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We all know that kids love to dress up - whether on a rainy afternoon, with a gang of friends, or at birthday parties and Halloween. It is always a good idea to provide a well-stocked fancy dress suitcase or basket so that they can come up with their own creations, but sometimes a proper costume is called for and inspiration might be required. You will find lots of inspiration here! Some of the costumes below are described in detail; others are here to serve just as suggestions and get you thinking about the possibilities...
See also Halloween Costumes
Alice in Wonderland is a classic costume for little girls, and they are easily available from costume stores. If you'd prefer to make your own, you will need a pretty, old fashioned dress (preferably pale blue) and a white pinafore or apron.
The wings on this costume mean that younger kids particularly enjoy wearing it! It is just a question of two measurements, some cutting and a handful of safety pins or a few quick stitches..
Batman has always been a popular costume for young boys, and it is not difficult to make yourself with a few supplies. These days you will have to decide between a plain black modern batman outfit, or a grey, black and yellow traditional batman outfit!
Every little girl wants to look pretty sometimes and this costume is easy and quick to produce, especially if you use a bought tiara. But it is more fun to make your own!
Transform a rubbish bag and some tape into a skeleton you can wear!
You will need:
This burglar costume is a fun fancy dress costume for kids at Halloween or all year round - and it is very easy to put together.
You will need:
These butterfly wings are an easy kids craft for the summer or anytime you are studying butterflies - and they are fun to wear, too! And of course by changing the colours you could make a pair of fairy wings instead.
Some kids love to dress up as animals, and a little one dressed up as a kitten is always cute. A black cat is, of course, perfect for Halloween too.
It's easy to dress up as an old-fashioned Chinese farmer or farm-worker! You will need to wear a black or dark grey T-shirt or shirt, black trousers, and a Chinese farm worker's hat (follow our instructions to make your own!)
Cork hats were traditionally worn by jackaroos and swagmen to keep the flies off their faces in the Australian outback. Now you can make your own!
Here's a fun printable for Minions fans - and a great (and quick) way to dress up for a party, or even Halloween! Just print onto cardboard, cut out and wear. You'll need to make some holes for the eyes so that you can see where you are going, though!
A devil costume is really as simple as kitting your child out in red, and accessorizing with a few bought or hand made extras!
This is a simple costume to put together - and perfect for little ones, who usually enjoy putting on hats!
Your child will feel like a real King or Queen when they have made their own imperial crown craft to wear!
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Doesn't Sam look fierce in this wonderful knight's helmet? It's straightforward to make using simple supplies, but an adult will need to help with the stapling and sticking!
Jack wanted to make a knight's helmet with a visor - and here it is, complete with jaunty feather on top! It's a little more complicated to make...
It is simple to make a knight's tabard for your knight's costume, and your child can help in the design.
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Children love putting on a disguise - and it's even more fun if they've made the disguise themselves! Here we have instructions to make your own pair of wacky glasses, moustache and beard. Of course no-one could possibly recognise you once this disguise is on!
Here is a quick way for children to dress up as Medusa - the Gorgon with a head of snakes from Greek mythology! (We also have a Medusa wig craft, suitable for older children).
In Greek mythology Medusa was a Gorgon who had snakes for hair. Looking into her eyes would turn a person into stone.
At the ancient Olympic games, winners were usually awarded with a crown made of olive leaves. We've made our own winner's crown with green paper, and it's fabulous!
Kids will have fun making and wearing this fun, floppy Mardi Gras jester hat! Of course, while it looks like a jester hat, it is actually made like a simple crown.
Paint your old sneakers to look like monsters! Here's a great craft idea from Monsters University!
A mummy costume is easy to put together and great fun for children, but it does have its downsides so think carefully before you agree to it!
Pretend to be the Easter bunny with this rabbit ears craft for kids! You'll be hopping around delivering Easter eggs in no time.
Make a very large robot costume, and wear it ... perfect for Halloween, fancy dress parties, or just for a rainy afternoon!
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Make this wonderful royal cape in a jiffy - and dress up in royal style! Perhaps you could have a look at footage of the Queen's coronation and admire her heavy, long train, held up by her ladies in waiting!
Perfect for a construction worker's costume at Halloween, a craft to accompany a safety unit, or just a good excuse to do some papier mache and painting, this safety hat is convincing and fun to wear. You will need a bit of patience and plenty of drying time!
Show your support for your team or country by decorating a baseball cap with your flag - fun to make and wear! We also made patriotic T Shirts to match.
Witches are getting more colourful and trendy every year! Go to town with your homemade witch's costume and your child will not only look gorgeous but enjoy her costume too!
Halloween wouldn't be Halloween without a witch's hat to wear - and this one is quickly made with a piece of black card. Of course you can add embellishments of all sorts, or adapt the craft to make a wizard's hat (with a bigger brim and perhaps using purple card).
Your child needs to dress up for World Book Day at school tomorrow and you're stuck for inspiration? We've gathered together below some last minute suggestions for book character costumes for your kids!
