Tinker Bell Costume

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Halloween is fast approaching.....and I needed to hurry and create something sweet for my little kiddos. I have been looking forward to costumes, candy, imagination, and excitement since last year. And of course, I wanted my little munchkins to match.....well, sort of. Just fit together somehow. So the magic of Peter Pan has saturated my thoughts. Today I'll show you Tink....and tomorrow, Peter.


(I figured this was an easy outfit to throw on a long-sleeved white shirt underneath......and cozy white tights. Perfect for the cool Halloween evenings.)

And even if you already have a costume for this year.......consider creating one of these for your dress-up box. (Everything purchased for both costumes was under $3 a yard. This time of year is the perfect time to find unusual fabrics for a very great price. Even at your local fabric stores.)








Oooh, I can't wait until next week. My little lady is so mad that I made her take it off after taking pictures. She so badly wants to flit around the room in her little "tinka-bell" costume. And man, nothing makes me grin bigger than seeing the splendor of imagination.

How to make Tinkerbell?
(There are so many parts to this costume that I'm trying to fit into one post so I'm trying to keep it as brief as possible. I'll link to other tutorials when appropriate and am only posting minimal pictures for each part of the costume. If you have specific questions...let me know)

First, start with the bodice. I patterned it after an old swimsuit. Make a pattern by folding the swimsuit in half lengthwise to trace the front piece.....and then again for the back piece.



Then cut out your front and back pieces out of something stretchy. (Mine is a knit blend....not sure what it's called. But it has a fuzzy texture...but stretches well.) Sew the front and back pieces together along the sides and bottom, with right sides together.



Then turn under the raw edges of the leg holes.....using a zig-zag stitch to allow for stretch.



Then turn under the arm sections, and the top front and top back sections.



Now, you're going to create 2 flutter sleeves. Here is the basic shape of each sleeve. I needed sleeves that were 6 inches long (not width). But I made them 10 inches long to allow for gathering. At its widest point, they are about 3 inches wide.



Then make a casing for the elastic by turning under the long straight edge, about a half inch. Then thread a piece of narrow elastic through the casing. (I needed my should strap to be 6 inches long, so I cut my elastic piece 6 inches long as well. After attaching the sleeve and using some for the seam allowance, it will be a little less than 6 inches. But this will allow for some stretch and will keep the sleeves up on the shoulders, perfectly in place.)



Then sew the elastic along one end of the casing to secure in place, pull the elastic the rest of the way through, and sew along the other end of the casing to secure the other end of the elastic.



Pin in place and sew several time along the front and back corners of the costume. Repeat with the other shoulder. (I didn't hem the other edge of the sleeve because this fabric is knit and doesn't fray.)



Then cut out some of your same material for your skirt. My little girl is about 19 inches around the waist so I doubled that and made my strip 40 inches wide. And I made it about 14 inches long. Then I cut triangle cuts out of the bottom. Then I sewed the shorts ends together, to create a tube, one step closer to a skirt shape. Then I created a casing and inserted elastic, just like the tutorial here. (And I didn't hem the triangle edges because the knit I used doesn't fray.)



Then, I added some trimming to the waist of the skirt. Be careful if you are sewing on top of the elastic to stretch it as you go. Then if you let go, it will stretch back into place....and will ruffle up your trimming a little bit more. Otherwise, if you don't pull the elastic, you sew your elastic in place and will restrict its elasticity. (The trimming looks like the strip above the skirt, already ruffled and ready to go. You can buy this stuff by the yard at the fabric store.)



Then I made a tutu to go under this skirt by using the tutorial here.

Then I made the wings by bending two wire hangers to the desired shape.



The I cut off the hook shape of the hanger and then slid cheap-o little knee highs over the hanger shapes and rubber banded them nice and tight at the base.



Then I placed a piece of cardboard under the ends and hot glued them into place. Then I put tons more hot glue on top, then place another piece of equal sized cardboard on top of that. Press the two pieces together firmly and hold until cooled. Make sure you used plenty of glue and that the wings are even and straight.



Then I ended up trimming the cardboard to be a little smaller and added some elastic for the arm holes. Then I wrapped the cardboard in the same material as the costume..........and hot glued it in place.



And I forgot to take pictures as I was making the wand. But I made it by gluing 2 cardboard stars to one end of a wooden dowel.....hiding the end of the wooden dowel between the two pieces of the stars. Use plenty of glue and press the stars together firmly. Then I coated the star in elmer's glue and sprinkled plenty of glitter over it. Then I wrapped the wooden dowel with some sparkly ribbon. And then tied some sheer ribbon around the top, right under the star. All part of the magic!!

Sorry, this is the best picture I got........just wasn't thinking.



Whew, I think that's it. (Let me know if you have any questions while making your own.....there was a lot I was trying to squeeze into this one post.)

Now let your sweet girl flit and flee around the house.....creating all sorts of magic and wonder right before your eyes.