I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S NOT BUTTER

All morning I’ve been thinking about Macaroon’s stick of butter costume and how I’m going to make it. He’ll loathe the whole process but that’s why treats were created—as bribes. And while he’ll hate the costume and wearing it, he will adore the attention. So it’s all a trade off. Once a year I torture him. He has a fabulous life so he’ll have to dog up.

Now to the costume. Proportions are key, I think. So I purchased a pound of butter and photographed a stick both closed and open. And I measured it. A stick of butter is 1.25” square and 4.5” long. If I make the quarter inches into units, it’s 5 units square and 18 units long. I measured Macaroon (and after many treats and asking him to stand up while he kept sitting) I finally determined that 5” wide would be excellent on him and length? 16” would be ideal for his body length but out of proportion for the butter. It should be 18". However, if he were an already opened stick of butter, I could make the costume 16” and use the organza well to create the illusion of length. Besides, I’ve planned all along to make a pat of butter hat, so of course the stick has been opened and sliced.

I am thinking that proportionately these dimensions should work. And I will help the illusion along by the placement of the printing on the sides. One side has the overlap of the wax paper and no lettering. Two sides say “butter” and 4 oz. and the USDA seal, while the last one has the hash marks indicating measurements. My plan is to hand paint whatever I decide to include on the organza.

But how to organize the sides and coordinate them with the organza as waxed paper? There is reality and what reads best. I will try to create reality by selecting what reads best. As you can see, authenticity calls for the lettering to be oriented in the same direction but that would mean it’s upside down on the side.

I will first make a basic muslin coat on which the butter stick will be built. I want it to be as comfortable as an annoying costume can be and so I will make it soft. Perhaps with fabric stiffener and in pieces with seams and then stuffed with polyfill. The organza will be painted and then sewn on. The pat hat is problematic. It should be 5” square but that is too big for his little head. It would be better 3.5” square. The question will be: does that smaller pat look odd or will it just be accepted? Also since I intend to attach elastic to it for holding it on him, I want the pat not to droop but remain firm as a good pat of butter should.

Lynne has succumbed and agreed to make Gidget into this. I think this will be a fantastic costume! With our skills and Macaroon’s schmoozing, we have a winning team!