45+ Beginner Costume Pieces with Step-by-step tutorials
Tutorial: How to Create Claws for Costumes
You can attach claws directly to your fingernails for a beast-like effect. The type of claws you make will depend on the overall look you’re going for and the amount of work you want to put into the claws. Nail…
How to Make a Devil Tail and Horns (For Halloween, cosplay, tieflings, etc.)
If you want to be a devil, demon, tiefling, oni, or any other similar type of mythical creature, you’ll want to make a tail and some horns to go with the costume. There are a lot of different ways to…
Tutorial: How to Make Vampire Fangs for Cosplay
It’s pretty easy to create custom fangs for your next cosplay. You can use a non-toxic thermoplastic and mold your fangs from scratch. With this method, you can also create bottom fangs, a snaggle tooth, or even large tusks (links…
How to Make Floppy Dog Ears with (faux) Fur
Making floppy dog ears is a little different than cat ears for a costume. In order for the material to accurately reflect the shape of a dog’s ear, you need to create a solid base for the ear (I used…
Tutorial: Superhero Eyemasks for Costumes
Creating a superhero eyemask for cosplay is a fun way to immerse yourself in your character. Whether you’re aiming to replicate the iconic look of characters like the Incredibles or crafting an original creation, the eye mask is a central…
How to Create Custom Hats for Cosplay (with EVA foam)
Hats are one of those parts of cosplay costumes that are intimidating to many beginners. Unless it’s a popular character, you’re not going to be able to find your hat in the store. Of course, you can find a similar…
Tutorial: How to Make Stretch Gloves for Costumes
Custom gloves can add that finishing touch to your costume, setting you apart in a sea of store-bought outfits. From sleek superheroes to Victorian damsels, gloves can play an essential role in a character’s look. Making gloves might seem daunting…
How to Make (faux) Fur Animal Ears For Cosplay (a step-by-step guide)
In these tutorials you will learn how to create animal ears that are made of fur and can be attached directly to a wig or headband. The other method will involve attaching ears to a hoodie, coat, or caplet so…
Tutorial: Anime-Style Newsboy Hat
This tutorial will walk you through how to sew an anime-style lined newsboy hat. You can use this for any anime character that has a cute, puffy hat design. Print out the free pattern below and follow along with the…
Tutorial: Obi-Style Belt for Anime Costumes (free pattern)
I’ve always liked how wrap-around belts look with the thin string going around the middle. So, I decided to make my own using some fabric scraps that I have on hand. This is actually a fairly simple tutorial that’s great…
Tutorial: Circle Shirt Anime Top for Cosplay
If your costume has a loose fitting top with a neckband, use this tutorial to help you understand how to create your cosplay design. This tutorial will walk you through the basics so you understand how the flowy circle shirt…
Tutorial: Elastic Harem Pants For Cosplay Costumes
This tutorial will walk you through how to make basic baggy pants with an elastic waist and cuffs as a basic building block for your next costume. Feel free to change or adjust your design however you want to match…
Tutorial: Adjustable Belt With Elastic Back
This is probably my favorite belt to make. Not only is it really quite easy, but the elastic back makes the belt completely adjustable too! So choose some fancy fabric scraps and what ever color elastic you want to put…
Tutorial: How to Make a Braided Belt With T-shirt Scraps
Learn how to make a quick braided belt using leftover fabric scraps. You can use as many strands as you like for this braid, but in my instructions I’ll go over how to braid 5 strands together. Have fun with…
Tutorial: Dinosaur Drawstring Bag
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Apply interfacing to the spikes Step 2 sew the spikes together with right sides together sew each spike. Start and end sewing at the seam allowance (1/2″ from…
Tutorial: Clutch Purse
Supplies Needed: Pattern includes: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Cut the fabric, lining, interfacing, and batting Step 2 baste the interfacing and batting to the fabric Step 3 fold in half and sew the straight…
Tutorial: Tote Backpack with Side Pockets
Supplies Needed: Pattern includes: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Apply interfacing Apply interfacing to the front and back, the sides, the base, and the flap. You can use sew on interfacing or fusible, whichever you…
Tutorial: Cowl Neck Scarf With Buttons
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 sew the scarf to the front and back With right sides together, sew the scarf front and back together along the perimeter. Leave a small gap in the…
Tutorial: Fleece Scarf with Pockets (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: Step 1 fold the pocket in half and topstitch along the fold Topstitch about 1/4 inch down from the fold edge. This will help keep the pocket top nice and crisp over time. Step 2 baste the pockets…
Tutorial: Denim Military Hat (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Cut out your fabric pieces from two pairs of jeans You’ll have one set of pieces in each color. Step 2 Apply buckram Add buckram (or heavy interfacing)…
Tutorial: Fabric Witch Hat
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) This pattern was made for a 21.5″ head (a pre-teen or small adult size head). Measure around your head (where a hat would sit) to find your measurement. Step 1…
Tutorial: Bandana Headband (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 sew the ribbons to both flat ends of the triangle Step 2 sew bandana to lining With right sides together, sew the bandana to the bandana lining. Be…
Tutorial: Fleece Warmer with a Bow (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Sew the ear warmer to the lining With right sides together, sew the ear warmer to the lining on the top and bottom. If you want to make…
Tutorial: Easy Arm Warmers (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: Pattern includes: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 Fold the arm warmer in half and sew Fold the arm warmers in half with right sides together. Stop sewing and backstitch at the dots to…
Tutorial: Headband With Animal Ears (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 sew the ear to the ear lining Sew the ears to the ear lining with right sides together, leaving the bottom open. Step 2 clip corners and trim…
Tutorial: Easy No-Sew Tutu
Supplies Needed: Step 1 Cut big strips of tulle The exact length and width don’t matter too much. About 4-6 inches wide and fairly uniform length (about twice the length you want your final tutu to be. Cut multiple colors…
Tutorial: Superhero Eye Mask (free sewing pattern)
Supplies Needed: (all of my patterns include 1/2″ seam allowance) Step 1 apply interfacing to the back of the mask Step 2 Pin the mask to the Mask back With right sides together, pin the mask front to the mask…
Tutorial: How to Sew a Buckle on a Belt
This tutorial will teach you how to attach a belt buckle with a prong to a belt. You don’t need any special equipment for this tutorial and it’s great for beginners or people with any amount of sewing experience. This…
Tutorial: Cosplay Swords for Beginners
Need a shield to go with your sword? check out my other tutorial (which includes two types of shields) Crafting a cosplay sword can elevate your costume from good to great, providing that element of realism that can impress at…
Tutorial: Creating Faux Leather With EVA Foam
You can use EVA foam to create a faux leather effect. It’s not going to be 100% realistic, but the overall look is still pretty good for costumes. While I certainly don’t recommend using EVA foam in any kind of…
Tutorial: Easy Vampire Fangs with Acrylic Nails
It’s pretty easy to create custom fangs for your next cosplay. The cheap, simple method is to use acrylic nails and cut them into points. If you want to create more realistic teeth, you can use a non-toxic thermoplastic and…
Tutorial: Make a Clip-On Unicorn Horn
For this tutorial, you use two strands of clay and twist them around each other to create the horn effect. This method creates unicorn horns that have a somewhat more cartoonish look, which will work well for a lot of…
Tutorial: Make a Cute Fake Bow for Hair Accessories and Waistbands
This method for creating a bow is not really trying to look real. It more of a 2-D version of a bow that looks great for costumes based on anime or cartoon characters. This type of faux bow is simple…
Tutorial: Easy Full-Face Mask for Costumes
There are many, many ways of creating a full mask, but this is the method that’s the cheapest and does not require you to make a mold of your face. This method will not work for a mask that’s supposed…
How to Make a ‘Wooden’ Wizard Staff (with clay)
Sometimes you need to make a wooden wizard staff for your next cosplay, but there’s no way to get ahold of an actual stick to use. Or maybe you need to create a wooden staff that has a very specific…
How to Make Custom Goggles for Your Cosplay (it’s easier than you think)
Goggles are a very common accessory among cosplay protagonists, but they all come in unique shapes with odd details added on. Unless the character is very popular, it’s usually pretty difficult to find ready-made goggles that are perfect for your…
How to Make a Cardboard Dagger or Knife for Your Cosplay (the easy way)
There are any number of ways to go about making a dagger for cosplay. If you’re a beginner and you want an easy first project to try your hand at prop making, this tutorial is for you. It is a…
Tutorial: How to Make a Dragon Wing Cape (or Bat Wings)
Learn how to make wing for a dragon cosplay. I specifically made this for Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon, but just change the color to use it for any dragon cosplay. It could also work really well as…
Tutorial: Butterfly Fairy Wings (with wire and fabric)
Fabric and wire are ideal for creating large wings with a closed shape. Butterfly or insect wings are good options. The idea is to create your desired shape with the wire, pull the fabric over it, and paint your design…
Tutorial: Sew an Anime-Style Bow With Ribbon
This is not a tutorial for how to tie a bow, instead it’s for how to sew one in place so you can reuse it. It will create a bow with a visible looping effect, rather than the flat look…
Tutorial: How to Make Gloves (and fingerless) for Anime Costumes
Making gloves from non-stretch fabric is difficult because you need to take the thickness of your hand and fingers into account. The fabric is not going to be able to stretch around your hand. It took me three tries to…
How to Paint Fabric for Cosplay Costumes
Many anime and comic costumes have unique designs that you’re not going to find at the fabric store. This can be anything from a superhero logo to a specific pattern of stripes on your character’s T-shirt. If you can’t find…
Tutorial: How to Create a Perfect Bow (shoujo style)
I am not good at tying bows. They always end up droopy, uneven, and upside down (somehow?). So for cosplay, I try to never rely on my ability to tie a pretty bow. Instead, I fake it. There are multiple…
How to Tea-Dye Fabric and Synthetic Wigs
Tea staining fabric and wigs is a really simple skill that can help to add dimension and subtle realism to your costume. It can help your white fabric look aged or worn. If you want, you can also create a…
How to Make (faux) Fur Animal Ears For Cosplay (a step-by-step guide)
In these tutorials you will learn how to create animal ears that are made of fur and can be attached directly to a wig or headband. The other method will involve attaching ears to a hoodie, coat, or caplet so…
How to Make a Poseable Cosplay Tail for Cats and Tieflings
Your cosplay character has a tail and you want to make one that doesn’t just hang behind you lifelessly. You’ve come to the right place! I will teach you how to create a tail that you can position into various…
Tutorial: Cosplay Shoe Covers Using Fabric
Cosplay shoe covers are your secret weapon for bringing your favorite characters to life without breaking the bank on footwear. Instead of hunting down the perfect boots to match your costume, you can create a custom cover that slips over…
