Ideas for these monsters can pop up just about anywhere – in films, books or the random awful TV shows which I “watch” while knitting – but I decided to make this Beastie based on a lucky find in a remnants basket somewhere in Dublin city. Remnants baskets, where fabric shops sell the too-short offcuts from the end of a roll of material, are an addiction of mine… I simply cannot pass one without having a poke through to see if there’s anything I can use. I like to tell myself it counts as being thrifty, even though I fully realise that the pieces aren’t discounted, they’re just shorter.
Anyway, about a month ago, I found a bag of assorted trimmings in amongst the other bits of fabric. Since I couldn’t really see inside it, I felt like I was buying one of those Lucky Bags I used to see in newsagents when I was a kid. And I didn’t wait to get it home before I opened it, choosing instead to subject my long-suffering boyfriend to an analysis of the contents when I met him for lunch a few minutes later. Turns out there were lots of useful bits and pieces in there, but I was especially taken with some lengths of netting attached to ribbon and elastic – perfect to make into a skirt for my first very obviously female Beastie! The jaunty mini top hat completes her cheeky cabaret-style costume.