Replies

1. 
   leuthartewesetal | Oct 07, 2008 01:23am | #1

   No costumes this year, but years ago, in the midst of a divorce, with sons 2 and 5, I used a tan furry fleece, a zip front, no side seams(was in a big hurry) with long sleeves.  I made a separate cat head piece, and attached a tail.  My mother had a fit, "no time for such nonsense".   But I had a plan, I knew as an RN, my first job would be nights or evenings and those were the best warm coveralls for packing them to the car in the middle of the night.

2. 
   kapnoel | Oct 07, 2008 12:27pm | #2

   In the age of 4 my daughter Effi (in the meantime already 7) loved pigs. So when Halloween came, she asked me to make a pig costume for her. I have been buying European carneval magazines for years (Special Burda Fashing, Diana Kinderfashing, Lea Special Fashing, Sabrina Special Fashing etc) and, believe me, I have searched them all, but no girl pig pattern to find anywhere! Since my daughter was so obsessed with it, we went to buy pink (or shall I say pig) fabric, we took a piece of paper and started to paint the costume we had in our heads. That was real fun!

   Finally, we decided to make a plain pink sleeveless dress with pockets. We had a pillow case that had little pigs on it, so we decided to cut pockets out of it. We also had a pig fridge magnet whose arms were out of cord. We have sewn this as a center piece on the dress. We still wanted to put some pig ears somewhere, but we only had a pattern for an adult mask whose ears where enormous. So, after cutting them out in fabric and quite thick paper we saw them together and attached them to the back of the dress as wings! That was a wonderful flying pig we had created! Next day in the kindergarten Effi not only had the desired costume but she could also tell her friends how we have made it. We still tell each other this story and laugh!

   I have been trying to make a princess costume for years and although Effi always says she would love one, when she is about to choose a pattern she always picks something else. Up to now, we have sewn (apart from the flying pig), a little bunny, a monkey, a flowered lawn, a cyber girl, a witch and a medieval market girl. Who knows what she will choose this year? 

    

   Kind regards from Brussels

   Elissavet

1. 
   mjleague | Oct 07, 2008 07:41pm | #3

   I am about to embark on an effort to make a Sponge Bob costume for a 3 yr old. My granddaughter had a new fabulous costume every Halloween, but she is now a teenager so there's been a lapse in costume making. I bought upholstery foam and yellow strecthy fabric for the "sponge". The kind lady at the fabric store suggested taping the pieces together instead of glue--which I thought was genius.

   Keep your fingers crossed on this. I have done most of the work in my head already, but haven't even taken measurements.

1. 
   kapnoel | Oct 07, 2008 09:46pm | #4

   Your project sounds good. As a mother of three (8, 7 and 2 years old) I am always amazed by the fact that my children do not see characters the way I do. We have a talk before making the costume, when I realise what feature is important to them, I try to accentuate it in the realisation. So, here is my tip for you: if the costume is not going to be a surprise gift, you could talk about the character a little.

   Good luck!

   Elissavet

1. 
   mjleague | Oct 08, 2008 01:10am | #5

   He's only three so I'm hoping square and yellow will fill the bill.  I have some old ties and plan on using the small end of one for the costume. He will probably have to wear girls knee socks too but I don't think that will matter.

    My son, who is grown, made up fabulous stories and then I made the costume for his fictional character. We had lots of fun for Halloween. My granddaughter that I mentioned earlier did likewise. One year she could not decide between a princess or a vampire, so she settled on Vampire Princess. I had such a wonderful time making the most adorable black and silver tiny ball gown. She wore a silver tiara and scary makeup.

1. 
   ThreadKoe | Oct 08, 2008 01:46am | #6

   The costumes the girls remember best that I made was when I took some of my old black clothes and let them rip them up to wear as witches. We made black capes from a couple of old skirts. Then I teased their long hair and sprayed it with white hairspray we purchased. I glued glow in the dark spiders and rats onto bobby pins we put in their hair, and painted their faces white and scary. They had a ball. Total cost for 3 costumes, under $10.00. Cathy

2. 
   rodezzy | Oct 09, 2008 04:06pm | #9

   That sounds like a great idea.  My granddaughter could be a Princess Vampire.  That's one idea.  I also still have a pattern for a cheerleader from her sister's holloween costume when she was about that same age.  Only she could be an undead cheerleader. 

3. 
   ParisToo | Oct 08, 2008 09:13pm | #7

   It was the year that The Little Mermaid was all the rage, and my nieces (now 24 & 22) were still young enough to know all those songs by heart! 

   I told their mother to get them beige leotards & long wigs, & I commenced to sew 2 "fishtail" skirts out of aqua sequined fabric -- REAL fishtails -- the skirts were slit at the knee, and left with a 2' hemmed opening, while the "tail"/train was sewn up & stuffed for shaping, and ended in "fins" of tulle.  The tail had a loop, like a bride's train, so they could hold it up easily, and not trip.  They even had tie-on satin "bras" of clam-shell shaped, stuffed little trapunto pillows.

   I can't tell you how many sewing machine needles I broke while making those costumes -- but they were two of the most elegant mermaids in Barrington, IL.

1. 
   rodezzy | Oct 09, 2008 04:02pm | #8

   OOOOoooooo, my youngest granddaughter wants to be something scary........any suggestions.  She's 11, skinny and tall.