Looking for easy World Book Day Costume Ideas at the last minute?
It’s happened again! It seems like no matter how many warnings schools/nurseries give, World Book Day always seems to sneak up on us.
But don’t panic. There’s a world of characters currently sitting in your and your children’s wardrobes. With a few small additions, they can be the ideal last-minute costume for World Book Day.
Read on for inspiration!
4 Book Characters That Wear Pyjamas – World Book Day Costume Ideas
An easy route to take for your World Book Day costume is by reaching out for the PJs and dressing gowns. Make sure to wrap your little one up in enough layers where they won’t get cold, but they will love being able to wear their night clothes for school! Here are a few characters that wear Pyjamas (as well as a quick image for inspiration for each!)
- Sophie (BFG)
- Grandmother or the wolf! (Little Red Riding Hood)
- The Boy (Polar Express)
- Max (Where The Wild Things Are)
5 Easy Animal Costumes To Reuse For World Book Day
Animal costumes are some of the most popular for little ones. You possibly already have a pair of cat ears or a tiger onesie lying around that can easily be repurposed for World Book Day.
Here are just a few animal characters from popular kids’ books!
- The Tiger who came to tea or Tigger
- Puss in boots
- Spot (Like this, but in yellow!)
- The Bear In We’re Going On A Bear Hunt
- Tabby McTat
9 Ways To Repurpose Their / Your Wardrobe
The illustrations for a lot of children’s books are often kept simple and colourful. This means that there are actually a number of costumes sitting in your, or your children’s, wardrobe.
Here are a few examples (along with a quick description of what you can use for each!)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Or Veruca Salt:
For Charlie, a knitted jumper and a scarf work just fine. Veruca Salt needs a red dress, white tights and a pair of black school shoes. For both of these, you just need to Draw ‘Wonka – Golden Ticket’ on a piece of yellow/gold card, and the costume is complete!
The Little Princess
The Little Princess is a really simple costume! Grab your or your partner’s white T-shirt and try it on your little one. If it’s baggy enough and hangs like a dress, then it’s perfect. Cut out a yellow crown out of card and you have it sorted. (Make sure that your child wears plenty of layers underneath to stay warm!)
Paddington Bear
Paddington’s signature look is created with a blue coat, red hat and wellies. If you want to add an extra detail, attach a label to the button of their coat that reads: ‘Please look after this bear’.
Harry and his bucket full of dinosaurs
Dress your child in whatever clothes they want to wear for this one! All they need for this costume is a bucket and their dinosaur toys. See an example of this costume here
Matilda (or one of her classmates, like Lavender or Amanda)
For these three characters, the main thing that gives them their looks is the little details. Matilda often has a red bow and carries around a book. Lavender wears dungarees and has her hair in a plait that’s wound upwards around her head. A cute addition for this would be to carry a toy lizard in a jar! And Amanda also wears dungarees but has her hair in two plaits -pigtails style.
King Arthur
You can create a King Arthur costume with a mixture of one of your t-shirts, and one of theirs! Put one of their long-sleeved shirts on first, and then one of your loose red short-sleeved shirts on over the top. Wrap a belt around their waist, and cut out a shape to put onto the front of their costume. Then, with the addition of a toy sword, you have a simple King Arthur costume.
Re-Use Your Child’s Fancy Dress Items
If your kids are anything like ours, then you’re bound to have a few cute fancy dress costumes that your kids love to wear for doing anything and everything. Whether that’s playing at home, or heading over to the supermarket!
A good way of creating a great costume for your kids is to quickly reimagine how the outfits in their current fancy-dress box can be adapted for a book. If they have a red cape and a little basket, you can quickly create a Little Red Riding Hood costume. If they have a witches hat and a tutu, then you can easily create a witch costume from Room on the Broom. Or, alternatively, use that tutu to turn your little one into the Fairy Godmother.
What If My Child Doesn’t Want To Dress Up For World Book Day?
Has your child made it clear that they don’t want to dress up for World Book Day?
If you’ve faced tears or hesitation when it comes to picking a character, it might be that your little one doesn’t want to dress up. Have a little chat with them, and see what’s running through their head right now.
At the end of the day, World Book Day is supposed to be fun! It’s a way of celebrating books and encouraging little ones to show their love of reading. Give them a cuddle, and reassure them that they don’t have to do anything that they don’t want to.
Want to get out and about, have fun with your baby or toddler, and meet other parents?
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