how to make a pittsburgh pirates pierogi costume.

I was asked (again!) the other day by someone who wanted to know how I made the boys' Oliver Onion and Sauerkraut Saul pierogi costumes.  I made these a few years ago, back when I vowed that I would never buy a Halloween costume.  Homemade all the way baby!  Yeah, well, that lasted 2 minutes.  So for the crafty folks like I once was, here's a tutorial to help you make a costume for the little Pirates fan in your life!

 

Supplies needed:

felt (various colors depending on the pierogi)

ribbon (I used white)

white fabric paint

felt glue

paperboard (from an old cereal box, etc.)

toilet paper roll

fiberfill

needle and thread or sewing machine

 

Start by cutting 4 pieces of light brown felt into the desired shape of a pierogi.  The shape should resemble a letter D.  Two pieces will be for the the front of the costume, and the other two pieces are for the back.  Then sew two of the pieces together, leaving a little opening to stuff with fiberfill to give it a puffy look, like this:

 

 

Then sew it shut.  Do this to the other two pieces of felt.

 

 

Next, attach two strips of black felt to the tops of the two pierogis.  This will become the "straps" that will lay across the shoulders holding the costume in place.  I used my sewing maching to make a stitch along the edges of the straps with white thread to give it a more finished look.  This isn't necessary.  Remember, I used to be crafty.  Now?  Not so much.

 

 

Also, use any ribbon you might have laying around to make ties on the sides of the costume.  This will help keep the costume in place. 

 

 

Then it's the fun part - designing!  Here is a close up of my Oliver Onion.  I used felt, felt glue and white fabric paint.  I reinforced the baseball cap and brim with paperboard.

 

 

I also cut out a toilet paper roll to reinforce the nose.

 

 

Here is a close up of Oliver's tie.

If you make a Jalapeno Hannah don't forget her hoop earrings and purse, and of course, Cheese Chester would need his big yellow cap.

 

 

When you're done you should have something that looks like this.  You can see in the picture above how I tied the sides together with the ribbon in a bow.

 

 

This is the back of the costume.  I didn't decorate the backs at all.

 

 

 When the boys wore these on Halloween night I had them wear all black clothing underneath, along with their Pirates baseball caps.  They loved wearing them, and we received so many compliments!

 

Well, I hope I inspired some Pirates fans, but now I need to get back to my online search for COOL BOYS (remember?) costumes.