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Creating Award Winning Dog Costumes

And now for the basics on creating a custom dog costume:

1. Make sure your idea is unique by doing a google image search for whatever you're considering as your costume and adding the words "dog, pet, halloween, costume" to the end of the search string. If twenty images pop up showing other similar costumes people have made or a mass produced version of the idea I'm considering, I move on and think of something more unusual.

2. Use felt to create your costume. It's inexpensive and you don't have to finish the edges so it saves a ton of time. You can cut and tack it all together by using a sewing machine or hand sewing. I always double the felt and use two layers to make Kitai's costumes more sturdy.

3. Start out using a standard "horse blanket" style base to cover your dog's body. Kitai doesn't mind his costumes as long as they are only on his body so I never put anything on his head or paws because he would probably freak out.

Remember, comfort is key. If your pet isn't comfortable then it's no fun. This year's Chia Kitai costume was more work then usual because I had to create little pant legs for all four of his legs as well as additional single layer panels that ran along the bottom of his costume. This enabled him to sit or lay down no problem. Had I not taken this extra step the costume would have been too cumbersome for him to move in naturally.

Good luck on designing your first or next pet costume!