This cold weather ready DIY princess costume was inspired by the book “A Little Princess”. A fleece style winter coat worn over any dress.
Click to read also: Sew a Princess Dress in 15 Minutes
DIY Princess Costume: A Little Princess Winter Coat Style
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Last fall (yes, I really do have that large a post backlog – larger, really) my youngest daughter asked to dress up as Sara Crewe in Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess. She actually reflects lead character Sara’s whimsy quite well, and I agreed it would be fun. This costume works for any 19th century costume requiring a dress coat.
Making the Dress Coat Part of the Costume
We started with a simple dress pattern. I removed the back zipper and made the back all one piece instead. Then I added enough width to the front to double over and button it up. I cut it out one size too large to make it fit over her dress. I cut it out of fleece because it is soft, sensory friendly, and easy to work with.
Tip: when sewing with fleece, consider buying a large fleece blanket to cut up rather than buying fleece by the yard. Sometimes the blankets are a better deal! We did buy our fleece by the yard in this case, mainly because we were looking for a particular color. Some fleece drapes better than other fleece, so pay attention to that as well.
I bought the buttons when I was in high school in Vienna (Austria), and it was so fun to finally use them for this outfit!
We live in California where it doesn’t normally get very cold, so I only made this coat out of a single layer of fleece. You might want to add a lining if you live somewhere colder.
We paired the coat with a dress my daughter already owned. The coat looks good worn over any longer, fuller skirt or dress. You can also wear leggings or a shorter skirt with tights.
My favorite part of this outfit is that my daughter can wear it as a regular dress coat after Halloween!
Making the Muff
Stitching this muff was easy. I used a faux fur sample I picked up at Creativation a few years ago.Stitch a double width of fabric into a loop, match the loop edges to create a double sided loop, tuck in the edges, and edge stitch. At least, that’s what I was trying to do. I missed a step somewhere and had to create a somewhat awkward seam you can see if you look closely at the photo below.
What are your children dressing up as for Halloween this year? Are you making any costumes?
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MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.
The coat turned out perfectly! I love how you adapted the pattern.
Thanks! I was happy with how it turned out, and she is still wearing it one year later.