As a parent, there’s no other day that can quite divide opinions like World Book Day. For some, it’s a chance to be competitive and to create the most incredible outfit from scratch to completely show off. While for others, it’s easier to just buy a fancy-dress costume you know your kid will like – and that you can possibly re-use for a future party!

World Book Day 2021 is coming soon – Thursday 4^th March – and a recent survey revealed what we parents really think of the day. It’s full of insights such as how long parents spend making a costume (be it Cat in the Hat, Where’s Wally or even Star Wars costumes, or how much we’re willing to spend on an outfit. But as a mum to two boys, there’s one question I could totally relate to – and that was about the most popular costume for World Book Day this year.

Almost one in three parents – 30% in fact – said they expected it to be Harry Potter!

If you’re looking to make a wonderfully wizardly costume this World Book Day, read on as this tutorial will give you everything you need to know.

Ensure you leave the school uniform out

The joy of creating a Harry Potter outfit is that it’s incredibly easy. You start off with a fairly standard school uniform, which you should already have to hand. You will need:

• Grey V-neck jumper
• White shirt
• A pair of grey or black school-style trousers
• Grey socks
• Black shoes

Of course, if you’re dressing your daughter as Hermione, swap those trousers for a knee-length grey (or black) skirt, and the socks for a pair of grey (or black) tights.

Once the school uniform is hanging on the outside of the wardrobe, the next steps are all about customising and crafting to create something that wouldn’t look out of place at Hogwarts.

Choose your house and get creative

Don’t worry, you won’t be needing a sorting hat here. Perhaps your child would love to follow in the footsteps of the eponymous hero and be in the Gryffindor house. Whether it’s that, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin, you’ll need to customise the costume with the house colours. Using fun felt is a fab option, as it’s easy to work with, isn’t too messy and means your child can also get involved. Accent the jumper using the house colours – on the V-neck, this could be around the neckline and along the bottom hem.

You can also use the same material to create a tie – and this particular resource from One Sweet Appetite has a totally hassle-free option, whereby you can add a hair clip, or even a safety pin to attach the tie to the shirt.

And once you’ve chosen your house and the all-important correct colour scheme, you’re going to need the crest, or badge for the jumper. This is the most crucial part of the outfit, but also the most flexible. There’s no doubt you’ll be able to purchase an iron-on badge online, or use the favoured felt to create a masterpiece. But another great option is getting a printable option from somewhere like Pinterest. With an abundance of options, choose your favourite – and why not stick it to some card and laminate it too, to ensure it is extra sturdy… and re-usable!

Don’t forget the important finishing touches

Once you’ve got the outfit, you’ll need the accessories. The black glasses can either be found at a fancy-dress shop, or if you have an old pair lying around, take the lenses out. If you’re feeling particularly crafty, you can always fashion a pair, via a printable, much like this one.

Your costume isn’t complete without a robe. Again, if you’re not going down the fancy-dress route, you can always find a DIY tutorial online – especially if you’re a dab hand with a sewing machine.

Grab an eyeliner or lip liner to draw on that iconic thunderbolt scar and you can finally say expelliarmus – as your work is done!

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