The king of the jungle costume is so much fun to make yourself. Creating a lion costume is a quick and easy solution to a last minute Halloween safari. With a few pieces of fabric and a few minimal seams, you can make the loudest roar as you enter the room.
Steps
Part 1 of 5: Prepare to Create a Costume
Step 1. Gather your supplies
Purchase all the clothing and fabric needed to make the costume. Visit your local fabric or craft store to get most of the items.
- 1 yard (91 cm) brown felt
- 1 yard (91 cm) yellow fleece
- 1/2 yard (45cm) of brown fleece and 1/2 yard (45cm) of gold fleece
- a gold tracksuit or jumpsuit
- 1 yard of 2.5 cm (1 inch) elastic
- a plastic headband
- polyester pillow filling
- brown stamen
- yellow and brown yarn
Step 2. Prepare your craft tools
Place a sewing machine where you have enough room to feed the fabric from the front to the back of the machine. Find a sharp pair of scissors to make the straightest cuts in the fabric. A quality fabric glue can also help you save a bit of sewing time. Gather these tools and have them handy when you start making your costume:
- pair of scissors
- sewing machine
- fabric glue
- measuring tape
Step 3. Prepare the workspace
Use a clean table to spread out the pieces of fabric for cutting. Make sure it is a place with a lot of light. Move a lamp next to the table if possible.
Part 2 of 5: Making the body of the costume
Step 1. Buy a gold tracksuit
Buy a jacket and sweatpants that are gold to create the lion's body.
A golden jumpsuit is great for making a lion's body for a young child
Step 2. Cut a brown oval out of felt
Measure the distance from the center of the chest to the navel. Cut an oval out of felt to cover the belly of the person wearing the costume.
Step 3. Glue the oval to the belly of the body
Use fabric glue or sew the brown felt oval to the stomach of the costume.
If you're wearing a jumpsuit, place the felt on the front of the jumpsuit. Cut the oval in half where the jumpsuit closure is
Part 3 of 5: Create the lion's ears
Step 1. Cut four ovals out of brown felt
Measure the ovals so that they are 6 inches (15 cm) high by 4 inches (10 cm) wide. Depending on the age and size of the person wearing the costume, you may want to make the ears bigger or smaller.
Step 2. Sew two ovals together to create an ear
Leave one of the short ends of the ovals unstitched. Join the edges of the fabric with the sewing machine or by hand.
Step 3. Flip them over the ears
Push the fabric through the unstitched end to leave the seam on the inside of the ear.
Step 4. Fill the ears with the polyester fiber
Use the pillow filler to fill in the ears. Add enough padding to the ears to give them a little volume. You don't need to fill in the ears completely; a little padding in each ear will suffice.
Step 5. Pinch the ears in the center to shape them
Push the padding out to create a full look on the outside of the ear. Add more padding if you need to create a thicker ear. Make a few stitches in the center of the ear to keep it tight.
Step 6. Sew the ears into a headband
Roll the open ends of the ears into a plastic headband. Attach the ears to the headband by sewing the open ends around the headband.
Part 4 of 5: Making the lion's mane
Step 1. Buy fabric and elastic to create the mane
Visit your local fabric store to purchase the yellow, gold, and brown fleece.
- Buy 1/2 yard (45 cm) of each color.
- Buy a 1 yard (91 cm) piece of 1 inch (2.5 cm) elastic.
Step 2. Measure the head of the person wearing the lion costume
Measure around the person's head from top to bottom. You should measure below the chin, around the face, and over the top of the person's head.
Step 3. Cut the elastic 2.5 cm (1 inch) shorter than the measurement around the head
Leave the elastic shorter than the measurement of the head so that it fits perfectly when you stretch it around the head.
Step 4. Cover the elastic with the yellow fleece
Cut a strip of fabric that is 2 ¼ inches (5.1 cm) wide. Place the elastic inside the fleece and sew to join the long edge of the fleece with the elastic inside.
Cut another 2 1/2 inch (6 cm) strip of fleece to use for the lion's tail
Step 5. Cut the remaining yellow, gold, and brown fleece into strips
Create the fringes to make the lion's mane with the strips of fabric. Cut the strips 3 to 6 inches (7 to 15 cm) long and ¾ inch (2 cm) wide.
Step 6. Sew or glue the strips to the covered elastic band
Attach the fringes to the yellow elastic band with fabric glue or hand stitch.
Alternate colors and form stacks of multiple strips to create a colorful look
Step 7. Sew the ends of the yellow band together to join them
Finish the band by joining the two ends of the elastic to form a circle.
Make sure to bring the ends of the elastic together tightly so that you don't rip the seam as you stretch it
Step 8. Wrap the band around the head from the chin to the top of the head
Wrap the lion's mane around the face, stretching the elastic under the chin and over the head.
Part 5 of 5: Create the Lion's Tail
Step 1. Cut a strip of yellow fleece
Cut a piece of yellow fleece that is 2 1/2 inches wide and 3 feet long. Sew the long edges of the fabric to form a hollow tube of fabric.
Step 2. Fill the glue with polyester fiber to give it structure
Use the same pillow filler that you used for the ears to give the lion's tail some volume.
Step 3. Add the hair to the end of the tail
Use fabric glue to glue a few strands of brown yarn or thin strips of brown fleece to the end of the tail.
- Wind the brown yarn loosely around your hand 10 times.
- Take the yarn out of your hand and squeeze the ovals at one end.
- Tie a piece of yarn around one end of the ovals to hold them together.
- Cut the yarn on the opposite end from the one you tied to create frayed ends.
- Glue the yarn "hair" to the end of the tail.
Step 4. Attach the tail to the body of the costume
Sew the end of the tail to the back of the pants or jumpsuit. Use a needle and thread to stitch the tail to attach it to the costume.
Advice
- Remind children to carry a glow stick or flashlight when trick-or-treating at night or if they must go outside at night for any reason.
- Wear yellow gloves and fur-lined boots to complete the costume.
- You can also use tassels or curly fringes to create the lion's mane.