Meow! Toddler Rora makes an adorable kitty cat, don’t you think? Well, she’s pretty adorable any which way, but this costume certainly worked out! Let me tell you a little about how I made it.

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First, I found a free tutorial for an Animal Bonnet on the blog Made by Toya. I was drawn to this cat bonnet because the ears stand up nicely. Plus, it reminds me of the Purl Soho winter baby bonnet I’ve made before, so I felt confident I could pull it off.

Happily, the sewing was straightforward. I used just one layer of interfacing for the ears. Two layers would have made them pointier, but we don’t mind. My only regret is that I used an inexpensive black “velvet” from a big box store that has a cheap, insubstantial feel. It wants to roll instead of laying nicely. Next time I’d spring for a higher quality velvet, like those at Fiddlehead Artisan Supply. If I’m going to take the time to sew something she could use for dress up later on, I’d like it to last, you know?

On the skirt I improvised. I bought black tulle and brown sparkle tulle on 8” wide rolls. I cut lengths of tulle about 14” long and sewed them to a wide, black elastic meant for waistbands. I sewed through the tulle strips at center (about 7” from the cut edges) which created a double layer of tulle. There are likely better ways to make a tulle skirt, but this worked and was sooooo easy.

Now the tail, that was the trickiest part… mainly because it involved a glue gun, and I am glue-gun challenged. I used the tutorial here for a DIY cat costume, making the tail only. This wasn’t totally successful, in that our tail kind of spun and swayed as she walked. By the end of the night, I removed it for fear it would poke her as she sat. I think we needed a lightweight wire hanger instead of the heavy-duty one I used. Something lightweight would have been more secure.

I just have to say - sewing is so much better than glue. Yay, thread!

Here is my whole crew, decked out for last weekend’s party. Big kid costumes by Grandma, and inspired by characters in the Inheritance book series.

Happy Halloween to all!