4 Toy-Inspired DIY Kids’ Costumes

I believe in recycling and re-using what you have and the same philosophy comes up during Halloween when I’m preparing costumes for our endless series of special events.  See my last post about 8 easy DIY Costumes from last year here as an example!  This year, I took a slightly different approach and let Juliet”s favorite toys serve as the inspiration to all our make-at-home costumes.  They were so fun to create with her and for her.  See below for some costume inspiration and let me know what you think you could create at home with what you already have!

  • Baby Momma.  Does your doll love dolls?  Make her a mommy this year!  With an infinity scarf, I made her a makeshift baby carrier and stuffed her Water Baby in there.  Props could include, a (plastic) wine glass (I filled our with sparkling water), a Starbucks cup, a cellphone, a stroller, baby bottle, purse and kitchen accessories!  We glammed her up as a fab mom but you could easily do the stressed out mom look and opt for a more disheveled tee shirt and leggings paired with some under-eye circles and messy hair lol! diy costumes, costume ideas for kids, kids' costumes, halloween costumes for kids, halloween costume ideas, best kids' costume ideas
  • Beautician.  If your daughter is like mine, she is obsessed with anything beauty-related.  Here she is making over Barbie’s hair, make-up and nails.  The Barbie hair styling bust came in handy for this photo opp (as well as for our recent Barbie-themed play date read more here.  You could however, easily use any long-haired doll, play make-up, or an apron filled with tools (ours was from Melissa & Doug).
  • Veterinarian.  Do you have a doctor’s set and some stuffed animals?  It’s easy to re-create this doctor’s costume with a button down shirt, glasses, a cute stuffed animal and doctor’s tools (stethoscope, thermometer, bandaids, suckers, etc).  My friend made this lab coat and gave it to us as a hand-me-down and it completed the costume!!  BTW, if you haven’t already heard of Parker, you’ve got to check him out! While he looks like your classic, cuddly teddy bear, he actually digitally interacts with an app for an immersive, augmented reality experience!  We live in the future, I tell you!kids' doctor costume, doctor costume, dr. costume, halloween costume ideas for kids, diy kids' costumes
  • Rock Star.  Encourage your kid to rock on with his/her favorite musical instrument of choice and/or a microphone.  Get flashy with the outfit, and have fun!  I gave Juliet’ an 80’s rocker look with MY fishnet stockings, hair in a side ponytail, a bright neon dress, toy guitar and sunglasses.  Must have sunglasses.

Thanks to the toy sponsors who sent us the beloved toys!  Follow us on IG and watch our IG stories to see the toys in action!

Seedling for the interactive teddy bear and doctor’s set

Just Play for the Barbie styling head and Water Baby Doll

 

 

For more Halloween inspiration see the below links!

See my past Halloween parties here.

 

 
 
 
 

 

Plan a Shopkins Swapkins They Will Never Forget!

As mentioned in my prior Shopkins posh playdate post, Shopkins are all the rage!  And I can see why with their cute, colorful look and collectible nature.  Tiny toys for tiny hands that beg to be bought, Shopkins scream fun!  And for that reason, we hosted not 1 but 2 posh playdates with this Shopkins theme!  This 2nd play date was for bloggers only and included fab moms Mary (and Brinkley) from Downtown Chic Moms and Melissa (and Misa) from JustaBXmom.  Together, we enjoyed perfect weather on our rooftop and giddily watched as the girls got together and celebrated their super fandom.

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(As the Shopkins theme song goes,)”We got a plan, the perfect party / There’s so much to celebrate / It’s a surprise, so let’s get started! / How are we gonna make this party great? / Got to make it extra special / No one’s ever seen before /Streamers, sparkles, party dresses / Check out what we got in store! / We’re thinking of fashion fiesta / A party to sweep me right off my feet! / Got to make it extra pretty / No one’s ever seen before / Flowers, glitter, and confetti / Check out what we got in store!”

I basically took our prior decor from Shopkins play date #1 and moved it outside!  Here are some quick notes about how I stayed within budget:

  • The paper fans were from Target’s dollar bin.  I creatively customized by adding Shopkins stickers to the center.
  • The cake pops are stuck into styrofoam that I wrapped in gift paper and washi tape.
  • The Shopkins plushies and costumes which were sent by PR companies were re-purposed as decor.
  • I added miniature Shopkins plushies and dolls to silk florals from TJMaxx that I already had at the house.

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The tiered snack tray included funtastic fruit that Juliet helped skewer, crunchy snacks and Shopkins branded M&Ms. Each tier was sprinkled with actual Shopkins toys and the top of the display was stickered with Shopkins stickers.  Matching washi tape was used as a decorative border.

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Thanks to Moose Toys, each of us bloggers got to keep a Shopkins costume which had the girls smiling from ear to ear. “This is how we party! / Dressing up, throw some flinging / This is how we party! Decorating while we’re singing This is how we party!

Speaking of decorating, that is exactly what the girls did!  They decorated themselves with Shopkins tattoos,  and decorated a Shopkins coloring page with crayons & Shopkins stamps.  Apple Blossom took home a picture of herself, Cheeky Chocolate designed a cheeky chocolate coloring page and Strawberry Kiss loved coloring her own profile pic.

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And of course, we had the first trade these girls have ever experienced!  A Shopkins Swapkins!  The girls (at age 4 and 6) were unbelievably nice about giving up items their friends wanted in exchange for new Shopkins they might have had their eyes on.

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I barely had to intervene! kids party ideas, girls party ideas, shopkins party ideas

Each girl was given an organizer box which Juliet decorated with Shopkins stickers to stay within theme before all the guests arrived (if you follow along with our IG stories, you got to see all our fun, pre-party planning details!).  I found the teal boxes and Shopkins stickers on sale at Michaels.  As the Shopkins song goes, “what really makes the party is being with all my friends!  Good times, everybody, this party never ends!”  Well OK so after a couple hours, the party did finally end but it lives on in our hearts and minds!

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“Good times, everybody This party never ends!”

Shopkins Season 8 is out on the shelves now and features a super chic world vacation theme.  Paris, anyone?

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THANKS to our posh play date sponsors without whom our party would not be so fabulous!

RenBeanie PR – Shopkins Kinstruct and Shopkins Plushies

MWW PR  / (Moose Toys) Shopkins toys, tattoos, M&Ms, goody bags, stamps, pens, erasers, costumes and plushies

Baked By Tal – cake pops

Heart N Soul by US- Shopkins surprise rainbow bath bombs

Calming Intentions – Shopkins filled glycerin soap

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You know what else is worth celebrating?? Shopkins is launching its first-ever live, theatrical show for Shopkins!  And with our media preview at Shopkins’s 1st-ever pop-up cafe in NYC, we were able to witness the live action with front row access!

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Shopkins Live will kick off Sept. 14, with tickets going on sale now.  You heard it here first!  How about planning your Shopkins Swapkins around the show??  Click through our previous (indoors) Shopkins play date for more ideas and inspiration!  And don’t forget to turn it up as you dance to “this is how we party!”

© 2024 Stylishly Stella