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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

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

61 replies

Nightingalemumoftwo · 04/03/2015 09:49

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?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
CarlaVeloso · 04/03/2015 10:04

Oh fgs you don't have to buy anything! You put diverging together from what you have lying around.

Boy or girl? Do you have any toy dinosaurs and a small bucket? Dress them in normal casual clothes and be Harry and his bucketful of dinosaurs.

Go to library for a book to suit the costume you can throw together.

Do you have a red pillowcase/tea towel? Little Red Riding Hood.

Harry Potter also surely v easy to throw together?

Sallystyle · 04/03/2015 10:05

I had to spend money because they had to dress up as certain characters so I was limited to what I could make do with.

I have no creative bone in my body.

ThinkIveBeenHacked · 04/03/2015 10:07

Grin I just looked in DDs dressy up box and said "Ooh you get to wear your Red Riding Hood costume on thursday!"

Not sure how long ill get away with that

SaucyJack · 04/03/2015 10:07

A good one if anyone has a small girl they need a costume for is a denim pinny, stripy tights and a toy tiger with a plastic teapot glued to its hand.

Voila. Tiger Who Came To Tea.

pbwer · 04/03/2015 10:08

surely it's an option to go in school uniform and ignore this palaver?

Enb76 · 04/03/2015 10:13

Mine is going as Ottoline. I'm not buying anything at all.

to be fed up with World Book Day/school dress up and having to buy a costume again?
PetraStrorm · 04/03/2015 10:14

DD (4) came up with her own idea, which is to wear her princess dressing-up dress and 'make a big pea so I can be the princess and the pea'. That's fine by me Grin

blackheartsgirl · 04/03/2015 10:15

Ive made mine and used what ive already got kicking about at home.

Dd1 was easy. Shes 12 and gone as an anime character. She had the costume for xmas anyway and just added tights and sprayed her hair blue.
Dd2 is one of the pirates from pirate jam. Shes got red jeggings and ive painted grey stripes on an old school shirt and made her bandana out her dads old shirts.

Dd3 is clifford the big red dog. Red clothes and face painted face

PetraStrorm · 04/03/2015 10:17

We are supposed to 'do' a specific author this year, but as we haven't read any of that author's books yet, I'm being a rebel and breaking the rules (plus I quite fancy fashioning a giant pea out of whatever we can find round the house)

FrozenAteMyDaughter · 04/03/2015 10:21

I was quite looking forward to making something this year - was thinking Paddington as DD is really into him at the moment. Then I looked at the letter and her class have to go as someone/thing from a traditional tale. I gave DD a list to choose from and she has opted for Sleeping Beauty. Disney dress and tiara - done.

Could you cut down some old trousers and an old school shirt, send him in with a bowl and spoon and he is Oliver Twist?

EbwyIsUpTheDuff · 04/03/2015 10:23

My kid is wearing last year's costume (the cat in the hat) which is good because last year I spent hours hand sewing it - especially the hat! And his little brother will fit in it for nursery next year :D

insanityscratching · 04/03/2015 10:25

Assuming your dc is a young dc if you are looking for gruffalo something I did for dd one year. Blue or green trousers and top, Draw identical fish shapes on two pieces of stiff blue card. Get ds to decorate them with shiny paper for scales, milk bottle tops, quality street wrappers etc. You can cut out the fish or leave them on the full sheet of card, use ribbon to attach the two pieces of card to make a tabard that fits over the dc's head. You have tiddler the story telling fish. If you can sew and want to you can use felt to make seaweed, fish and starfish and attach them to the trousers and tops.

spiderlight · 04/03/2015 10:38

Buy something once that can't be grown out of. I bought a Hogwarts cape and tie in Y2, and so far DS has been Harry Potter (in his own glasses) and Ron Weasley (no longer has to wear glasses all the time). Next year I'll gel his hair down and he can be Draco Malfoy, or feed him up a bit and he can be Neville Longbottom.

Madamecastafiore · 04/03/2015 10:40

DS goes as Just William every single book day. Bit of dirt on face and a catapult, messy hair and one sock pushed down and hey presto.

I think the people who send their kids to school in expensive bought costumes are a bit ridiculous and lacking I imagination. (Am practising my smug face as I type!!)

fuzzywuzzy · 04/03/2015 11:01

DD is going as Matilda, she's borrowing a ribbon from a friend and taking a book to school.

Previous years I have stayed up till stupid o clock to make a cat in the hat hat, frantically improvise a Dr Doolittle costume (using my old suit jacket and made a top hat out of cardboard), improvised with a red ladybird rain cape and begged DD1 to lend her dolls tea-seat wicker basket for little red riding hood (DD2 took her lunch in the wicker basket, Teacher informed me she'd never seen a child happier and more pleased to be little (almost) red riding hood).

This year I told DD2 to tell me fortnight before and to tell me what she wanted to be. I am so pleased she picked Matilda!

Original poster
Nightingalemumoftwo · 04/03/2015 14:37

Thanks all; I have made and bought costumes before, but ds is adamant it has to be Gruffalo or a Minecraft character and quite franky I haven't got the material to make one nor the money to buy a costumr and wish schools didn't put so much pressure on parents.

OP posts:
Lancelottie · 04/03/2015 14:43

Are these free gruffalo mask downloads any use, given a printer and a cereal box to stick it on?

(There were others online if these won't do -- add brown clothes plus a dressing-gown cord tail and you're done.)

Original poster
Nightingalemumoftwo · 04/03/2015 15:10

Aaaww thanks Lancelottie, will print them! Smile
Have no briwn furry onesie or anythung similar, will have to think of something fast!

OP posts:
Lancelottie · 04/03/2015 15:19

Orange or red outfit = fox, green = snake?

WeirdCatLady · 04/03/2015 15:25

Jeans and a tshirt, then call I to a supermarket for a box...

to be fed up with World Book Day/school dress up and having to buy a costume again?
WeirdCatLady · 04/03/2015 15:27

"I to" should read "into"

Or there's this...

to be fed up with World Book Day/school dress up and having to buy a costume again?
GingerCuddleMonster · 04/03/2015 15:37

my friends son is going as Noah from the bible...I shit you not. Bathrobe and 2 teddy bears to represent the animals. she's a cruel mother Grin.

KERALA1 · 04/03/2015 15:45

Don't spend anything rummage in drawers.

Navy party dress, purple gloves pretend mouse from toy box = goth girl

Borrowed friends daughters riding kit accessorise with hobby horse = girl from black beauty

Woahbodyforrrrm · 04/03/2015 15:51

My eldest went as mr stink this year and I got the whole outfit for £4.50 from a charity shop. Plus some string from home and 50p for a sheet of brown felt to make the clothes kooky raggy without cutting them up. It did take an hour or so one evening while watching telly to pull it together but it kept me out of the sweetie cupboard Grin

minifingers · 04/03/2015 16:17

We've been given two books and have to pick a character to dress up as.

NONE of the characters are easily identifiable. Angry