Cheetah Costumes

*I had the privilege of getting to hand-pick this fabric from the Shannon Fabrics website.  It was sent to me free of charge, but my obsessive love for touching it is completely my own opinion.  😉

I am so excited to share these fabulous, fabulous, FABULOUS cheetah costumes with you!  My son is obsessed with the tv show Wild Kratts, so for his birthday he requested a “Dragon Power Suit” (which you can see on the post about his How to Train Your Dragon birthday party) and a “Cheetah Power Suit.” {UPDATE:  SEE HIM WILD KRATTS BIRTHDAY PARTY HERE.}

I knew that there was no way I could pull off two “Power Suits” in time for his birthday, so I asked my awesome mother-in-law to help me out with the Dragon Power Suit.  She used Cuddle Fabric and it turned out amazingly!

Well, as it turns out, I was so busy with party preparations that I never got around to making the Cheetah Power Suit.  Luckily, Grandma had such a ball watching my rowdy boy play in his Dragon Power Suit for the ENTIRE weekend and refusing to take it off that she asked if she could make his Cheetah Power Suit as well.  Ummm…..let me think about that for a second….YES, PLEASE!!!!  She is a MASTER seamstress and I am self-taught with two years of very limited experience.  I will hand off a sewing project to her any day of the week!

So I ordered up a few yards of the unbelievably lush and snuggly Cuddle Jaguar fabric from Shannon Fabrics.  (There is a cheetah one, but I was taken with the larger spots the day that I ordered it.)  And then Grandma got sewing, and someone was pretty darn pleased with the outcome!  Silly goose.

And then I left for three days for the SNAP Blogging Conference, and when I got back THIS had happened with the leftover fabric!

Are you even kidding me?!?!?!  I may die from the cuteness!!

Want a few more details about the creation process?  Well, as we have established, I didn’t sew these Cheetah Power Suits, and I wasn’t even there when she did, but she took a few pictures along the way for me, so I can give you a general idea of her work process.  Luckily for you, she works from patterns.

Before you start working with Shannon Cuddle fabrics (which is a specific, fabulous brand of minky fabric) you should keep a few things in mind.  Cuddle fabric has some unique quirks, so be sure to check out these tips from the Shannon Fabrics website prior to diving into your project.  Ok, now let’s get going!

These are the patterns she combined/used for Callum’s Cheetah Power Suit.  For Jade’s suit she used an old pattern she has had since she was sewing sleepers for my husband when he was an infant.  You could find any baby sleeper pattern for it.  She is a pattern follower for sure, but she did adapt it a bit at my request so that the headpiece would be an attached hood and to close up the feet like footie pajamas, even for Callum’s outfit.  There is nothing I hate more then dealing with a meltdown because Callum can’t find the one last piece of a costume he wants to wear.  Ay ay ay!  I wanted them as one solid piece, and she was kind enough to humor me.

This little wolf (wearing a Where the Wild Things Are outfit I made him for his third birthday) was very excited about the process, so he supervised Grandma and (the very pregnant!) Aunt Taren’s progress.

Below you can see how she made the hood, made the ears, then slit the fabric, slid in and pinned the ears, and then sewed them firmly to the hood.  At that point she added in a lining and attached the hood to the body.  She has skills that I do not have.

Below you can see her process for making the feet.  I thought it was very clever how she zig zagged the elastic into the ankle for a more snug fit which leads to less tripping.

The final modification that she added to the patterns was to sew a zipper in along the inner leg seam (aka the crotch) of the baby costume.  That was I can unzip it for quick and easy diaper changes without having to pull her halfway out of it or exposing her little baby chest and belly.  BRILLIANT!  Apparently she has been doing that to baby sleepers since she made them for my husband and sister-in-laws as infants.

Now let’s just admire the finished product in action, shall we?!  I love my little cheetahs, and I love how much they love each other, as well as their awesome grandma!

You guys, I honestly can not say enough great things about this fabric.  As you can tell, it has gotten a LOT of wear and tear.  Inside, outside, worn as PJs, worn while eating, worn while playing, worn at the STORE a few times.  I kid you not.  If you want proof that my son never removes this thing then just check out my Instagram feed.  He is OBSESSED.  He won’t even take it off in 88 degree weather when he is playing outside.  And he is a sweaty, sweaty boy.  But despite all of the sweat, dirt, water, and food that has assaulted these cheetah suits, each time they come out of the dryer looking amazing.  Aside from the fabric directly under his feet, the suit still looks BRAND NEW!!!  It is rather remarkable, really.

I think that this fabric would make the PERFECT Halloween fabric!!!  It looks amazing and it is warm enough for trick-or-treating! And, luckily, Shannon Fabrics has this fabric available in all of the following animal varieties: giraffe, cheetah, jaguar, zebra, dalmation, cow, pony, leopard, and tiger.  SCORE, right?  You can find all of their animal fabrics here.

So thank you, Shannon Fabrics, and THANK YOU GRANDMA!!

If you are looking for other costume ideas you may enjoy the following posts:

Pirate Costume and Play Kit

Family Peter Pan Costumes

30+ Handmade Halloween Costumes

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Sarah Westover McKenna

Sarah is the scattered creative mind behind Bombshell Bling. A former elementary school teacher and a current stay-at-home mom, she loves developing her creativity through her blog and her jewelry design business, Bombshell Bling Jewelry. Sarah is a lover of all things vintage, colorful, and BLING. She is also a sweets addict with a major obsession with s'mores.

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