How to make a dinosaur sweatshirt costume for cosplay
Previous costumes of Toothless and Cloudjumper
Do you want to cosplay but keep it low key? You can make a “sweatshirt costume” which is still dressing up but is also comfortable.
I’ve made several costumes like this before and they were quick and easy to put together. This year, Rose asked if I would make a sweatshirt of the Pokemon character Tyranitar for a friend to wear to a convention.
The first step is to google around for some good pictures of the character you want to make. Try to find pictures showing the character from both the back and front. Here are some shots showing Tyranitar from different angles.
What is essential to recognizing this character as Tyranitar? The green color. The black and blue areas. A large smooth plate on the head. Two series of horns going down the back. If we reflect these elements in the sweatshirt, other convention goers will recognize the character.
Materials
Two green sweatshirts -one in the size we need (M) and one in the biggest size available (3XL)
felt
poster board
polyester fiberfill
fusible web
Sewing notions such as thread, needles, sharpie, etc.
Directions
1. Try the sweatshirt on your model and pin on tissue paper cutouts to form the shapes you need.
2. Cut up the large sweatshirt to make material for the headpiece and horns.
3. Lay out your pattern pieces on the material and cut out what you need. In this case, we needed one head plate, four small horns, and 8 large horns. In our case, we decided to skip doing a tail and just do the upper body.
4. Cut out pieces and stitch on sewing machine, leaving openings for turning.
5. Trim seam allowances and clip corners. Turn inside out.
6. For the head plate it’s important that it look smooth. Trace around your piece on a sheet of posterboard to make an insert.
7. Roll up the posterboard insert and slip into the opening in the head plate. Roll it open and adjust so that it lies flat.
8. Stuff the pieces. For the headpiece, only stuff on the underside of the posterboard so that the top remains smooth and stiff.
9. Sew the pieces closed.
10. For the colored appliques, iron on fusible web to felt using a dry iron for 10 seconds.
11. Trace your pattern pieces on the paper backing using a pen or pencil.
12. Cut out the pieces and remove the paper backing.
13. Pin the appliques on to the sweatshirt. Now is the time for last minute adjustments. Temporarily pin on horns and headpiece as needed to insure everything is where you want it to be.
14. Position each pinned applique on the ironing board. Carefully remove pins and iron over it using a hot iron (Wool setting) and a damp pressing cloth for 15 seconds. Make sure applique is secure all the way around the edges.
15. After appliques are totally dry, add any details with sharpie marker or fabric paint you want.
16. Pin on headpiece and horns and do any final adjustments. Hand sew them securely. This last part can take a couple of hours so sit down in front of the TV and watch old episodes of Game of Thrones or something else appropriate.
The costume took around 6 hours to make with a total cost of $50. Rose and her friend loved the finished costume and plan to wear it next month to a convention.
If you have any questions, ask them in the comment field below.
