DIY “Where the Wild Things Are” Max Baby Costume

DIY Where the Wild Things Are Max Costume by laceandyarn.com
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Where there is a wild thing, there must be a king of all wild things!  I bought my three year old his costume, but I knew I could easily do a Max for cheap, and I did!  Here’s how:

Wolf Suit

I got this cute white warm outfit from a local children’s consignment sale.  Seriously, something like this is super easy to find.  (Look at this perfect wolf suit*!)

Crown

DIY Max Crown -- laceandyarn.com

How adorable is my little Max? (PS, before you comment “what an adorable little boy,” this is my baby girl! Isn’t she sweet? And she plays along so well!)

Materials

DIY Max Costume Crown Materials by laceandyarn.com

  • Brown fuzzy headband (see below for my pattern and how I sized it)
  • Stiff yellow felt*
  • Scissors
  • Hot glue gun

So I have no crown pattern.  Cut your felt sheet in half and cut triangles.  I made one cut, and then used that triangle as a pattern.  Hot glue is wonderful on felt.  Will definitely stay together.

Where the Wild Things Are Max Costume Crown by laceandyarn.comSo my crown is actually two separate pieces.  So far this year, we’ve done the Zoo Boo, and it stayed on her head pretty well, and she’s a squirmer!  The key here is sizing.  The brown headband is quite a bit smaller than the yellow crown part.  The goal of the piece is that the brown headband is fitted and keeps the still yellow crown on and in place.  Worked well for us!

How to size it

I put the wolf suit on my girly, then found a hat I had (her older brother’s) that fits over the hood where I wanted the crown to sit.  I used the size of that hat as my pattern.  For reference, my daughter is 9 months, and a littler smaller than average for her age.

Here’s the pattern I used for the headband:


 

Yarn – Brown thick and thin yarn.  I got this from the clearance section of the yarn store, so I totally don’t even know what it is…but it’s super chunky weight, and thick and thin, so it looks a little messy, and animal fur-ish — at least, that was the goal.

Needles – US size 13

CO 36

k2 p1 around

Join work and knit in the round.

Continue knitting this ribbing pattern until the work measures about 1 1/2 inches.  Bind off and use a darning needle to weave in the ends of the yarn.


 

Same deal with the sizing of the crown.  After I cut my jagged shape on each half of the felt, I put it on her head and found where I wanted it to sit, cut off the extra triangles, and glued.

When putting this on your little Max.  Place the yellow crown on first, then slip the brown headband over top to keep the crown in place.

Tail

DIY Max Costume Knit Tail Pattern -- laceandyarn.com

So I think the tail is my favorite part of the costume.  I did it so last minute and made it up as I went, but I love it!!  This is such a quick knit, you seriously only need a spare half hour.  Oh, and I just attached it to the wolf suit with a large safety pin.  Easy peasy!

Here’s the tail knit pattern:


 

Yarn – Lion Brand Yarn Wool-Ease Thick and Quick Yarn in Grey Marble*  (NOTE: This is just the yarn I had laying around.  Any type of bulky grey yarn will do, but I do love the wool-ease.)

Needles – US size 13

Pattern

CO 4

knit 4 rows

row 5 – k2 m1 k2 (5 stitches)
row 6 – k all
row 7 – k2 m1 k3 (6 stitches)
row 8 – k all
row 9 – k3 m1 k3 (7 stitches)
row 10 – k all
row 11 – k3 m1 k4 (8 stitches)
row 12 – k all
row 13 – k4 m1 k4 (9 stitches)
row 14 – k all
row 15 – k4 m1 k5 (10 stitches)
row 16 – k all (this is the fattest part of the tail)

decreases

row 17 – k4 k2tog k4 (9 stitches)
row 18-20 – k all
row 21 – k4 k2tog k3 (8 stitches)
row 22-24 – k all
row 25 – k3 k2tog k3 (7 stitches)
row 26-28 – k all
row 29 – k3 k2tog k2 (6 stitches)
row 30-32 – k all
row 33 – k2 k2tog k2 (5 stitches)
row 34-36 – k all
row 37 – k2 k2tog k1 (4 stitches)
row 38-40 – k all
row 41 – k1 k2tog k1 (3 stitches)
row 42-44 – k all
row 45 – k1 k2tog (2 stitches)
row 46-48 – k all
row 49 – k2tog
row 50 – k

finishing

Loop yarn through last stitch and use darning needle to weave in ends.


Where the Wild Things Are costumes -- laceandyarn.com

Here’s me with my two adorable wild things.  Happy costume making!


As a reminder about my patterns:

Want to make this hat to sell it?  Awesome! I’m okay. with that.  As long as you credit the pattern back to me.  Here’s how you can do that:

  • If you sell online, please include the following (or something similar) in your listing: “Original pattern by Lace and Yarn by Betsy Busch available at laceandyarn.com.”

Please do not distribute or sell the pattern, but feel free to link here.  Thank you!


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