Seeing a girl return home from summer camp in her delightful bright blue paper dress with ribbons, was all I needed to be instantly inspired to write about paper dresses as a perfect craft for children.
Making simple paper dresses is easy to do at children's summer camps, school events, girl birthdays or Halloween parties. All the children can be ready for a fun fashion parade in less than an hour. Sure, they could spend all afternoon to decorate their dresses (and older kids might enjoy making more intricate designs,) albeit that this is not needed to have great results and lots of fun.
BLUE DRESS
Simple Paper Dress Pattern
For the simplest girl dress ever, roll out your crepe paper, wrapped around the girl and cut it where she's covered front and back, with an inch to spare. Then, simply fold the material at the top, and stick it together at the back with simple Scots tape.
Crepe paper is so easy to mold that it can simply be pushed into shape with your hands at the waist. Then, add some ribbons at the back to cover up the tape. Complete it with a bow in the hair for splendor. Done.
Materials Needed for a Paper Dress Making Party
All you need is a few rolls of crepe paper in inspiring colors, some ribbons, glitter glue, a bit of Scots tape. Or, consider using a needle & thread and simply gather the paper 'fabric'. Crepe paper is so forgiving and pliable, that you actually don't really need much more than the paper itself.
More Durable Paper Dresses
To create more durable paper dresses or paper costumes that you can wear more than once, e.g. for a dress rehearsal plus several theater shows, I would go about it a bit differently.
First, I would offer extra strength to the design where possible with glue, stitching or tape. Second, I would modify the design allowing the child to easily get in and out of the dress. Third, I would consider using a fabric base garment, such as a plain t-shirt as a base and stitch on paper shapes. Using a base garment would be best for a school theater costume or a Halloween costume, when the child needs wear the dress for a longer period and on multiple occasions.
Preparation for a Paper Dress Making Party
For parties, I would prepare a few demo dresses and have them (almost) ready before your event, so that you'll get your group going faster. These demo designs will help the children plus accompanying adults to complement the general dress design with their own creative ideas.
However, you don't need the occasion of a party of a school play to make this craft worthwhile. Making paper dresses is perfect for playing make-believe on a rainy summer afternoon.
How to Make a Simple Paper Dress
Rose writes for FineCraftGuild.com, the authority on contemporary, easy crafts for kids & adults. The crafts at Fine Craft Guild are fun and result in actually usable tools you will enjoy having.
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BLUE DRESS
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