Toddler bagpiper costume

I didn’t really have time this year to hunt down a cute AND affordable Halloween costume for Mr. Boy, so I decided to make one myself. I had actually thought of making him a play bagpiper outfit over the summer when he became fascinated with the bagpipers he saw in various parades. He would march around the house squealing on imaginary bagpipes, and would demand bagpiper videos when I was working at the computer.

I never got around to it during the summer, but Halloween was the perfect opportunity! I searched for images online to get a general idea of what a bagpiper, and the instrument itself, should look like. I had originally thought that I would use plaid patterned fleece to minimize sewing (I still don’t have a sewing machine), but I couldn’t find any in my area. So I settled on flannel. I bought a yard of the fabric, along with some ribbon that was 50% off on sale. I also picked up some star shaped buttons for decoration. Many of the other supplies were already in my stash of random craft items I have collected over the years: faux leather fabric, orange yarn, and faux fur. I purchased some red knee socks and used a red turtleneck that we already had.

I don’t have time to do a full tutorial, but basically the kilt was fashioned out of one long piece of fabric, with pleats in the back. I sewed velcro to the entire waist so it will fit him for a little while and he can use it to play. I made a pouch from the faux leather and faux fur, and applied velcro to the back so I could stick it to the waist of the kilt. The tam o’ shanter and sash were made out of the same flannel as the kilt (and I still have some left over!).

The bagpipe was made from felt, fringe made from yarn, a $1.00 recorder from the bargain bin at Toys R Us (I painted all but the mouthpiece black), and some black plastic straws that I found at my grocery store. I filled it with stuffing so it looked like it was full of air and it could be held under the arm.

It took me only a few hours to put everything together, thanks to Mr. Boy’s diminutive size. I had to hand sew a few things, which took the longest. I didn’t really keep track of costs much, but I think in the end I spent about $25.00 on the whole project. That’s comparable to the cheap, tacky costumes I saw on the racks, and Mr. Boy can use it for pretend play now that Halloween is over.

I was pretty happy with the costume as I was working on it, but I was completely thrilled once I saw the completed costume on Mr. Boy! He looked adorable!

I do have to say that I am learning how temperamental a toddler can be–although he was excited about trying on his costume in the days leading up to Halloween, he did NOT want to wear it or be photographed in it on Halloween itself! “All done bagpiper! All done bagpiper!” he said as he tried to remove his costume one piece at a time. Fortunately his attitude changed once he realized how much everyone loved his outfit, but not before I snapped this miserable (though adorable photo):

Find other fun DIY costume ideas on my Kids Costumes page!

Jennifer Roberts

is the founder, designer and author of Jen Spends Less. Formerly an architectural drafter and designer, Jen cut her spending and embraced a frugal lifestyle to be a stay at home mom.