Best laid plans and all that

Old Plan

Saturday evening, armed with my shopping list and a coupon, I ventured over to Joann's to purchase the things I needed for Cate's costume.

[source]

I should have stayed home.

Apparently, on top of not being the only person who suddenly realized Halloween was less than a week away, there was a one day sale going on.  The place looked like some sort of bomb went off.  Fabric bolts were strewn everywhere--on top of other bolts, in random aisles, and even on the floor.  The pile of bolts behind the cutting countered looked as if no one had been reshelving fabric the entire day.  The line to the cutting counter was long, there was a good 15 to 20 minutes between when you took a number and when they called your number.  Check-out was also a lengthy process.  Pro-managerial tip:  if you have a sale the weekend before one of the busiest sewing holidays of the year, try to have more than three employees working.  The same person who cut my fabric also rang up my purchases at the front.  I think she was moving back and forth between the two as each line started to get out of control.

Artist's rendition of my face after
shopping at Joann's on Saturday.
[source]

Several items I went there to buy were not available.  First, the McCall's pattern I wanted to use to make the black and white t-shirt was not there.  Possibly not surprising since McCall's patterns were on sale for 99¢.  Second, I couldn't find any simple black interlock or jersey fabric.  There was black performance knits and dancewear knits and special occasion knits with glitter, but no plain old block cotton for making a simple t-shirt and leggings.  Fortunately, the one mission-critical item I needed--fuzzy black trim for making the kitty tail--was in stock.  I was also able to get white interlock fabric and silver ribbon to make her collar.

I ventured back on Monday, armed with a second coupon, and fortunately found a bolt of black cotton interlock.  I spent a good deal of time locating two different patterns that I would be okay buying (since the McCall's pattern was still out) which was fortunate since only one of them was available (a Burda pattern, the number was in the 9800s and the store didn't have any Burda patterns past 9550).  When I and another frustrated shopper asked about the missing patterns (she was also in a situation where the pattern numbers didn't reach as high as the pattern she wanted to get), an employee pointed us to a cart piled high with boxes of patterns and said we were welcomed to look through them.

New Plan

Halloween is now in two days and I have the following done:  the tail.  I worked on ears last night but was having difficulty with the crazy fuzzy trim and, in any case, my prototype ear is far too large for Cate (she would look more like a rabbit).

[source]

• Tonight:  Make the ears the ears, and, if there's time, I will cut out the t-shirt pattern (oddly enough, one isn't able to just stop making supper and taking care of a two year old in order to make said two year old's Halloween costume).  
• Wed.:  Sew up the t-shirt if I was able to cut it out the night before.  Buy:  1 pair of black leggings, and, a black t-shirt if no time to make the t-shirt from scratch. (I'll sew a large oval of the white knit fabric onto the front of the t-shirt so she can still be a black and white cat.  Or, maybe glue it on if I'm really pressed for time!)
• Thurs.:  Halloween!  Take a billion pictures, trick or treat at a couple houses, go to the party the apt. complex is having, and then collapse on the bed.