If my 2-year-old understood Halloween or at least the concept of dressing up for candy, I have no doubt she'd dress up as a princess or as Jesse from "Toy Story." But, she doesn't. So I selfishly decided that I wanted to make her a costume of my choosing!

It's been an emotion and stressful few weeks on the job front and I needed to get into the "crafty mom" mode as an escape. It just popped in my head one day, "cotton candy." The idea stuck, so that's what I made a cotton candy costume!

We'll see if she actually wears it or not! If she does I'll add photos of her dressed up.
 
 

Materials:

Cloth, like muslin. I used an old towel.
Needle and thread, or sewing machine, or glue, or a quick heat bond - whatever you're comfortable working with that will "sew" a costume
Tacky spray glue
Spray paint - I used pink for pink cotton candy
Cotton or poly-fil
Scissors
Marker
Elastic or ribbon
An old stocking cap
White pants
Long sleeved shirt that matches the color of your cotton candy

Instructions:

1. Choose material and figure out your needed amount. Choose a light colored material that can be hidden by the "cotton candy." I chose an old towel because I wanted a warm material and it was the perfect size for my wee one (Seriously wee one… she's barely over 20lbs. She's 26-months-old and can still fit in her original bucket car seat because it safely fits up to 23lbs!)

2. Lay the material out and sketch a design - either a potato sack rectangle, or something like I did that comes in under the arms a bit and flares out to make a larger bottom. Decide where you want the costume to lay, such as at the waist, below the hips, etc. Add at least an extra 1 1/2 inches to this length for the hem. 



3. Fold your material in half so the fold is at the top of the sketch, wear your head and shoulders go. Pin material together if necessary so it doesn't move as you cut.

4. Cut out your pattern.

5. Keeping the material folded, cut a slit in the middle of the top for your head. Next cut a slit down the back of the costume so the two slits form a "T." Make both slits long enough for the head to comfortably fit through, like this:



6. Hem each bottom of the costume so your elastic or ribbon can be threaded through.

7. Fold the material in half again and sew the sides together from below the arm holes to the top of the hem, but not through the hem.

8. Thread the elastic or the ribbon through the hem to create a draw string. Don't bunch up the hem, leave it flat.

9. Spray the glue on one side of the costume and spread out the cotton filling where you've sprayed the glue. Repeat until entire side is finished. Let that side dry for a few minutes then glue the cotton on the other side. Let it dry.



10. Spray paint the cotton letting one side dry before spraying the other side.



11. Once dry, pull the draw string so the cotton candy poofs out. This will show areas that need more cotton and/or more spray paint. Do the necessary touchups!

12. Repeat the glue, cotton and spray paint technique on the stocking cap to create the top of the cotton candy. You can build up the top of the cotton like I did to give it the cone effect.

13. Wear white pants, sweats, stockings to create the stem of the cotton candy. Wear a matching long sleeve shirt under the cotton candy. Voila! Your cotton candy costume is complete!

Have a safe and fun Halloween!