# Fancy Dress HELP!!!



## Mags4eva (Jun 27, 2009)

I've got this fancy dress compition coming up at my yard and i've decided that me and my horse, Magpie, are going to be like a gymnast and circus horse. So i'm going to be in a leotard and a tu tu and stuff like that and Magpie is going to have a ruffle round her neck and feathers in her tail ect. I'm also making a SECOND gymnast that is going to be standing on Magpie's back right behind me and i will be sitting down. So i'll be sitting down, bareback on Mags and i will have a dummy gymnast stood up behind me. I'm aiming to try and make it as small as i can so i don't freak Mags out with strange looming things on her back so the dummy gymnast (standing) will only be a head taller than me (sitting). I've ordered a polysterene head from eBay which should get here tomorrow or maybe Friday and i'm making the rest. I've already made the legs and feet but i'm stuck on making the body. I was going to get a plastic bag and stuff it with straw or newspaper but i have bad reactions to straw and newspaper is a bit to noisy as the dummy will probs be moving around a lot as we have to walk round the ring for bout 5mins. So can anyone give me any advice on making a dummy torso? Also the torso is going to be wearing a leotard. And another also i've got to make arms so advice on that would be gr8 2! If i have just written a whole load of nonsene plz let me no if it doesn't make a word of sense and ty for any advice!! Xx


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## Wendy Burgess (Jul 5, 2009)

Gosh, that sounds really difficult. I thought about it for a while and I'm sorry but I just can't think of a way to do it. How about using the head but changing the idea and go as the headless horse man/woman with
the head tucked underneath your arm ?
That would take a bit of doing too as you'd have to work out a way of having a coat that went right to the top of your head, but if you are small it could work.
Have you ever seen this ?
YouTube - Horse Costumes
It is great, but some horses I knew would not put up with some of the ideas :wink5:
I did find this on ebay
Child Manakin manikin CLOTHES DISPLAY on eBay (end time 01-Sep-09 02:13:04 BST)

But I can't see how big it is or how heavy.
You could try making the body out of wire and then covering it, the arms out of thick pink tights, but if I tryed it I'm thinking it would just look a mess.
How about stuffing it with polystyrene chips ? At least they would be quite.
The main point I would like to make is introduce introduce the dummy to your horse/pony gently, and also let him/her see you in costume a day or so before.
Some horses when faced with thier rider in a pink tutu for the first time could get a bit freaked out!! Others wouldn't even notice.
Matching ribbons in your hair and the horse's mane and tail could look quite good. Go for what ever colour your tutu is, or try flowers.
How about some sort of sparkle on you and the horse ? But not on near the horses eyes, and brush it out straight afterwards.
I once used a pink hair spray on a pony, that was quite effective, but some horse hate any kind of spray.
Good luck with what ever you decide. Hope you can post a photo on here for us all to see. As I'm new to this site and this is my first post don't know if you can do that. Cheers Wendy


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## Wendy Burgess (Jul 5, 2009)

Don't worry. it wasn't nonsene. It was not an easy one to explain, but you did it really well.


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## Little Missy (Aug 3, 2009)

For the body maybe you could use the insides of cushions? :idea:​


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## Mags4eva (Jun 27, 2009)

Thanks so much 4 the advice! i am goin 2 make the torso wiv a pillow inside and i've mad like a wire structure of the body which will hold it all upright and i'm also goin 2 get some skin coloured tights from Tesco l8er and make the arms- that video really helped me think of ways 2 get round my lil problems! thanks guys! And i promise i'll post the piccies up after the event (27th September- not long now!!) Xx


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