5 dressing up ideas you can make yourself

Copyright Foxtongue 2005 Creative Commons

World Book Day - 3 little words that strike fear into the hearts of mums everywhere ... Why?

Because World Book Day means costumes!

And for us non-crafty, just too busy mums, who aren't prepared to shell out a small fortune buying one, costumes are panic inducing.

I suggested recycling last year's.  "Silly mummy! I am going as a tiger." "You what? ... Aaargh .."

Some how with the help of some random sparkly red fabric we had I have negotiated Red Riding Hood - sparkly Red Riding Hood :-)

But the whole saga got me thinking about dressing up and how complicated it has all become. I dressed up for hours on end as a child crafting story upon story from the clothes in my dressing up box.  But all there was in there, were my parents old clothes and some odds and sods from jumble sales.

A very wise woman, (my mum!), said children need to develop "their ability to move beyond seeing things as they are into imagining what they might be" and I think, if we make dressing up too structured and too perfect, we take this away from them.

So I've been on the look out for some simple dressing up ideas that really can be made by even us non-crafty mums and these are five of my favourites ...


1. Pirates

Newspaper sword 
from Alpha Mom

There are loads of posts out there on how to make a pirate costume.  These are great for a fancy dress party - or World Book Day! - but not in the dressing up box where children just need a few essentials they can pull on and off themselves ...

• Black eye patch from felt and elastic
• An old scarf tied in a knot & attached to a head band so can put on themselves
• Treasure made from cardboard & silver foil and junk jewellery
• A sword - Alpha Mom has one made from newspaper and It's Hobby Time from cardboard

2. Fire Brigade

Paper plate fireman's hat from 
Momstown Toronto

You really don't need the full works outfit - the following will provide much more entertainment...

• Hose cut from a length of garden hose
• Helmet made from a paper plate & painted the colour of your bridge - Momstown Toronto has great really simple instructions to follow
• An old school bell if you can get one - yet it's noisy but having had one as a child can vouch for how much fun it will bring

And obviously, you could make a fire engine from a couple of boxes painted red with an upside down yoghurt pot painted blue for the siren.

3. Doctors

See My Poppet for how to
make a surgical mask

I have to say I hate the plastic doctor's kits you can buy in toy shop - you can make something so much better from ...

• Doctors coat from cut down old white shirt 
• Old watch attached to doctor's coat with ribbon
• Gauze + elastic surgical mask - My Poppet has a guide 
• Any old bag, tub or tin with red cross attached containing: crepe + triangular bandage, plasters, a few dressings, tape, cotton wool, craft sticks for tongue depresser
• Some print outs of X-ray pictures from Google
• A stethoscope you can actually hear heart through - we have this one from Edu Science
• Toy syringes that work 

4. Fairy / Princess

No sew tutu from
Imagination Tree

Of course, any old dresses you have that can be cut down will provide hours of fun and old vests and tanks can also make good dresses when they're small, but there are times when nothing but a mound of pink netting will do ...

I struggled to make a fairy tutu last year and so wish I had found this brilliant no-sew version from Imagination Tree at the time.

Imagination Tree also has a guide for a simple wand but I couldn't resist including this incredibly fancy one from Trisha at Mom Dot - its knocks the socks off anything you can buy in the shops!

5. Super heroes

Super hero capes from
Vanilla Joy

The shops are full of fancy super hero costumes - that they will grow out of way too quickly - when all any self-respecting super hero actually needs is:

Cape - Vanilla Joy has a brilliant free pattern for five of the most popular including logos that could be sewn on t-shirts
Torch - sorry light sabre! - nothing too heavy but it needs a good range of buttons
Eye mask - simple as can be from some felt and a bit of elastic

I would love to hear your ideas.  What were your favourite dressing up clothes as a child?  What do your children most like to make believe now?

If you're looking for more starter ideas for imaginative play do follow my Imagination Pinterest board ...



And if you enjoyed this post you might also enjoy these ...

  

This post is linked up at these fab parties: No Time for Flash Cards, Sunday Showcase, Science Sundays, Made by Little Hands Monday, Tuesday Tots, Show and Tell, Eco Kids Tuesday, Mommy Club, Trendy Tree House, Our Seasons of Joy, It's Playtime, Shine on Fridays, For the Kids Friday, Weekly Kids Co-op,  Magic Onions, Sharing Saturday, I Can Teach My Child, True Aim Education, Read Explore Learn, Pre-School Corner, Thank Goodness It's Friday, Learn and Link, Share It Saturday

Pregnant or got a new baby? 

Come and link up at The Friday Baby Shower - everything from baby showers and pregnancy journals through birth stories and all the roller coaster amazing ups and difficult downs of life with a new baby.