Firefighter Halloween costume with fire helmet and jacket

My preschool aged son loves firefighter hats so I decided he should be a firefighter last Halloween. I bought one from a big box store's costume section. It wasn't a pricey costume, but I was still very disappointed in the quality. I thought it could have been a little better. I checked out options online and found the Melissa & Doug Fire Chief Role Play Costume Set

I was so happy when I opened up the box and took the costume out. The jacket is more like nylon than plastic. It is comfortable and it is machine washable. Since I wanted to add it to the dress up box after Halloween that was a big feature for me. The fire chief jacket also features reflector stripes which is so nice for trick or treating in dusk and dark.

The package contains a firefighter jacket, a fire chief helmet, a badge, bull horn, and red hand held fire extinguisher. The jacket also has a name tag you can write on, but we left ours blank. I think our favorite part of the set is the fire chief helmet. It is so much nicer than freebie or dollar store helmets. It is a hard plastic so if it gets dropped it doesn't break. It also can't be crushed or broken.

When I first got the costume I hid the bullhorn because I didn't know how noisy it was. It turns out you need 2 AA batteries so I just never put any in. I can't say if the noises are nice or not. I assume so. The bull horn can hang from a loop in the coat or it can be carried around.

The target age for the Melissa & Doug Fire Chief costume is three to six. My son is four and it fits him fine. It fits my six year old daughter as well. She is on the slim side so I bet it will fit her another year or two. If you want a Halloween costume that will last for more than one year (kid) or a durable costume to add to your dress up box, then this is a great option. I think you'll be pleased with the quality and the price is great too. Yes, it is more than a cheapie Halloween costume, but I think it is worth it.

Doc McStuffins Costumes Are Available 2013

Last year, if kids wanted to dress up as Doc McStuffins they had to come up with their own costume. I saw a super cute one at my daughter's school. The little girl had pigtails, a doctor's coat and stethoscope, and some clothes in approximately the right colors. It worked great.

For an easy Doc McStuffins costume this year, an official one is available. It is adorable. Check it out: Doc McStuffins costume. It comes with the leggings, striped tunic, lab coat, and stethoscope shown at right.

Another option you could do is to purchase a Doc McStuffins dress up set. If you purchase this it comes with a white lab coat with buttons, doctor's name badge, sparkly headband, and stethoscope. You would need to purchase leggings and a shirt in a similar style to what you see on the right, or just use whatever your daughter has in her closet. This option might work better for kids that are more difficult to fit in pants or shirts.

Doc McStuffins is a super popular character from the Disney Jr television show. She is THE doctor for stuffed animals and toys.

Disney Snow Queen Costume from Frozen

If you read my previous post, you know that Disney's Frozen movie will be out in November 2013. In the story, Princess Anna of the kingdom of Arendelle, makes a long journey to the palace of the Snow Queen, her older sister Elsa.

Elsa is beautiful and extremely talented with snow/ice magic. Thanks to that Arendelle is perpetually iced over and the inhabitants are miserable. Princess Anna hopes to convince her sister to thaw out the kingdom, and perhaps to reconcile with her family.

For little girls wishing to become the Snow Queen Elsa for Halloween, there is a lovely costume coming out in October. It is a luminous blue color with a snowflake pattern. Perfect for an aspiring Snow Queen. See the photo and link to purchase below.

Unfortunately the Disney premier costume from the Disney Store that was sold on Amazon is not available right now (May 2014), but there is a Queen Elsa dress up dress. The quality is similar to what you would find in the toy section of a local retail store. This is definitely a Halloween or dress up type dress more than a party dress.

Disney Princess Anna Costume from Frozen

Have you heard? There is a new Disney movie coming out in November 2013. The movie is called Frozen and is a retelling of the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale about a Snow Queen in a frozen land.

In this story, Princess Anna is the younger sister of the Snow Queen. She journeys to her sister's palace to ask her to lessen her frozen hold on the kingdom. Along the way she meets a handsome and helpful mountain man named Kristoff.

This is the second time Disney has looked to Andersen tale, the first time was for The Little Mermaid. THAT certainly worked out for them! I hope this turns out to be a magical tale.

Many little girls will be captivated by the beautiful Princess Anna. Fortunately costumes will be available in October for Halloween. Even though the movie won't be out yet, I bet they will be popular. Check out a photo and link to purchase the costume below.

It is Halloween Time Again

August is nearly over and it is time to think of Halloween again. If your kids haven't started school yet (mine haven't), then you are still busy with back to school stuff, but before you know it, your kids will start talking about what they want to wear on Halloween.

If you have kids from about age 5 to age 10, it is likely they will want to wear a popular character costume. In years' past superhero costumes for boys and princess costumes for girls have been perennial favorites.

Kids under 5 might want a character costume, or animals are always a great choice. My daughter's first costume was a mouse, the next year a strawberry, and the next year a ladybug.  Other "generic" type costumes like witch, vampire, police officer are also great options for babies through teenagers. Disney movie tie-ins are great. Disney Princess Merida costumes were a great choice last year and continues to be desirable. I think as a character Merida will stand the test of time.

Speaking of teenagers, and I am including age 11 and up here, they are likely to want more sophisticated costumes. Katniss Everdeen costumes were hugely popular last year for this age group. Peeta Mellark costumes were also popular for boys, but not nearly as much. Any other Halloween costumes with movie tie-ins are sure to be popular for kids and teenagers. Another place to look for costumes are for popular toys, such as Monster High costumes. I will be doing a series on those coming up soon.

Over the next few weeks I am going to be posting about new or popular Halloween costumes. I hope you enjoy this series and find something that is useful for you! If you have any costumes you are looking for and cannot find, please leave a link below and I'll see if I can point you in the right direction.

Photo Credit

Katniss Everdeen Costume for Kids for Halloween

A few months ago I made a Katniss Everdeen costume guide that has been really popular. It focuses on teens and women since Katniss was 16 in the book. I've noticed from some of the search terms that younger girls are interested in dressing up as Katniss for Halloween also. I don't know if there are any plans for an official costume, but it should be pretty easy to make one, possibly using items you already have at home.

I think Katniss is a good role model for girls. She is strong, independent, and courageous, but she does have a caring and compassionate side. She is also portrayed as very human and believable.

There are a couple of ready made outfits you can purchase as well as individual costume accessories. Click the links below to check out pricing and available sizes. Buying a ready made costume is the quickest and easiest way to get the costume your daughter wants for Halloween.

You do have the option of building your own outfit. I strongly recommend Amazon for that. Depending which movie character version you want to do there are all kinds of options. Check out the short list below to get your creative juices flowing.

Columbia Big Girls' Benton II Hoodie
Scotch Duct Tape, Tangerine Orange, 1.88-Inch by 20-Yard

Add some khaki (HG movie) or tan (HG book) and the cute bow and arrow set below and you have a great DIY costume.

Click on the photo or link to check out the Katniss costume for girls.

Check out this Hunger Games costume look as well.

This prop bow from Disney's Princess Merida is the perfect for Katniss role play or dress up. It is safe to use. No worries about real arrows!

Purchase Mockingjay Pin

Thinking About Halloween

It is nearly June and I am already thinking of Halloween sales. I have some costumes I want to feature and some decorations, but beyond that, I don't have any ideas. Planning parties is not my strong point, so that is out. I am on the lookout for something new and exciting coming down the pipeline.

I am also thinking of my kids' Halloween costumes already. My husband and I bought 5 different Cinderella costumes before we found one that fit just right. Then we need "glass slippers" and a crown. My son was too young to care, thank goodness.

I know this is a big deal when you are a kid and I want to help people out any way I can. Halloween can big for adults, too.I actually dressed up last year for the first time since I was about 12. I decided to be a witch at the last minute. It was a lot of fun.

So, my goal for the end of June is to have about 5 different ideas for Halloween, then I want 5 more by the end of August. I think that will be early enough, without being too early. Halloween is such a great time of year, that trying to sell anything is competitive. It seems like it is even worse than Christmas that way. Lots of potential there though!