Here’s a fun and easy way to make a traditional Halloween costume. Everybody recognizes the pumpkin as a part of autumn fun. Using a hoodie and some fabric, you can make this costume and have a great time of trick-or-treating!
What you’ll need:
Orange fabric (1 yd x 54″w remnant)
1 heavy duty paper plate
Black felt
Hot glue gun, white glue
1/4 yard green fabric (we used linen)
Wired raffia
4-6 plastic grocery bags
Re-sealable plastic storage baggies & a straw or other light-weight filler
Needle and thread
1 yard yarn, ribbon, or other cord
Green knit cap
Pattern
How to make it:
To make the pumpkin body:
Cut a hole in the paper plate large enough for your child’s head to fit through. Test to be sure it fits.
Take the orange fabric and make darts by hot gluing folds along the long edge of the fabric until you have gathered the fabric enough to fit around the head hole in the paper plate.
Hot glue the gathered fabric onto the plate; leave a little extra fabric to wrap down through the hole and glue to the other side of the plate so the edge won’t scratch your child’s neck.
Close up the back of the costume by hot gluing a seam down the back.
Have your child try on the costume so you can mark where the arm holes should be. Cut the arm holes and hot glue the fabric to the inside of the costume to keep the opening neat.
Fold under the bottom edge of the fabric and stitch it in place, creating a 1″ hem pocket. Leave a gap at the beginning and end of your stitch line. Ease cord, ribbon or yarn through the pocket of the hem. Once the costume is on your child, pull the ends of the cord to gather the fabric and tie it in a double bow knot. Excess cord can be tucked up into the inside of the gathered edge.
Cut eyes and mouth from black felt. Have your child put the costume on, so you can position the eyes and mouth before affixing them.
To make the leaf:
Fold the green fabric in half. Lay the leaf pattern on the bias (at an angle across the grain) of the fabric. Pin the pattern in place and cut around it. Cut out four leaf patterns from the fabric.
Lay wired raffia out along pattern to approximate the lengths required for the leaf veins. Twist them together to keep them in place and set aside.
Apply white glue to one piece of fabric leaf and spread it evenly, covering the fabric completely. Lay the wired raffia on the glued fabric and cover with the second pattern piece. Press the fabric firmly around the raffia. Flip the leaf over and press from the other side.
When glue has dried completely, trim fabric edges if necessary and bend raffia to give leaf shape. Twist one end of a second piece of raffia tightly around the first. Wrap the loose end around a pill bottle or other round object to create a faux vine.
Repeat steps 2-4 for the second leaf.
Attach leaves to top of the costume with hot glue, positioning them near the neckline.
To fill in the pumpkin:
Fill grocery bags evenly with inflated re-sealable baggies or other filler. Measure the length of your child’s torso (the distance from their shoulder to their crotch.) Hot glue the handles of the grocery bags to the paper plate on the inside of the costume so they hang no lower than your child’s torso measurement.
Tips:
Dress your child in a green shirt and brown pants to wear under the costume.
Add a cozy green knit cap to top off the costume and keep your little one warm.