Ooooooh, I’ve been having so much fun planning costumes and gathering supplies! My mind is spinning in circles….so forgive me if I jump from one costume to another. Remember how we voted a week ago on what costumes you’d like to make? Well, the results showed that you guys are really wanting to try your hand at “mermaids” and “How To Train Your Dragon” characters. So, yes, you’ve got it……those are in the works! But, because I really need to purge this idea so that I can move on to something else, I just had to make this strawberry costume real quick. (And if you’d like to own this costume…I’m giving it a way. More info below!)
Yes, that’s the beautiful thing about this costume……it’s definitely a “quick” one! Chloe has changed her mind about what she wants to be for Halloween a trillion times and in a previous post, I mentioned how she told me one day that she changed her mind and wanted to be a strawberry for Halloween. I don’t think she was all that serious but the idea stuck in my head and I just knew it would be cute! :)
MY LATEST VIDEOSSo even though it didn’t win the vote (it wasn’t in last place either), there was still some interest, so I went with it…..and made a sweet little Strawberry Costume!
And ha, it turned out even better than my brain imaged!! Especially that cute little leafy head piece!
There are no zippers, button holes, or finicky loop closures. Just an elastic casing at the top (for easy on and off)……
…..and more elastic at the bottom, to kind of pull the berry in and give it some shape.
The arm holes are very basic (no sleeves…yay!) and the whole thing is stuffed loosely with some fluffy batting. Because a happy berry is a plump and juicy berry!
Definitely a fun costume to make!
When I finished this berry costume, Chloe was so excited to try it on and take pictures with me! This child has so much spunk and is always making us laugh. After a few darling poses, she decided she wanted to be a strawberry from Fruit Ninja (a game on my phone) and starting slicing the air with her razor sharp imaginary swords. Hi-yaaaaaa!
Okay, back to sweet berry….whew!
When we were done taking a few pictures, Chloe asked if she could go put this costume in the dress-up bin…..but I reminded her that this costume wasn’t going to stay at our house (heaven help us—we have so many dress-ups!). I told her that maybe another child who lives far, far away has been dreaming of being a Strawberry and would like to wear this costume trick-or treating! She liked the sound of that…..and told me to make sure that it goes to a 4 year-old girl, just like her! ;)
SO—
If you don’t sew, don’t have time to sew, or would rather not sew…….this costume is up for grabs! It would work for a 3 year old (and would be longer) up to probably a 6-7 year old (and would be a little shorter). And no, you don’t have to be 4 and a girl to win this costume — as requested by Chloe! ;)
If you’d like the costume, leave a comment below (make sure you leave your email address in the comment form, not inside the actual comment, just the form) and let me know who you’d like this costume for! :) Hopefully it will work out for one of you! ****Giveaway closes Monday September 14th, 11:59 p.m.
However, if you’d like to make your own Strawberry Costume — let me show you how!
SUPPLIES:
- Red Minky Dimple Fabric FOUND HERE (amount varies depending on size, but I used about 3/4 yard)
- Red Fleece fabric FOUND HERE (you need the same amount as the minky fabric)
- Green fleece fabric FOUND HERE (1/2 yard is all you need)
- Hot Glue
- Headband
- Batting FOUND HERE (for plumping the strawberry)
- Elastic cording
- sewing supplies (here’s a list of my favorite sewing supplies, in case you need a few ideas)
***Check out my Sewing Terms 101 post, for additional help.
First of all, you need to decide how big to make your costume. Measure from the top of the shoulder (where the costume will begin) down to the point where you’d like the costume to end on the leg. Add 3 inches to that length. Then, measure around the largest section of the body (most likely the shoulders). Write down that number. These are the 2 dimensions you need to cut a FRONT and BACK piece from your minky.
For example, I wanted this strawberry to be about 22 inches long (if it’s stretched out flat, it’s actually a little longer than 22 inches….but the bottom pulls in and under a bit, but the 3 inches includes some to make up for that). So I added 3 inches to that 22 inches, which is 25 inches. And then the circumference of Chloe’s shoulders, was 22 inches. So, I cut 2 pieces of minky fabric (a FRONT and BACK piece) that were 22 inches wide and 25 inches long.
Then, I placed the 2 pieces of minky together, with right sides together, and sewed along the sides (the 25 inch length), with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. HOWEVER, you need to leave an opening at both sides, for the arm holes. To determine where to place those arm holes, place a measuring tape at the neck where the costume will start and determine how far down your arm hole will need to start. Be sure to add 1/2 inch for the seam allowance that you’ll be sewing later on at the top of the costume. So, I wanted my arm hole to start at about 4 inches from the top……but I marked a pin (the top black arrows below) 4.5 inches down on both sides for the arm hole to start. I placed another pin 10.5 inches down from the top edge on both sides (the bottom black arrows below).
Repeat the exact steps from above with the red fleece fabric…..so that you have 2 identical tubes of fabric with arm hole openings.
Now, slide the red fleece tube of fabric inside the minky tube of fabric, so that the RIGHT sides of the fabric are facing each other and match up the side seams from both tubes of fabric.
Also, be sure that the arm holes are matched up.
Then, sew around the upper edge of fabric (the edge that’s closer to the arm holes), attaching the minky tube to the fleece tube….using a 1/2 inch seam allowance. However, leave about a 1-2 inch opening (see the star below) along the top edge (doesn’t matter where), so that you can add elastic later on. (Also, be sure you’re sewing around the top edge in a circle, so that a head can fit through here, not straight across closing off the entire thing.)
Then, turn the fabrics right side out, slide the fleece so it’s down inside of the minky fabric……and line up the sewn edge, right along the seam. Pin in place, and then sew all the way around, using a 1 inch seam allowance (the dotted line below). You’ll also see that 1 inch opening from the last step…..which is now the opening for your elastic casing.
Now, locate one of your arm hole openings and line up the minky and fleece fabric along the side seam and pin in place (just to keep it from shifting).
Along one side of the arm hole opening, fold the fleece edge up and over 1/2 inch…..
…..and then fold the fleece edge down and under 1/2 inch, and then sandwich the folds together, enclosing the raw edges for both fabrics.
Continue all along the edges of both fabrics (along this one edge of the arm hole opening) and pin in place.
Repeat with the other edge of the arm hole opening.
Sew along the folded edges, in a narrow rectangle shape, completely closing off and raw edges. Repeat with the other arm hole opening.
Next, cut some basic leaf shapes from your green fleece fabric…..making sure the one edge is a straight line.
Then, pin them to the upper edge of the costume (the edge you just made the casing for), overlapping each leaf as you attach them. Pin them all the way around this upper edge, matching up the straight edge of each leaf with the upper edge of the red fabric.
Sew the leaves in place using a 1 inch seam allowance (which will sew right on top of the existing seam from when you created the casing seam).
Now, line up the bottom edges of the costume and tucked under the the raw edges of the minky fabric towards the fleece 1/2 inch. Fold the fleece up toward the minky 1/2 inch. (This will enclose the raw edges of fabric.) Sandwich them together and pin in place (similar to what you did with the arm hole openings).
Repeat all the way around the bottom edge of the costume, making sure the folded edges are even with each other before pinning.
Then, sew along the very bottom folded edges, all the way around the bottom of the costume, leaving a 4-5 inch opening. Then sew another line, parallel to the first one, 3/4 of an inch from the first seam….also leaving a 4-5 inch opening.
Here’s the opening….which you will use for stuffing your batting inside.
Next, thread some of your elastic through the top casing of the costume (under the tops of the leaves).
Pull in the elastic so that it’s tight enough to cinch in the strawberry but still loose enough to fit over your subject’s head. Tie the ends of the elastic in a knot, trim off the ends, try to stuff the ends into the casing, then sew your casing closed.
Next, start stuffing pieces of batting in through the bottom opening, trying your best to evenly distribute all the way around the costume. (It doesn’t need to be firm and super stuffed. Just add enough so that it puffs out the costume just a bit.)
Now, you’ll need to close off the upper seam of the casing, which will enclose the batting area. But notice you don’t sew the other line of stitching closed.
Through the remaining opening, thread another piece of elastic all the way around the base of the costume, cinching it in just a bit (so that the strawberry pulls in a bit at the bottom)……then tie the elastic ends in a knot, stuff into the casing, and then sew the casing closed.
For the head piece, you’ll need a headband and some tin foil to wad up and shape into a stem shape.
Cut a circle from your green fleece, glue the center to the top end of your stem and then glue down the edges to the foil.
Then cut a rectangle slightly longer than the stem piece and start wrapping it and gluing your fleece to the stem.
Then cut some different sized leaf pieces from your green fleece……
……and then pleat the base a bit and glue in place.
Cut a circle from your fleece to use as the base for your leaves……..and then start gluing your bigger leaf pieces to the base.
Keep stacking and alternating sizes.
Then, place the stack of leaves onto your headband (trying it on your subject is helpful) and then use glue to attach the base of the leaves to the headband.
Then, place the raw edge of the stem down into the center of the leaves with hot glue.
To help keep the leaves from shifting or flopping around on the headband, cut another circle of fleece, place some hot glue down, and then place this 2nd circle right on top. Press firmly.
To add vines, cut out a circle from your fleece, then cut the circle into a spiral…….
……so that when you pick it up, it’s kind of curly.
Then, if you pull on the fleece, it will stretch out and get more curly and a little more authentic looking. Make several vine pieces.
Glue one end of your vine pieces to your head piece, hiding under a leaf here and there.
If you’re having problems with the head pieces slipping off your hair, add some lines of hot glue and let dry completely. This will help stick to the hair a little better.
And that’s it! A little strawberry costume all ready to wear!!!
Enjoy!
-Ashley
. . . . .
Want a few more costume ideas??
Star Wars R2-D2 Costume for GIRLS
Mary Poppins, Bert, and a Penguin
Would love this for my daughter!
This is adorable!!! Would love to win this for my daughter to wear this year!! Thanks for the giveaway!!
Whoops!! Here is my email…
I can see your email in the form when you submitted the comment (no one else can see it, just me!)….so there’s no need to include it in the comment. I know, it’s kind of confusing. But for privacy, I deleted your email from your public comment! :)
And yay….you’re welcome! I’m glad you have someone who could use this!
Ashley
chloe will be happy to hear this…my 4-year old daughter, claire, would love this costume!
Haha….she’ll also be happy to know she has a “C” name if you guys win. She’s obsessed with the letter “C”! :)
I love this strawberry for my daughter she loves strawberries so this would be perfect for her !!
I would love this for my daughter
My daughter would look real cute in this.
Oh this is TOO SWEET! My 3 year old ( who actually wears a 4T) saw a strawberry costume at the store last week and really wanted it but the price tag (KA-CHING!) was not happening. This would make us both so happy!
Awww, this really would be perfect!! I hate it when costumes are overpriced for no reason at all! Good luck!
The headpiece is adorable! My 4 year old girl would love this!
My darling red-headed nice would look absolutely adorable in this strawberry costume! Thanks Ashlee!
Oh man, this WOULD be darling on a little red head! :) Good luck!
So CUTE! I’d love this for my niece! :-)
Hey Kristie,
I can see your email in the form when you submitted the comment (no one else can see it, just me!)….so there’s no need to include it in the comment. I know, it’s kind of confusing. But for privacy, I deleted your email from your public comment! :)
Good luck!
Ashley
Thank you!! :-)
I don’t sew, but i love to read your blog and see pics of your darling kids. I’d love to win this for my little girl who loves strawberries! Thanks for the great giveaway!
Awwww, this would be great for you! Crossing my fingers for you! :)
good job mama!! i know if i tried making my own my sewing machine would eat it all up!!
I do have a laaarge, non-walking 1 year old who would be cute as heck in this costume!! Pick me!
So so cute! Would love this for my adorable nieces. Such a creative costume!
Hey Holly!
I can see your email in the form when you submitted the comment (no one else can see it, just me!)….so there’s no need to include it in the comment. I know, it’s kind of confusing. But for privacy, I deleted your email from your public comment! :)
Good luck!
Ashley
My granddaughters, 5 and 3, would love this for dress-up! thanks for the chance.
Adorable! My daughter would love to be a strawberry for Halloween!
I would use this for my two girls! So fun!!
Adorable!! I have 2 daughters aged 7 and 3 and either one of them would love this! Thank you so much for the chance to win!
Would love this for my adorable 4 year old Ella, I was thinking about making an Alice in wonderland costume for her but she keeps changing her mind! If I won this it would be a fun little surprise! Just love costume season on make it and love it! I always look forward to seeing what you’ll come up with next!
My 5 year old daughter would love this costume! I have plans to be a pineapple… A fruit family just might be the winner for my clan this year!
please don’t enter me to win as i have no littles, but this is totally cute! and i just want to say that i love your tutorials bc i always seem to learn a little something. and they are crisp and clean pictures!
So cute! My 4 year old loves Strawberry Shortcake and would be SO excited to have this for Halloween. (And with 4 little ones, I would be excited to have one less costume to worry about!)
Oh my goodness this costume is so adorable, although not quite as adorable as Chloe! Her ninja skills are quite impressive. My granddaughter Scarlett is also a big fan of dress-up time. She particularly likes dressing as a Harry Potter, a NInja, and also Michael Jackson, HA! She is quite the character. Thank you for the opportunity! Have a great day!
Oh, this is sew berry cute!! (hehe) My daughter will be 3 years old by Halloween! I can just imagine her in this costume!
Of course I’d love to have this for my three year old. Anything that you make would be welcome here!
This is the one I voted for!!!! I would love to win!
I’d love this adorable costume for my 4 year old daughter, Belisse. She would be so excited!!
Love this. I have a 3 yr old granddaughter who would adore it
My daughter would love this!
That costume is adorable!! My 6 year old daughter would love it!
My little cousin would love it!
I would love for my daughter to wear this for Halloween!!
Love, love it!!! I have 2 little ones that would probably fight over or I might have to make another one. One granddaughter 3 yrs old and another 4 yrs old. It is adorable.
You are so talented with all your fabulous costume ideas! My granddaughter would be adorable in the strawberry costume!
My daughter (who is 4!) would love this! So adorable!
I haven’t figured out Mallory’s costume yet. She would look stinkin’ cute in this! :)
Omg! Ur daughter is so adorable! Look at those cute poses. I particularly love the way she’s posing in the 5th picture with her pointed foot Hehe. So cute. And you never cease to amaze me Ashely. Such talent you have. That costume is simply amazing. Thank you for a very clear tutorial (as usual). You are doing an amazing job. Thank you so much!
I would love to see my cute daughter in this cute costume! This is so simple and has a big payoff, I love the idea!
My 4 year old, Hailey, saw this and immediately got inspiration for Halloween! She would love to be strawberry this year! Super cute
What a great model! Love this costume, even more because you already made it for me!! My 3 year old would be adorable in it. :)
Chloe’s wish can come true. I have a 4 year old girl who would love to be a strawberry!
Can’t wait to see the How to Train Your Dragon tutorials. Said 4 year old is obsessed!
My 3yo goddaughter would love this!!!
You are so amazingly talented! What a great costume! My daughter Lily is completely crazy about strawberries. She would love this costume. She turns 4 in February so she’s almost there :)
Oh! We would love to win this costume! So darling. You are amazing in how you just “whip” these things up! The last time I got out the sewing machine my 4-year-old son stuck straight pins inside my machine! So for now I’m on a hiatus. My daughter (age 6) would love this.
We’d love this cute little berry costume! Great job! We have a 6 yo girl. ?
How do you come up with these things so quickly??? I had voted for the strawberry since I’d love to make one for my 3-year-old girl. When I saw it didn’t win, I started wracking my brain trying to figure it out on my own. You are amazing!
This is absolutely ADORABLE…my 3, soon to be 4 year old daughter, Breagh, would have sooo much fun with this outfit & even better she’d be able to share with her younger sister in a few years ???? I just love visiting your blog to see all the fun ideas you post. Thank you for sharing!
So cute! I would love it for my 4-year-old!
I’d love this for my little girl! It’s so cute, and could even pass as a raspberry!
Mi hija Lucia moriría por usar este disfraz!!! My daugther Lucy would love to wear this. #luchitidoll
Oh how cute! My daughter would LOVE this!!
This is FABULOUS! I have four daughters and Halloween is their favorite holiday. I like to make it magical for them but it can be stressful to coordinate and create 4 different costumes on my own. We like to make our own costumes too and we recycle costumes from previous years as the girls grow into them. The ideas/themes can get pretty awesome. One year my oldest insisted on dressing up as a cobweb because her little sis was going to be a spider. Ha! This sweet berry is perfect for my youngest girl who has the same spunk as your sweet Chloe. She will be four in a few weeks and how special would it be to have a new costume that wasn’t a hand-me-down from her big sisters!? :) Thank you so much for your generosity and inspiration!
My 3 1/2 yr old granddaughter would be darling as a strawberry, and my other granddaughter would fit it next year!
Oh this costume is adorable! Anyone of my 3 girls would love it, but especially my 3 year old! Thank you for sharing your wonderful talent.
I would love this for my 3 year old daughter! I just had a baby and I usually make fun costumes, but this year I have to simplify. this would be darling!
This is the most cheery- darling Halloween costume ever!! I definitely fall under the “I can’t sew worth a darn” category… However, I DO fall under the “I too have a spunky-sassy 4 year old girl with beautiful dark blonde hair and a love of strawberries and dress up!” category ;) Please give Chloe a ninja high five for us all both, all the way from Canada!! ???????
I have a sassy three year old who would just ROCK this costume! So fun! I actually voted for this costume, so I love the tutorial! Thank you!
You make the BEST costumes. This one is adorable! My daughter would love it. Thank you for the clear and simple tutorials.
I’d love this costume for my 3.5 year old :-). It’s adorable
My daughter would love this!
Oh Ashley this is the cutest, reddist, plumpist (is that a word) strawberry ever! I love it. I have three little kiddies (all 5 years and under) and any one of them would love to wear this! Thanks for thinking of us and doing the giveaway!
My daughter would absolutely adore this!!
I have 4 little granddaughters (3-4 yr olds) who would love this costume…. I’d love to make one, or 4, but am very busy making bazaar items. We’ll see. Our family gets together on Halloween for a meal and little party for the kids. (Such fun and the start of all the holidays. ) We let the kids dress up, and have fun and yet theyre not out on the roads and sometimes its cold n rainy. Pacific Northwest weather…
For my daughter Ellie…She LOVES berries and wants to be a strawberry for Halloween this year! This is so precious :]
PS…even if we don’t win the giveaway, THANK YOU for the tutorial. I kept hoping for a cute strawberry costume! You are so talented!
My 6 year old would LOVE this costume- so cute!!!
You are so talented! I’d love this for my little girl!!
Would love this for any one of my three girls!
I want it for my little girl! But, as she’s too small for it right now, my niece can borrow it.
Awesome! I think I’m going to take this basic concept and make a dinosaur egg for my little one, I’ve been trying to visualize how to do that and this helps so much. Thanks!
Wow! I actually have a 4 year old Who absolute love this! Nice Job!
So cute! I wish it fit me! I love strawberries! It’s the theme of my kitchen! I have a 9 year old who is a little shorty, so maybe it would fit her. If not, I have a bunch of nieces that I would love to gift it to! Thanks for the opportunity!
I would LOVE this for my 4 year old daughter! Otherwise she’ll be a ninja like her brothers have been in years past. Definitely liking the strawberry better!
I have a four year old girl with blonde brown hair that is OBSESSED with strawberries! She would love this!
I happen to be the mom of a 4 year old girl with (medium) blonde hair who would Love to be a strawberry. Great tutorial, my little one has quite a few make it – love it creations :)
My little 4 year old would love this!! So stinking cute!
Amazing work, as always! We have three girls ages 0-5, so this would get plenty of use for years to come. And we LOVE strawberries! Thanks for the opportunity to win.
My 4 yr old daughter would love this!
Oh- this is really darling! My daughter saw me looking at it and insisted on checking out all of the pictures! She would love this costume!
That is so stinkin’ cute!! My 4 year old would love it! (And mommy would love not having to scramble for a costume, like she does every Oct 31! Ha!)
Wow! This is so lovely! My daughter would be love to wear your strawberry costume this year.
What an adorable costume! My almost-4-year-old would LOVE it.
For my little girl :) It’s adorable!
I would love this for my 3.5 year old daughter!! Adorable!
So cute! My 5 year old daughter Evie would love this! We live in Oklahoma too!!
I love that strawberry! So cute! My daughter would look SO sweet in it!
Oh please, please, please! I’ve been scouring the Internet for something different for my daughter and this would be PERFECT! If left to my own devices, I will totally start this project, and end up at my mother’s house, pretending to get advice on how to proceed, while hoping she will just take it from me and finish it. (My talents are limited to painting and crafts… Mama’s got that sewing on lock. Lol)
My little 3 year old daughter would just love this! Turned out so cute!
My granddaughter would love to be a strawberry for Halloween. She is four and love to play dress up.
Oh I LOVE this! My littles are 5,3 and 2… They are always playing dress up and they LOVE to watch strawberry Shortcake. This would definitely be the favorite!
Wow! What an awesome tutorial! Could be modified for other types of fruits too! Great Job!!!
My 4 year old gr-niece Annesley Kate would love this costume. She loves to play dress up!
Aww,Super cute!If i dont win, Maybe one year i can get grandma to make this for my daughter! ;)
My daughter wants to be a pumpkin this year, she is 3, and I wanted to put light sticks in each of the “grooves” on the outside of the pumpkin and make her some pants with little pockets on the sides for glow sticks as well but I was trying to think how and i going to make this pumpkin thing slip over her? This is so perfect for ideas on how to make her costume! Thank you so much!!!!!
I have been following your blog for years and I cannot believe how grown up she is! As creepy as that sounds!
Okay, this is adorable!! I would love to win this for my niece. I’m also thinking I may need to make one for myself and be a strawberry this year…too cute!!
This is so darling! I absolutely love it. I’d love to win it for one of my daughters! ❤
Love this costume!! My little, spit-fire Evaleigh would love to wear it, the tutorial is wonderful but it’d be even better if it just came finished in the mail!!! ;)
OMG! Love this squishy little strawberry costume! My son (3) and daughter (almost 2) would both LOVE wearing this! One of their favorite books is The Big Hungry Bear and The Red Ripe Strawberry!
My daughter is 5 and would love this! I have a costume already for her baby sister and it’s a strawberry too. She wants to match. It will be baby sister’s first Halloween to trick-or-treat.
I would love this for my spunky 5 year old!
So cute! My girls would love it!