It’s my baby’s first Halloween! Whilst being under 5 months at Halloween he has no idea what’s happening, mama could not be more excited! So the occasion requires correct attire, no? In an effort not to go too crazy I fashioned this super simple costume that took about an hour to make and cost around £4!
What you need
- White felt
- Black felt
- White thread
- Black thread
- Two buttons or Velcro
- Scissors
- Pins
- Needle
- Sewing machine
- My free Downloadable pattern
- Pen with disappearing ink (optional)
We use Grobags for our baby during the night so I used it as a template for my spooky little ghost. Alternatively you can lay baby on the felt and draw around him or her.
Our baby is just under 5 months at time of Halloween and our Grobag should last until 6 months so I have included some measurements here in case you find that useful. Cut the felt.
Then move onto creating the face. You can download my free pattern, print it out as A4 and use it as a template to cut out required amount of bits from black felt. Don’t forget the little white bits for the eyes! I sewed them on to the black felt by hand. Just do a knot on the thread and go in from the wrong side and create a star pattern on it.
Then arrange the face on your costume in a way you prefer. The eyebrows make a huge difference!
Pin in place and sew with your sewing machine.
Sewing is really easy, just sew around the eye and mouth close to the edge leaving 0.5cm “seam allowance” so the stitching won’t rip and unravel. I had black thread on top and white at the bottom. The eye brows are even simpler. I just sewed one continuous stitch for the length of the brow.
Once the face is on change your top thread to a white one. Pin your entire costume around. Remember to leave an opening at the top big enough for your baby to fit in and be comfortable. Sew around the edges on top of the felt so on the right side leaving 1cm seam allowance. A bit like this project. Again you can always neaten up the excess felt after sewing if it isn’t quite right with some sharp scissors.
Finally sew the buttons on the front part’s shoulders by hand. I used clear ones so they would be least visible. But you could also use white ones too if you have some on hand. I then cut the button holes on the back part on the shoulder straps. Don’t make them too big, otherwise the buttons will become undone easily. You could make proper button holes with sewing machine, but I decided not to in an effort to save time. My felt feels strong enough to handle the little use this costume will have without ripping. I mean it’s not like a day-to-day outfit is it?!
Then some safety pointers. Remember to sew on the buttons really tightly so they don’t become loose and then a choking hazard. You could also use Velcro and sew them on with sewing machine. Check that just like with Grobag the shoulder straps secure the baby so they can’t wriggle into the costume. From safety point of view you should never leave your baby unattended with this costume on, always keep an eye on him or her. Also it’s worth checking regularly that baby doesn’t become too hot in this costume.
Simple, but effective right? This took me around an hour from start to finish aka in between feeds! 😀
Baby is ready! Bring on Halloween!
House of Harlow 