom has not only been to WWoHP, but she has also decided to replicate the food they have there! I bow to her awesomeness.

Butterbeer and Other Harry Potter Geekery

Obviously, I am a huge Harry Potter nerd. Huge. The amount of nerdness is  a bit embarrassing, actually. I did dress up for the midnight showing of HP7.5 as Luna Lovegood, but I never did get a really good picture of my outfit. I wasn’t able to make as much as I would have liked, but I found some good stuff at thrift stores, so I was satisfied. I’ll post some pictures of my friends, my sister, and I as we walked up and down the river walk in San Antonio in full costume. Well, almost full, I didn’t have my spectrespecs on at the time.  But on to the butterbeer!

I had made one recipe before, the one found on the Fox News website (the images are the links). It’s really good, but incredibly rich and sweet. You definitely cannot drink much of it, and I highly recommend keeping it away from little children. Your house may not still be standing if a child ingests all that sugar. You also get a weird foam stuff when you add the syrup to the cream soda that is NOT appetizing. If you scoop it up and put it elsewhere before you add the whipped cream, it’s alright though. But anyways! I have found other recipes that I am dying to try out.

I found this one on a fellow knitter’s blog when I was looking at her projects. It’s meant to be served warm, which is interesting, because I haven’t seen any like that. But it is mentioned in both the books and the movies, so I really want to try it when the weather starts cooling off. Who knows when that will be….

Another one that I really want to try is this one. The author of the recipe said that she wanted to make it as accurate to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter butterbeer as she could. Basically all she did was add imitation butter to cream soda. Ah, the art of simplicity.

This one also looks interesting. Not as labor intensive as the Fox News one, but more so than the Bakingdom one. Looks pretty sweet, though, so I may want to decrease the amount of brown sugar. I definitely want to give it a shot. It doesn’t have a photo, so I’ll just do link it the old fashion way. Click here to view the site.

This one is pretty similar the Bakingdom recipe, with just a couple of differences. So many recipes, and I want to try them all!

Just one more! This one uses actually caramel, which is different. But I must try it! And it has plus, cockroach clusters! They look amazing. And, if you read the comments, someone posted a recipe for rock cakes. Real rock cakes. Like what they have in England. Brilliant!

Okay! I lied! One more! Although, this isn’t strictly butterbeer, more of a butterbeer flavored sorbet. Delish! I simply must try it! Although the use of an ice cream maker is needed. Ah, a perfect excuse to get one!

And I found the perfect thing to wear while you are making these. A Hogwarts uniform apron! Ack, it so perfectly brilliant that I think may die from over exposure to sheer awesomeness. She doesn’t give a pattern, just her step by step process. If, however, you feel confident enough with needle and thread, she gives enough info for you to make your own! I am going to. And Ravenclaw all the way!

Dirigible Plum Earring Tutorial

While I was making my first radish I spontaneously thought, “What if there are other people who are as crazy as me?” This is the result of that thought.

Materials:

28 gauge beading wire

A fair few small reddish orangish beads

same size opaque white beads

same size light green beads

same size dark green beads

2 earring hooks

pliers and wire cutters

Instructions:

Radishes:

Cut off a fairly long piece of the wire, much more than you think you’ll need. It’s heartbreaking and physically painful to pull everything out when you didn’t cut enough wire. String one bead and move it to the middle of the length of wire. Add another bead and string the other end of the wire through the other side of the bead so that you have the wire coming out of both ends of the bead. Pull tightly. Do this as many times as you like. I have a chain of three beads on my pair, but Luna in the movies only has two. (illustration 1) If you are doing it movie accurate, continue on.

Next, add two beads and string them with both ends of the wire as you did before. Pull tightly again, and then add three beads, doing the same with them. Fold the three beads down until it is right next to two beads, not above it. (illustration 2) Add four beads and do the same as before, bending them down on top of the two  bead layer. Continue adding beaded layers until you have reached eight beads. (illustration 3)Now sit back, take a breather, and admire your work because you are done with the white beads! Now we move on to the red beads.

So to do this, you are going to want to add around 16 beads. This will make it overlap a bit with the white, but I think that’s how it looks in the movie. (illustration 4) Continue adding about one or two beads per row until its the width you desire, then decrease dramatically. You should have about five to ten rows that are strictly decreasing, but don’t decrease all the way to one bead, or else it will end in a point. I had about three beads on my last row. There you go! You’re done with the red! (illustration 5)

Making the leaves is very simple. String three dark green beads on an average length of wire, making sure that they stay somewhere near the middle. String six light green beads and thread the opposite end of the wire the other end, just like you did with both the white and the red beads. String eight dark green beads just like the row before it, making sure that the beads are in a two dimensional row, unlike your three dimensional radish. String eight light green beads, then eight dark green, then eight light green, so that you have four rows or eight, plus the two smaller ones. Now start decreasing by two beads, using alternate shades of green per row. The width of the last row should be two beads. (illustration 6) Note: I accidentally messed up a bit on the decrease, so I think when it’s done properly, you will end with two light green instead of dark green.

Make two more, attach them to your radish, hook on the earring hook and voila! You’ve got your own dirigible plum! Now make one more and you’ve got the finishing touches for your Luna Lovegood costume!

The Leaky Cauldron puts it so well:

You can use them to make things for yourself. You can make some for your friends and ask them to pay for supplies. You CANNOT, however, ask them to pay you to do it as though you had created this pattern by yourself, or try to sell you crafts to a local store.

Think about it. Would you take a Prisoner of Azkaban book, photocopy it, put your name in big red letters on the front cover and try to sell it in your local library? The answer is, obviously, no. Well, selling crafts you have made but not designed would be just as bad!

Hogwarts Knit Scarf Pattern Mk. II

After I had made my first Hogwarts scarf, a friend of mine asked me if I could make one for her as well, just not so big (she lives even farther south than I do, so it doesn’t get very cold, even in the winter). I thought about it for a while until inspiration struck me. Why not make it flat? So here’s the pattern for my flat version of my Gryffindor scarf, with a slight stripe variation.

Materials:

2 skeins main color yarn (for my Ravenclaw scarf, I used Caron Simply Soft Dk. Country Blue, and for my Gryffindor, I used Loops & Threads Impeccable Burgundy)

1 skein contrast color yarn (again, worsted weight, I used Caron Simply Soft Heather Gray, or Vanna’s Choice Mustard)

Size 7 needles

yarn needle

Instructions:

Step 1: Cast on 55 stitches of the main color

Step 2: Slip one stitch knit-wise, knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, purl 1 until end of row (single stitch ribbing)

Step 3: Repeat previous step 29 more times so that you have 30 rows of the main color

Step 4: Change to contrast color and rib three rows just as you did with the main color, but don’t slip the first stitch of the first row

Step 5: Switch back to main color and rib five rows without slipping the first stitch of the first row

Step 6: Change again to contrast color and rib three rows without slipping the first stitch of the first row

Step 7: Repeat step 2

Step 8: Repeat from step 3 to step 7 until you have ten sets of stripes

Step 9: Finish up by casting off and sewing in all the ends.

Step 10: To add the fringe, cut many many 6 inch lengths of the main color. Add fringe on about every other stitch using this method.

And there you have it! Feel free to ask any questions, and I welcome observations and tips. And if you can, don’t forget to show me your finished project!

Dirigible Plums Pt. 2 (now with Beetle Ring)

Well, I’ve begun again. This time with smaller beads and wire instead of fishing string. I’m am most happy with the result. So happy, in fact, that I’m thinking about selling them. Perhaps. Still not too sure about that. Maybe I’ll just give some away…. Ahem, anyways. Here they are.

And not to be forgotten, the Beetle Ring! I used smaller beads than the ones they used, and you can’t really tell that the beads on the beetle back (try saying that five times fast) are iridescent. 😦 Oh well, I’m still quite happy with it.

Dirigible Plum Earrings

Yup, they’re finished. It took a lot of work and headache, but I completed them in a little over a day. The pattern I used was, I’m sorry to say, not very descriptive, so I had to improvise a bit. I think the most original and nerdy part of the process was using a soldering iron to melt the plastic wire a bit at the bottom of the plum so that it wouldn’t untie itself. They definitely aren’t perfect, but I like them.

Handmade Luna Lovegood Costume!

Who is going to the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2? Me! Who is going as Luna Lovegood? ME!!!! Yup yup, and I’m not buying a single machine made prop, which means I’m going to have to make them all! Which is really exciting, but kind of daunting.

So first and foremost, I’m going to need a scarf. This shouldn’t be too difficult because I already made a Gryffindor scarf. I even made my own pattern. So here‘s the link to that one. Even though it’s on this blog… Huh. I’m definitely going to alter it though, like making it flat and making the silver stripes shorter than the middle blue stripe. But anyways.

Secondly, I’m going to need some robes. Thank goodness for that sewing machine I got for Christmas! I found a pretty simple pattern that I think I can do once I figure out how to use my sewing machine… And if all else fails, I’ll hand sew it! You have to be a member to see the pattern, but it’s free, so if you really want to see it, don’t be afraid to sign up. I haven’t gotten any nasty viruses and my inbox is advertisement free. So here it is.

The patch on the robes is going to be a little tougher. As much as I like cross stitch, embroidery is much different, and I’ve never done it before. So if I don’t figure that out, time to pull up ebay! Here‘s my model if ever I get there. The TM after Ravenclaw just ruins it! That will definitely go if ever I embroider one.

Next in my Luna costume is the indispensable radish earrings! I found a couple of tutorials for that one, and I think I like this one the best. Well, that’s just the first part. Here‘s the second part. There’s also this one, but I like the other one the best…. Did I say that already? Just a note, I ended up making my own tutorial for the earrings that I’m in the process of writing. Hang in there, and I’ll have it eventually!

While I’m on the subject of jewelry, I can’t forget the butterbeer cork necklace! It looks super easy, so I don’t think I’ll need a tutorial for it. Just two strands of fishing wire, a plethora of light blue beads, a cork, some wire, et voila! The perfect necklace to keep the nargles away.

Next in line is the Spectrespecs! I could, of course buy them on Amazon or something, but what’s the fun in that? Not to mention they’re plastic. Luna gets them out of a magazine, so do you think they will be hard plastic? Nein, they’re cardboard or card stock. Which is exactly why I’m making my own using this awesome tutorial!

So then we have the Ravenclaw tie! They’re pretty expensive, so I thought I would just get one that looked kind of like one, but then I found a pretty awesome idea that’s much cheaper. Buy a dark blue tie, get silver fabric markers and draw the stripes on there! Brilliant! I think that’s one of the easiest parts of the costume.

Now to the more difficult part. The Hogwarts skirt. I found a pretty good pattern for it that I think I can do. Here‘s this one.

And then I’m not so sure if I’ll get to this one, but I want to knit a Hogwarts sweater or sweater vest. I already have a pattern from the nifty Harry Potter knitting pattern book called Charmed Knits. But if any of my readers don’t have that book, here’s a pattern for first a sweater (it’s ladies size ten, but the Leaky Cauldron has more sizes) and then the sweater vest, (also size ten, but with more sizes). Or, because I want to be truer to Luna in particular, here‘s a pattern that could be altered a bit to make a pretty good Hogwarts cardigan. I think I may do this one instead.

Now, the wand. I don’t think I’ll be able to make her wand because I. Can’t. Carve. At all. Period. Luna actually has two wands, a rather plain one that has little carved acorns and leaves on the handle. Her other wand is a little more ornate, with a handle carved in the shape of a daffodil. I really like the second one.

LATER ADDITIONS: Because you never actually see Luna wearing a Ravenclaw scarf, you crocheters can do this one instead. And if you don’t crochet, you probably have a friend who does (like in my case).

Also, don’t forget the beetle ring! Now I have no idea how one is supposed to bead one of these, but it probably is possible. I’m definitely going to try it.

And, if you REALLY want to have EVERYTHING, here’s a knifty knitting (sorry, couldn’t help it) pattern for the hat that she wears at the Hog’s Head in the fifth one.

And then there’s also the lacy sleeved cardigan that she wears in the fifth one, for you crocheters out there.

Well, that’s about it, really. Wow, I’m going to be workin’ for a loooong time. I’d better get started! Here’s a couple of picture of Luna for inspiration.