All Hallows’ Eve is just around the corner and even though this year will be spent doing some spooktacular activities at home, I still went ahead and created my kiddo’s awesome costume request:
She hasn’t seen the movie but absolutely adores Harley Quinn, her kick-ass attitude and amazingly quirky fashion sense!
Grab my kid-friendly version of one of her funkiest looks with my DIY Harley Quinn Birds of Prey Jacket + Overalls tutorial below:
I grabbed a vintage pillow case and used a tutorial from my Groovy Jumpsuits e-book to create a comfy version of Harley Quinn’s overalls.
Next, I raided my stash and discovered a silver t-shirt, an old zipper & ribbon then checked our Halloween box and found 2 dollar store kid-sized hula skirts + some leftover caution tape.
I grabbed a shirt with her ideal jacket length and placed it on top of the t-shirt to use as a guide.
Then chopped the shirt to the perfect length.
I cut the bottom of the shirt into 2 equal-ish pieces.
Then folded each in half and stitched the longest sides together to form 2 tubes.
Flipped the tubes right side out and had created 2 fab sleeves for the jacket!
I popped the sleeves into the armholes with right sides facing and raw edges lined up then stitched them together.
Yay! The jacket now has sleeves!
As this was originally an adult-sized shirt I chopped out a generous strip from the front to make it fit my kiddo better.
Then added the zipper to the chopped front to create the jacket!
Next, I opened the seam on a hula skirt.
I snagged the caution tape and cut a long length of it into strips.
Then carefully taped the strips + a few glittery ribbons to the inside of the hula skirt waistband.
Cut the skirt in half.
Then stitched one half around the lower half of a jacket sleeve and the other half around the top of the same jacket sleeve and repeated the whole process with the other hula skirt and jacket sleeve.
A pretty awesome recreation of Harley Quinn’s amazingly floofy embellished jacket & overalls if I do say so myself!
Absolutely perfect for flapping around pretending to be one of the Birds of Prey!
Not a giggling hyena but still this girl’s best friend!
(I wish they would have made this film kid-friendly, Harley Quinn might be a wacko sometimes but she’s also a pretty fabulous example of strength and power for gals of all ages!)
Take a peek at all of my Halloween upcycles here & be sure to grab my Groovy Jumpsuits e-book and transform your wardrobe today!
Contains 8 projects + styling inspiration with easy to follow tutorials & full colour step by step photos for everyone from first-time upcyclers to experienced Refashioners!
The Groovy Jumpsuit DIYs include:
5 Lovely Lassie Jumpsuits
2 Quirky Kiddo Jumpsuits
A fab outfit accessory project
+ a thrifty jumpsuit styling inspiration guide!
Grab all of my groovy CoaR tutorial collections right here:
You have inspired me to try.
Love your site. Not a great sewing person. Don’t have sewing machine. I have a question. I am busty and skinny. Be it a blouse, blazer, tee shirt or dress, I always have to buy the size that fit the boobs. The waist is ALWAYS too big. I don’t know how the make the waist and hip fit my thin body while still leaving the bust area the same (and the arm holes are too big on anything long sleeved. I have tried but they always come out looking terrible. Lumpy & messed up seams. Can you help give me some advice on this reoccurring fashion problem? I am very sick so chances of my body getting bigger are not good. Thank you for your time.
I have a the same problem and it’s was why I actually began refashioning ♥ I haven’t been sewing very long at all, I started when I inherited an old machine in my late 30’s & then began sharing my tutorials in the hopes that I could help others transform their wardrobes & create clothes that they truly feel great wearing. My tutorials are a great starting point but also remember to tweak my ideas with your own to create your ideal fit. Check out my upsizing index for loads of simple step by step DIYs to make those too-tight garments fit (lots for making bust areas bigger as that’s my main issue): https://awesomesauceasshattery.com/category/tutorials/upsizing-tutorials/
My DIY dress tailoring tutorial is also a fab method that can be repurposed to use for lots of different tops & shirts too: https://awesomesauceasshattery.com/2020/05/15/how-to-make-a-dress-smaller/