to be fed up with World Book Day/school dress up and having to buy a costume again?

[Nightingalemumoftwo]

Already been to Sainburys (no Gruffalo costumes) snd Toys Are Us (usual Spiderman/Star Wars costumes); refuse to pay £10 for a cardboard Endeman (Minecraft) head. Fed up with the school expecting parents to fork out. AIBU?

There's no need to spend money, have a look at what he has and fashion something from that. No way would I spend money on this!

Nooo - you're meant to make the costume!

Mine are doing Harry Potter, and a skeleton costume they wore for Halloween (I'm passing it off as Funny Bones!). Easy.

We were told yesterday they are to dress up on Thursday! Oh and they've been given a specific author as well so can't just throw on something out of the dressing up box. I mean FFS 36 hours notice!

Do you have anything around that you can use? Onesie, stripy jumper, funny hat, cardboard box, spots to stick on a t-shirt? Then decide on character to fit with the costume!

Mine went in a strange jumble of clothes every year but never seemed to mind as long as it wasn't uniform.

In fact, DS once insisted in going IN uniform as 'a school child out of the Demon Headmaster book'.

Right, Cowmop, what author? We like a challenge!

Yeah, you're a meanie.

I haven't bought anything extra this year, although we've been lucky in having plenty of stuff lying around to use.

DD1 is going as Mia Thermopolis (long party dress, tiara and toy cat) and DD2 is going as Silky from the Enchanted Wood (green fairy dress) if anyone cares.

Spare a thought for those of us with no imaginative or artistic abilities. I have no idea what I'll do when the time comes, I guess I could rip up some old clothes and send him as oliver twist? OR I'll just have to fork out for a costume.

DS hates dressup, so isn't dressing up.

But if he was then it was going to be Mr. Bump in his blue onsie with bandages around his head. No way was I going to fork out to buy a costume!

I have got a sheet of A2 gold card, DD has written on it and I attached some ribbon to hang it round DD's neck - she is going as a golden ticket from Charlie and the chocolate factory.

Previosuly she has gone as pippi longstocking. Wore a blue dress she had almost outgrown with a couple of patches of scrap material sown on, odd socks, freckles and her hair in plaits with pipe cleaners threaded through so we could bend the plaits outwards, Only cost was a can of orange hairspray and even that is not essential.

There are various ideas on the internet for home maid WBD costumes for little cost and effort.

My daughter is wearing a purple track suit from her wardrobe with a green ribbon in her hair = Little Miss Naughty. No money involved. Admittedly, she might have to tell people who she is, but still!

I think you're doing it wrong.

You don't ask the child what they want to dress up as, you tell/suggest to the child something(s) you know you can find or you already own.

eg.
Witches appear in various stories.
Many stories have 'normal' children which you accessorize (eg harry and his bucket of dinosaurs)

I spent precisely 45p this year on blue hair ribbon.

Roald Dahl is your friend, SaucyJack. Charlie Bucket just wears slightly too-small clothes and carries a chocolate bar. Geore has a (plastic) bottle labelled Marvellous Medicine. Job done.

home made

jeans and stripey t shirt = horrid henry
Scruffy jacket/clothes paper beard = Mr Twit
Ordinary clothes - James from James and the giant peach
Tatty too small clothes and a bar of chocolate = Charlie from Charlie and the chocolate factory

School uniform, black cape/long cardi, big hair = hermionie Granger
Same but glasses and lightening scar - Harry potter
Dress and ribbon in the hair = matilda
Stripey tights and pigtails = pippi longstocking

Possibilities without having to buy something expensive are endless

I think they expect you to make one...

Mind you we bought most of ours (Where's Wally) but I have a young baby so using that as an excuse :D

DS has a navy duffle coat. A bit of cardboard on string round his neck saying 'please look after this bear' and a hat and...tada...he's Paddington!

I'm a big fan of using what you've got.

I'm so thankful ours don't do dress up. They take books in and 'celebrate' it but they don't dress up.

George's marvellous medicine. Normal clothes (like he wears), a ladle and get a big empty bottle, fill it with water, food colouring etc. did it with my son last year, he loved it. We used the edible glitter for food, it left the water all marble-y, looked fab.

Ahem. That would be George (not Gore).

I'd go as something that involves relatively normal clothes like Danny from Danny Champion of the world or similar. DS is going as one of the boys from Swallows and Amazons (school shorts and shirt with rolled up sleeves - easy peasy!)

DD is going to be Emily Windsnap this year - swimming costume with some netting that I bought for under a dress at a xmas party a couple of years ago - slit waist and knotted the elastic tight enough, ribbon tied around pulling the bottom in... might add some bangles or something...

that'll do

DS is wearing his transformers costume. Last year it was a Power Ranger, year before he was a pirate. All stuff he already has/had - no way am I buying something just for book day.

Although I would be willing to buy a cloak and wand for him if he ever agrees to be Harry Potter to match the scar on his head

I was horrified to discover that ds's secondary school are doing this. I thought I could get away with only 1 child this year.

You can do it for not much money.

For ds, I have spent 80p on red ribbon and have sewed it around the edge of a black jacket and made some into flames I have sewn on the sleeves. He is going as Peeta from the Hunger games with black jeans and a black tee-shirt (which is exactly what he wanted to wear). All his mates are also going as characters who wear jeans!

Dd wants to go as Trimp, a hedgehog from Redwall. I have bought a 1.99 brown jumper of Amazon and a packet of brown pipe cleaners for 1.50. Threaded the pipe cleaners through the jumper, coloured in a red nose with a black permanent marker, stapled some cardboard ears to a head-band. Job done.

However, I work full time and this has taken many hours so I am not all that happy about the time committment!

Does the dressing up somehow encourage them to read? Do the children past reception age have to tell the class about their book/ do a presentation (depending on age) to get others interested in reading it?

Or is it just a dress up day?

Why is it called "World" book day when most of the world haven't been notified? :o