Little House on the Prairie: Dressing Up Clothes

Theoretically, I could have made all of their clothes from scratch, but I’ve been trying to cut down on my work load rather than make it bigger.  However, I also didn’t want to be spending lots of money.  So I compromised and found some middle ground.  I went through my basket of mending to find clothes that may be ripped beyond saving, looked at material I already owned and started planning.  Using old aprons, curtains, dresses and the like, I pinned, sewed and altered everything until I came up with something acceptable.  The only money I spent was on bonnets (£2.39 a piece) which meant that the total money spent on dress up was less than £10.  I was pretty happy with the results:

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Mrs Ingalls

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L10’s dress up was probably the easiest.  I already owned a shirt that looked a little prairie like and an apron.  We had been given a large, rather see-through white skirt.  I pulled in the waist band considerably so it fit her, which also had the effect of increasing the folds and decreasing how see through it was.

Mary Ingalls

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I was so happy with C10’s costume.  Her top is her own.  The skirt was a dress which I turned into a skirt, by forming a waistband using the top of the dress and cutting off the straps.  Her apron is made from one of a pair of curtains which I attached the ties from my old aprons (used to make the rag doll).

Laura Ingalls

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A4 is dressed in her own top, a dress (for 9-10 year olds) I altered to fit her and the other one of the pair of curtains (the same C10’s apron was made from).  I had to reduce the length of the curtain, but other than that I simply added ties as before.

Carrie Ingalls

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I was so pleased by how B2’s turned out.  The dress and gypsy top is one of A4’s, whilst her apron I made out of a reconditioned adults waist apron!  I cut the ties, leaving enough that the apron could be fastened at the back.  The bits of ties I cut off I sewed to the top of the apron as ties to fasten the apron around B2’s neck.  It turned out so much better than I thought it would and best of all B2 LOVED the whole set up!

17 comments

  1. Oh my goodness the costumes look great! I love that you were able to reuse dresses and curtains, and the bonnets were well worth it! The girls must love it!

  2. Wow, this is totally awesome! The clothes are so well made and absolutely fit the time period the story is set in. You’re so skilful to be able to reuse curtains, dresses, and parts of your old apron to make these wonderful costumes.

  3. Wow!!! What great costumes! I wish I sewed better so that I could make period costumes. Oh and ahemm… cutting back on your workload is not making period costumes :), no matter how easy they are to make. I would put that more in the category of going above and beyond. That’s what makes you such a great homeschool teacher!

  4. I laughed when I read your comment. If only you could see them close up, I’m sure you wouldn’t be that impressed! I’m really not that good with a needle, but fortunately, I also don’t set myself terribly high standards with regards to the end product. So long as the children like it, that’s really all that matters!

    1. Hello!!
      I was thinking about you this morning. I popped to your blog yesterday but it is no longer (if I knew how to insert a sad face I would, just here!) and I hoped all was well with you.
      I think and pray for you often, and hope you are very, very happy (now I would insert a happy face!)

      1. Aaah thank you! I took it down for a bit as I just can’t get to posting and didn’t want it looking unattended and forlorn… 😉 I can’t quite decide what to do with it. I am well though thanks Claire, still no definite idea as to our future, but my husband is home in 7 weeks and we are just focusing on that… trusting that God has never let us down before and I am certain He won’t now. These things help to grow and prune us and as I am a little bit of a type-A control freak, I can see His hand in all of this….Character shaping and all…. 😉

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