Many little girls enjoy dressing up as a princess for Halloween or even everyday play. In fact, many little boys do as well. To give your child the most unique princess costume, try making it yourself from materials you may already have at home or that are easy to find.
Princess dress -- The dress is the main part of the princess costume. If your child has an ordinary dress that has seen its better days, you can turn it into something fabulous with a little creativity. Take pieces of old clothing or fabric and attach them in a ruffle pattern all around the dress using fabric glue. Frilly, lacy, and fluffy fabrics work best for this. Beads, buttons, or strands of them can also make great accents. Alternatively, you can also shop thrift stores or use any fancy dress your child may already have.
Princess hat -- Some choose to use a hat and some choose to use a crown. If you will go with a hat, take a piece of construction paper or card stock and form it into a cone shape. Staple that together, leaving a small hole in the top (pointed end). Pull a long piece of fabric (or two or three) through the hole. Tie a knot at the end located on the inside of the cone. Pull the excess fabric back through so that the knot is placed right at the top inside the cone. The rest of the fabric should dangle down beautifully. Netted fabric, like taffeta works best for this. Some may also prefer to use thick ribbon and curl the ribbon. Let your child be creative with this princess costume accessory.
Princess crown -- A good homemade princes crown or tiara can be made using card stock or even construction paper as a base. First, cut out a 1 inch wide long strip and circle it around your child's head. Mark where the strip fits perfectly and won't slide off. Take it off and then staple it together there. Cut off the excess paper. This is the crown base for the princess costume. Now cut out one large letter O shape and two small letter o shapes. Glue the large letter O shape in the center of the crown base, making sure that all except the bottom part is sticking up off the crown base. Glue the small letter o shapes on either side of the larger letter O, making sure they overlap halfway. This should create a fun design. Now have your child glue on buttons, gems, beads, and anything else fun to decorate the crown or tiara. Be sure the objects glued on are not too a heavy to weigh down the princess crown or tiara.
Princess shoes -- Take any ordinary ballet slippers or dress shoes and decorate them by gluing on glitter or sequins. The sequins take a bit longer to decorate. So if this is a last minute Halloween costume, glitter is your best bet. Spread glue all over the top surface of the shoes (craft or fabric glues work best). Then, shake the glitter all over the top or glue on the sequins. Newspapers underneath will help save the crafting area from getting coated with glitter. Once the shoes are dry, shake off the excess glitter.
Princess wand -- To make a princess wand, simply cut out a star shape from card stock or construction paper. Next, tightly roll up a sheet of construction paper lengthwise, gluing as you roll. This piece will be the wand stick. When the stick is dry, glue the star to the top. Some may wish to also glue glitter onto the star. If you'd like the wand to last longer, substitute plastic sheeting for the paper star and a straw for the stick wand.
Denver area resources for homemade costume supplies:
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