Hard to believe that Halloween is just one week away. Although I’d like to say it’s one of my favorite holidays, regular readers know how much I seriously love them all! I have finally gotten my kids to nail down their Halloween costume choices, and the O’Malley household will be sporting a unicorn and a vampire this year. I was really pulling for Madeline to be Rainbow Brite this year, you know, one of Strawberry ‘hortcake’s (as she calls her) best friends, but I lost the battle and gave in to a unicorn. Given her unabashed love for unicorns, horses, cows, dolphins, and whales, it should come as no surprise that we’re having an animal trick-or-treating with us this year.
The folks at Pottery Barn Kids have some awesome Halloween costumes for children this year, and Madeline’s unicorn was very nicely provided to us by them. To say she was thrilled that they had her first choice available would be an understatement. It’s all I can do to prevent her from wearing it daily right now. And I’m not letting her because, you know, white and a 3-1/2 year old is just not a good combination. Although they tend to be a little more costly than I would normally spend, a lot of them are on sale now (with free shipping!), and they really are well made. Nice tight stitching, super soft fabrics, and I love that it’s loose enough that I can put warm weather clothing on underneath the costume without making her feel like she’s been smothered to pieces. Because in typical New Jersey fashion, it’s back to being cold again, and who knows what next Monday brings.
Stumped for Halloween inspiration for your own little ones? You might want to check out DailyBuzz. Tomorrow they will be featuring nine DIY Halloween costumes that you can make at home very easily, and I’m happy to report that this Butterfly Catcher costume we made last year for a Disney column is one of the nine featured. It’s super simple to make and you might even have everything you need in your house right now. If not, a trip to your local Dollar Store will quickly take care of that. Can’t wait to see the other 8 creative costumes featured.
Need inspiration for your pup? You can check out the Virtual Pet Parade featured by the folks at Animal Planet, and snag a costume for your very own canine while you’re there. Maxwell, the newest member of the O’Malley household, is sporting butterfly wings (although, unfortunately, not visible in the picture they are featuring there), but he has a fun polka-dotted cap on. Well, I think polka dots are fun. Maxwell might be in a different camp on that opinion. While there, you can certainly cheer him up and give him a vote if you’re so inclined.
No-Sew Butterfly Catcher Costume
No-sew costumes must have been invented with me in mind. Although I would love to be able to sew, I can’t. And I don’t have a sewing machine. So, if I can come up with a creative Halloween costume idea for one of my kids without having to thread a needle, color me a happy camper. For me, the perfect costume is one that is simple, uses supplies I might have already on hand or can pick up easily, and that my child will tolerate wearing for several hours at a time (your fancy box robots need not apply). A DIY Butterfly Catcher costume? I’m in like Flynn!
- Materials
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- paper plates
- glue
- glitter
- permanent marker
- scissors
- Velcro fasteners
- butterfly net (can also use a bug catcher or even a fly swatter)
- optional: sparkly beaded necklaces
- Choose a color scheme first. This will help you decide which plastic tablecloth to purchase and what color glitter to use. I didn’t want to go for the obvious choice of pink for my daughter (even though she loves the color), so I chose her second favorite, purple, accented by pops of green and orange.
- For the skirt: Buy a plastic tablecloth. I purchased a solid purple one from the dollar store. The standard size should provide plenty of fabric. You can go with a solid color or one of the many floral varieties that are readily available. Just check the thinness of the tablecloth to make sure it’s not see-thru. With the standard length, you can always double it to make certain it’s not too thin.
- Using my daughter’s height as a guide, I cut the tablecloth in half horizontally. Once that was done, I folded it in half, and after measuring her waist, I cut a hole in the center so she could step into the skirt. Since this is No Sew (and we’re working with a plastic tablecloth), I used a small binder clip and cinched the back of the waist (once the skirt was on) to make sure it was snug on her. Her coordinating shirt very easily covered the clip.
- I arranged the skirt so that it was a little shorter in front, leaving a pretty trail behind my daughter as she walked. That way, it was a longer skirt, but didn’t pose any tripping hazard.
- For the butterfly decorations on the skirt: On your paper plates, using a permanent marker, draw the outline of a butterfly. I googled “butterfly template” and using that printout as a guideline, I drew a butterfly on each of the paper plates, using most of the available white space. The age and size of your child will determine how many butterflies you will need. I made seven butterflies to place in various spots around the skirt. Once you have your butterflies outlined, cut them out. Using glue, fill in the butterfly and apply glitter. I glittered the body of the butterfly in green and let it dry. Then I went back and, using a mix of purple and pink glitter (mixing the two colors to give the butterfly a little more depth), filled in the wings. Set aside the butterflies and let them dry overnight. Once dry, fold the wings back a bit, so when they are applied to the skirt they don’t sit flat and adhere better. Using Velcro fasteners (because that will hold up for a few hours of trick-or-treating), apply the butterflies onto the skirt.
- Putting it all together: I chose a shirt that my daughter already had to coordinate with the skirt. At the dollar store, we grabbed a handful of sparkly Mardi Gras necklaces for her to wear around her neck. A butterfly net completed the costume.
Final tips:
Cost: $3. I bought the tablecloth, the necklaces, and the butterfly net from the dollar store. Her shirt, the glitter, and paper plates we already had on hand.
*Full disclosure: As a reward for our butterfly catcher Halloween costume being selected, DailyBuzz Moms compensated me with a gift card. Pottery Barn Kids (thank goodness for them!) sent us Madeline’s costume gratis as well. In return, I promise to disclose such things, but please know, all opinions expressed on my little space of the web are completely my own opinion. And y’all know, if I don’t like something, I’m not afraid to tell you.
I never knew Pottery Barn sold Halloween costumes! We’ve purchased costumes from the Disney store several years in a row. Power Rangers Dino Thunder and Stitch will always be two of my favorites. Sounds like your kiddos will be adorable this year! I love Halloween. Next to Christmas, it was always my favorite holiday. I have a picture of my brother, sister, and I in our costumes as my profile pic. on facebook. That was soooooo many years ago, but I can still remember all the fun we had walking the neighborhood every year on Halloween night.
Rainbow bright would have been AWESOME!!!! But I think a unicorn is pretty cool too. I was never anything that great…red riding hood, Esther (church had a “carnival” and we all had to dress up like Bible characters), ballerina. A co-worker was looking for outfits for her baby and found the most AWESOME sock monkey costume. She kept finding others that were cute but I was in love with the sock monkey. Too Cute!
Aww I was hoping for Rainbow Brite also! But I suppose a unicorn will have to do. And I’m also sure she’ll look adorable no matter what. I’m DIY-ing a ladybug costume this year (my roommates are going to be a bumblebee and a butterfly). I don’t think i’ve bought a costume in years!