Costumes and parties for the Elsa-obsessed
Cause
It’s amazing that something so cold can be so hot. And if you don’t know what we’re talking about then lucky you – you’ve escaped the Frozen frenzy. The latest Disney movie is already the highest grossing animated film of all time and won an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. So what. You’re just wondering how it came to pass that you must learn to braid hair, your daughter has a personality disorder and thinks she’s someone called Elsa, DHL keep delivering Frozen-themed merch and your husband simply responds by singing, “Let It Go.” Has everyone gone mad?
The simple answer, for a fairly sizeable portion of the community, is yes.
Symptoms
Handing credit card over fist, people have reportedly bought up big and Frozen merchandise has sold out worldwide, limited edition dolls are selling for more than US$1000 on eBay and hand-crafted costume copies for both children and adults (yes, Cosplay is all over this one), are popping up faster than you can say Etsy. It’s a good time to be crafty.
Cure – Costume
In fact, if you have a Frozen fan in the house (let’s call them Icicles..or maybe… Fro-loaders…or what about…Un-Fro-gettables?), it’s a strong imperative to take up one of those sewing courses at Spotlight. For an easier solution though, take a look at this DIY Elsa cape from Make It and Love It. It’s a step-by-step guide in creating the most iconic part of the Frozen costume, but the best bit is you can turn it into a project and involve the kids to make it. If you know your way around a sewing machine already, this Elsa dress tutorial from Connecting The Dots is one of the simplest we’ve found. If you really want to impress then try this version from Little Pink Monster.
Cure – Parties
We have received enough anecodotal evidence to report that Frozen-related tantrums are on the rise and the lack of Elsa and Anna paraphernalia in Singapore is threatening to derail Frozen-themed birthday parties. Instead of making it all about the purchase-able and the printable, try Yummy Mummy Kitchen for flowers, marshmallow snowman craft, snowman cheese sticks and Elsa cake (provided you have the doll or figurine as the centrepiece). Bubbly Nature Creations has cute recipes for blue ice cube jellies, snowball cupcakes, punch and snowflake cookies. For a different take on cake, Bakingdom has a lovely and achievable Anna cake complete with printable paper topper and bunting. Party goers can make Elsa crowns and Sven antlers and do ice painting with these clever ideas from My Sister’s Suitcase. Check more party activities from Spoonful here: Frozen Hair Craft, Frozen Tic Tac Game, Elsa Paper Doll. And if it all gets too hard, simply outsource the whole shebang and book a party at The Tiara Society, complete with Frozen costumes.
Cure – Elsa versus Anna
It staggers the imagination that a story about the love between 2 sisters can be so captivating when, outside the cinema and back at home, our own children can’t even share a scooter let alone manage an ice kingdom together. With more die-hard fans than One Direction, Elsa possesses more power than just the ability to freeze. Anna is the more Venus Williams of the two sisters but no less popular and more heroic and adventurous. Try making a simple Anna costume with this tutorial from Life As Mom so your little one and friends can take turns role-playing.
Cure – Hairstyles
We don’t get much time to do our own hair, much less to spend 20 minutes each morning perfecting Elsa and Anna coiffure. If you are not a ballet mum and have not had to learn the art of the braid before, we suggest keeping this special ‘do’, and other up/plait/wrap/twist and bun-like styles for weekends. This video from The Beauty Department shows you how to achieve an Elsa braid. If your little one is long on desire and short on hair, try this special braid from The Beauty Department for short hair instead. If kids want to rock a more regal look then, Elsa’s coronation hair from Missy Sue might be the go. Not to be left out, Anna had some pretty good looks too, so check out these styles from Pop Sugar.
Cure – That song
Anna and Elsa have unwittingly achieved world domination. Frozen is set to be bigger than the Beatles, the Spice Girls and, dare we say it, US politics. Forget Arendelle, if America was 2 people, it would be Elsa and Anna. Aside from the costumes, the story, the refreshingly blue rather than pink take on everything Disney, we think the song is responsible. Everyday, ‘Let It Go’ seems to find us and the craze doesn’t seem set to thaw anytime soon. So we figure, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Have some fun with these You Tube versions of the popular song, from a man who manages to sing it in the voice of multiple Disney-Pixar characters to a rendition in 25 languages. Learn the lyrics and sing along to our favourite quirky copy from Jimmy Fallon and Irina Mendel on Rolling Stone.
Images courtesy of the websites and blogs mentioned.