Easy DIY: Wild Kratts Creature Power Suits
My son and his best friend love watching The Wild Kratts and pretending to have creature powers like on the show. So for his friend’s birthday, I thought I’d make him a creature power suit since there aren’t any available in stores. Of course, that meant I had to make a matching one for my son.
I used black cordura fabric because I liked the look and because I didn’t have to finish the edges. I used broadcloth for the accents. Extra wide velcro and clear plastic I cut from a zip pouch that held pillow cases.
I used one of my son’s t-shirts to gauge the size and then cut the general shape, making “V” shape cuts for the neckline and bottom of the front piece.
Next, I attached the accent pieces to the velcro for the top and side straps.
These were then sewn onto the top straps and the sides of the back piece of the creature power suit.
I sewed velcro to the front straps and sides of the front piece.
And then sewed on the circles. I sewed the large colored circle first and then sewed on the plastic. Don’t sew all the way around. Leave an opening at the top so your child can slip in the “creature power discs.”
You can download printable discs from the PBS Kids website. I printed mine out on heavy card stock. I did have to adjust the size a bit so they would fit properly. For the gloves, I used stretch gloves and felt for the circles since I had to sew them by hand.
Oh noooo!! These look awesome & my 5 year old daughter is obsessed with Wild Kratts and animals in general. At first she wanted to be a brown bat for Halloween, and THEN she saw THESE….Apparently the brown bat is OUT and the creature power vest is IN – because she can be ANY animal she wants when she wears one of these.
Oh boy.
So, what is Cordua fabric and why is it awesome and where do I buy it? Sounds like it’s like ripstop? If not Cordua fabric, what other fabric do you think would look good too? Duck? Black denim? I like the sound of “I didn’t have to finish the edges.”
OK, I was about to click post but then she came back and was discussing in detail how it should function, which color hers should be, and oh my gosh, this kid is a scream.
Thank you in advance for any information you can offer.
Thanks! To answer your questions, cordura is like backpack material. You can find it online at HartFabrics.com or etsy. Duck cloth or denim could work. You may have to use some fray check on the edges, though. Ripstop could work, too, if it’s heavy enough. In a pinch, try felt. Hope that helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.
Omg! You are a lifesaver. My grandson wanted me to buy the costume for him and his brother. He found it on ebay which case $45 per costume. Thank you so much. Now we can do this project at an affordable price.
On the sides and top how do u make it look like that on the edges of the squares and rectangles
If you are using felt, just cut the colored squares a little smaller than the width of the Velcro and stitch in place. If you are using broadcloth, fold the edges under to allow for a black border to show around and stitch onto the Velcro. Either should result in the edges shown.
Okay. thhanks. That makes sense .
This is a great looking costume. Can you tell me the age or shirt size of the child? Also, the length and width of the front in inches would be very helpful as I’m making this for a grandchild who lives out of town. Thanks so much.
Thanks! It was made for a 6 1/2 year old. I used a size 7 shirt to allow for a little extra room. The length of the front is about 12 inches long and 14 inches across at the bottom. Hope that helps.
I love these so much and am planning on making one for my son. The only problem I have is that I can’t find the material that you made them out of….any suggestions?
I would suggest canvas or felt as two options. Canvas might hold it’s shape a little better, but felt should work just as well and would match the accents in terms of texture if you’re using felt for those as well. Let me know if you have any other questions.
I used black canvas/duck. Very sturdy, holds up to play does not pill like felt, must hem edges, readily available at fabric stores. It says dry clean only but shine that, it’s 100% cotton. Wash in HOT first, then dry till damp, press. With a plastic sleeve/pocket, wash on gentle, cold, hang dry.
I used fleece for the blue accent pieces because that’s what I had on hand. Easy to applique, edges do not unravel. I also made mine (I mean my daughter’s) ONE piece with a V-neck large enough to push her head through and a Velcro closure on one side only. I should post pics – or a link. It turned out good.
Thanks for commenting! Would love to see your handiwork.
I’m attempting to make this (+20) for my son’s birthday party next month. This will be my first sewing project ever! Any tips you have would be awesome! Did you just buy a thick roll of Velcro to cut and sew on? We are using fleece and felt!
Sounds like it’ll be a fun party!
I had a length of extra-wide Velcro that I cut to size. If I didn’t have wide Velcro, I would’ve used black felt instead and then stitch on thinner Velcro to one side.
Since you are making so many, you could take the shortcut of cutting out a rectangular piece, making an opening for the head in the middle and trim down the shoulder area a little. This would save you having to piece together and sew the front and back. You could then just sew the decorations directly on to the vest.
Let me know if you have any other questions. You can also email me at celebratethebigandsmall@gmail.com. Good luck!
Awesome thanks so much for this advice! I have made my first mock up, but maybe it is better to do a square and not have to sew the shoulders together!
If you trim the shoulders/cut out “arm holes,” it’ll give a similar look. I made solid color vests like this out of felt for a laser tag party and it made it much easier to crank out a larger number of them.
OK, finally I am putting up pics of the one I made for my daughter – 2 years later! The way I made it isn’t a design I’d recommend if you have to crank out a bunch of them for a party, but if you’re just making one or two for a very beloved child or two, it’s very durable (WASHABLE!).
I can’t find a pic of the gloves, but I used stretchy fabric gloves like CTBAS but for the color, I used thick circles of fabric paint. Worked well because due to the nature of the polyester glove material, the paint sits on top until dry and does not seep through.
Also I borrowed someone’s basic disc design and changed it up a little and printed off a couple dozen different animals. Actually I had Staples do it in color on cardstock. Seriously, I love my kid a lot to be going through all that work, huh? Anybody who sews, etc., knows it’s a labor of love.
Click link for pics:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10207502355621159.1073741830.1356946291&type=1&l=8abb3cde5a
That’s awesome and the fabric print is a great idea!
These are awesome! Thank you so very much for sharing!
I also have A 5 year old daughter who is crazy about the Kratt brothers. We are going to see the Kratt brothers at IU in Bloomington Indiana April 11th 2016! This is going to save my proverbial butt! She loves these guys and this is perfect!
Thank you so very much for sharing! Amy and Marleigh in Indiana.
Thanks so much! Glad you like the project. Let us know how it goes.
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