Often, educational institutions hold thematic classes or costume performances. Their goal is to tell children that eco-fashion exists. Children learn to create their own costume from waste material and at the same time respect and appreciate manual labor. There are many ideas from which you can choose an original and beautiful outfit. You just need to know the technology of execution.
Features and Benefits
Making an outfit of a fairy-tale character, superhero or robot transformer from improvised means is actually simple. It is enough to use your imagination and not limit yourself to one type of material. Original things are obtained from:
- paper (old newspapers, candy wrappers, cardboard boxes);
- plastic (bottles, disposable tableware);
- polyethylene (garbage bags, oilcloth, packaging bags);
- natural materials (dried leaves, cones, dried flowers).
The main advantages of creating an outfit are the availability of materials and ease of execution. Most often, the costume is assembled literally from trash that can be found in every home. The disadvantages include the fragility of the products and the lack of comfort in them. It is worth understanding that these are not things for everyday use, but for performances or games.
Manufacturing process
When starting work, it would be a good idea to talk to your child about who he wants to be, what materials he would like to use most. And based on his preferences, prepare the necessary means for making an unusual costume.
From cardboard boxes
Boxes are the perfect material for creating a costume for a boy. For example, it is very easy to make an image from the future - a "steel" robot.
To create you will need:
- two boxes (rectangular for the body, square for the head);
- foil;
- scotch;
- scissors;
- colored paper;
- wire;
- hot glue;
- gouache.
The work process will take a little time, the main thing is to do everything step by step.
- Head. Cut off the excess parts from the box to get a cube with three sides. Make a cutout for the face on one of them. Cover the top of the box with foil. If desired, make a decor in the form of a small antenna (use wire, colored paper and tape for fastening).
- Body. Cut off excess parts so that the box does not have a bottom base. Cut a recess for the head on the top, and for the arms on the sides. Cover the box with foil, use colored paper and gouache to work on the decor (buttons, mini-screen, energy stripes).
- Legs, arms. It is enough to put a regular black or gray suit on the child, attach several elements of foil with double-sided tape.
In addition to the robot, the following costumes for children can be made from boxes: a knight, a dinosaur, a house, a Lego piece, SpongeBob and others.
From plastic bottles
This material allows you to make incredible dresses for girls with your own hands. Images of flower fairies, mermaids, princesses will appeal to little fashionistas.
To make a mermaid dress you need to prepare:
- bottles of blue, white, and light blue colors (at least 20 pcs.);
- scissors;
- nail polish (pearlescent pink);
- Moment glue.
Work process.
- Cut oval scales from the bottles (4-5 cm for the bodice and 6-7 cm for the skirt and train).
- Cover the elements with nail polish to achieve a shimmering effect.
- Glue the scales to the base (you can use an old dress). Glue small details to the bodice, larger elements to the skirt and train. Arrange them randomly, imitating fish scales.
- Make a wreath. Cut out 3 flowers from a green and blue bottle. Put the blue one into the green one and glue it. Wrap a plastic bag around the rim, straighten the free end, fold it into the shape of a flower. Glue 3 flowers from the bottles to it.
When cutting out costume parts, you can easily get hurt on the edges of the bottle. This stage of the work should be entrusted to an adult.
A costume made from plastic bottles can also be made for boys (an alien, a transformer, a superhero).
From disposable tableware
This material allows you to create simple but spectacular children's costumes. To make a ball gown for a girl, you need the following materials:
- plastic cups (depending on the child’s height, on average 200 pcs.);
- stapler;
- scissors;
- zipper;
- threads, needle.
Work process:
- Bodice. Cut the glasses in half, remove the bottom. Place two parts one inside the other (the top one is 2 cm higher than the bottom one), fasten with a stapler. Lay out the resulting fastened parts in 2 rows from the bottom up to the height of the bodice. Make the sides and back from the smooth parts of the glasses.
- Skirt. The glasses are collected in tiers and fixed with a stapler. The first tier is the widest. Closer to the waist, the skirt should narrow due to the reduction in the number of glasses.
- Assembly. Sew the skirt to the bodice with threads. To hide the staples on the skirt, you can insert a whole one into each cup and secure it with glue.
If you use glasses of different colors, you can create a mosaic (geometric patterns, flowers, rainbow).
From old newspapers
A little imagination and free time will allow you to make a costume even from waste, for example, from unnecessary newspapers. It is easy to make a ballet tutu from them.
Tools:
- newspapers;
- scissors;
- glue;
- stapler;
- threads, needle.
Job Description:
- Top. Wrap the newspaper around the fabric base, pin it, sew it on. Any unnecessary dress with straps can be used as a base. Fold the newspaper like an accordion, straighten it out to make a fan, attach it to the bodice, and secure it with threads as decoration.
- Skirt. Roll a newspaper sheet into a cone shape and staple it at the narrow end. Lay out the resulting pieces layer by layer to form a ballerina's tutu. Attach the skirt to the base using glue and a stapler. If necessary, the edges of the cones can be made more textured - randomly cut out zigzags or fold the newspaper accordion-style beforehand.
Making clothes from unnecessary material is a simple and exciting process. There are many variations of constructing a dress for a girl from newspapers or magazines.
From garbage bags
A costume made from garbage bags with your own hands is the easiest to make. A child can cope with the work even without the help of an adult. To create a Batman superhero costume, you need:
- black thick garbage bags;
- scotch;
- scissors.
Description of work.
- Cloak. Cut two large bags to get a rectangle. Glue the two resulting parts together in the middle with tape (this will make a wide, even piece of fabric). Cut semicircles along the edge of the cloak to give the rectangle the shape of a bat's wing. Cut 4 ribbons 6-8 cm wide from the bag. Glue two of them with tape in the form of loops so that the cloak can be put on the shoulders. The two remaining ribbons are attached to the edge of the cloak, this will allow it to be tied to the child's wrist.
- Decor. The hero's mask is cut out of the same material. Then you should print or draw two yellow superhero emblems, attach one with tape to the back of the cape, the second - to the chest.
Any boy will be happy with such a heroic costume made from bags.
From dry leaves
To create a costume from unnecessary waste material in the fall, use leaves, branches, cones. You can make a beautiful dress for a girl in the autumn style in a few hours.
Materials:
- maple leaves of different colors and sizes;
- paraffin;
- threads, needle.
Job Description:
- Treat the collected leaves with paraffin so that they do not dry out (dip each leaf in boiling paraffin, place on newspaper until completely dry).
- Take an old dress for the base, preferably with frills on the skirt. Sew leaves to the base so that it does not show through.
- You can weave a wreath from the remaining leaves and add bright rowan branches to it.
The children's autumn costume looks very impressive, and the leaves treated with paraffin do not wither or dry out for a long time.
Recommendations
Costumes made from scrap materials for girls and boys do not require large financial costs and efforts to make them. However, it is necessary to remember the safety rules:
- It is worth making sure that the child is not allergic to the materials of the future costume.
- Do not use sharp or dangerous objects in your work that can dig into your skin, scratch, or cause discomfort. Avoid small parts that a child could accidentally swallow.
- Before putting on the suit, you need to make sure that the glue is completely dry and its smell has completely disappeared.
You shouldn't trust needles, scissors, stationery knives, and hot glue to children. Even if a child knows how to use them, an adult should always be nearby and supervise the work process.
By following these simple rules, a joint activity with your son or daughter will bring a lot of positive emotions, and a costume made from scrap material will teach the child to appreciate nature, fantasize and create.
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