Angler Fish Costume for Halloween

I had hoped to post this for you before the holiday, just in case any of you were thinking of taking on your own fishy project.  However, I was sewing and primping this lovely bioluminescent specimen right up until the moment we went out the door.  

Six weeks ago when my 8 year-old decided to be a deep sea Angler Fish for Halloween, I said heck-yeah let's do this! Two weeks in, countless bent needles and two jammed sewing machines later, I was beginning to doubt my own sanity.  I kept moving on it and soon found myself really excited about the progress I was making.  Slowly our fish came to life and once we saw it lit up at night...

let's just say it was a proud moment.

Here is a little bit about how I put it together.

I found an out of print Simplicity pattern for a child's fish costume on eBay.  This was the base for the body and shape of the fish.  I wanted it to look less goldfish and more like a predator so I sketched new patterns for the tail, dorsal fin and side lateral fins.  I detailed these with black vinyl to get the feeling of bony spikes.  I also used vinyl on the lips and crafted individual teeth out of foam and felt.  These were sewn on at odd angles with longer ones in the center and along the lower jaw.  

 I also added a vinyl detail along his back with three bioluminescent circles on blue to shine through at night.  The illicium, that's the long projection from his head, was really fun to construct.  I used a very light tubing with a coat hanger to help give it weight and shape and ran tiny led lights through it.  the whole structure is topped off with a ping pong ball.  His eyes are battery operated push lights.

Notice that I am now referring to the fish as 'him'.  We have become somewhat attached.