Thinking outside the box and finding balance

We are down to a matter of weeks now before opening night and things are in full swing. One of the things with working costumes in community theatre is thinking outside the box. One of the projects I worked on this week involved thinking outside the box. The director wanted legwarmers when we priced them out they were $11-$13 each and I needed 4 pairs, That would have really taken a chunk out of the budget plus there would possibly be time and cost involved of dying them. All this for a 3 or 4 minute number. We decided it would be cheaper to just make the legwarmers until I went to the fabric store. The perfect material was $18 a metre and I needed 4 metres, there was nothing cheaper that worked. So either way this working out the same, and it seems once factoring in the cost of the tutus to spend 20% of the budget on one number was more than a little ridiculous!  The director had a stroke of genius: she had seen fleece baby blankets in the right shade of ballerina baby pink at the dollarstore. For $18 -including the cost of elastic- I made 4 pairs of leg warmers and it took me about 4 hours of labour. The first pair took the longest as I was figure things out since I was straying from the pattern I found online. I think they turned out pretty cute not to mention that they are really warm and cozy and I really want a pair of my own! Here's a pic: (I had to try them on for purely research purposes of course)

 

There is also a lot of balance in costuming in more ways than one. Some actors are more hands on about their costumes than others, you have to balance keeping your cast and director happy while staying true to your vision. For example my $10 outfit find I mentioned in my last post isn't being used in the show after all, so I decided to deduct the cost from what I spent and keep the jacket and shirt for myself  (I totally rocked them at work earlier this week)

There is also the balancing, well more so juggling of your personal life and the show. I am trying to get things done, make time for my boyfriend, and not let my responsibilities around the house slip too much, it wouldn't be fair to leave a stack of dishes or have N. do all the cooking. Plus there is taking care of my physical self, ie finding the time/energy to do my exercises, not eating crap the majority of the time. All important to keep my diabetes reversed. There has been a little bit of a losing battle on this front this past week and a half, with our routines and schedules being out of whack.That is it for now back to work!