Creating an easy and authentic costume is neither difficult or expensive. Create the whole Wild Thing family and go as a group!
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Max Costume from Where the Wild Things Are is the Most Popular Costume.
How much fabric will I need for a Max Costume form Where the Wild Things Are?
Amount of Fabric: Four yards required for size six and four female adult – above that size you will need double length of the neck to heel and generally six yards works fine.
Fabric: The most authentic Max Costume is made from craft store fleece in off white. When selecting fabric consider its transparency. Off white fleece can be thinly transparent. This is why cotton flannel is not a good choice. Make sure the fleece is thick enough to NOT be transparent.
Pattern: You do not have to purchase a pattern but if you are inexperienced in sewing this could be a help.
Max Where the Wild Things Are Adult Costume
- Assuming you are purchasing 60 inch width fabric
- For size six and under you will need only one length from nape of neck to heel plus six inches.
- Typically two yards works fine leaving a bit of extra but you can reduce if you wish.
- Adults above female size six this will need to use two lengths of from nape to neck or four yards.
- Add one additional yard for hood.
- One additional yard for sleeves.
Max Where the Wild Things Are Child Costume:
- Measure neck to heel and double for above female size six
- Length of arm one length and leave long to roll up to give oversized look
- Hood needs one yard. This seems like a lot of fabric but hood is double thickness
Max’s Accessories!!!
Max also has a wand, a crown and a nice bushy tail.
Whiskers: Max’s whiskers are made from black pipe cleaners.
Wand: His wand is made from a dowel rod, black foam, and a plastic Christmas ball.
Tail: Buy an 18 inch width of 60 inch wide fur and consider inserting 14 gauge wire to give it a nice curve if you wish.
Crown: Wool Felt trimmed in a bit of tail fur.
Buttons: Craft foam is covered with fleece for oversized buttons
Closure: Stips of velcro are used to close body suit
Scary Claws: White Craft foam is used for mitten claws
Ears: 14 gauge wire makes the ears stand up – five feet
Max Crown
His crown is made from wool felt, which is expensive at about $12.00 a yard. If you prefer you may make it from thinner felt and slip in a bit of light cardboard for stiffness. Cereal boxes are the perfect card board weight for this. Also you can make it from matting board in a copper color and just paint the inside black with craft paint.
Max’s Tail
Select your tail fabric from the fur section in the craft store.
The tail is tied around the waist and has an opening in the PJ’s so it does not pull down the costume by sewing it directly on to the costume. For little ones do not make it so long that they trip over it, or that their friends can step on it.
Make the tail more narrow at the top. Add 14 gauge wire if you want to give it a little twist.
Max’s Ears
If you do not have batting, cut your fabric strips into tiny slivers and use that – or – use paper towels.
Making Max’s Costume Body Suit Pattern
- For perfect sizing I took an old pair of blue jeans to cut as the pattern and just cut it up to the shoulder. The body is just two pieces of fabric.
- There is no more important action to take than to make the length from the nape of the neck to the center crotch long enough. No matter how long you think it should be add a good three to six inches.
- There is a fold on the side and no side seam — this means this is ONE PIECE for a total of two pieces for the body suit.
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A placket was made for the opening and then a flap was attached.
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The neck is trimmed in a mandarin collar.
- Rather than have wide arms that flap around we narrowed the arms at the cuff area but left them really long.
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The folded up cuff (folded four time) gives the appearance of being oversized, without really being oversized.
Max Costume – Where the Wild Things Are – Free Pattern
Max Costume – Where the Wild Things Are – Free Pattern
- Sew the shoulders together.
- Sew the center seam just as you would a pair of pants.
- Really this is just an extra long waisted single seam pant (that goes up to your shoulders!).
- Cut an opening for the arm and measured a piece of fabric that wide. The length is to the tip of the finger plus six inches.
- Attach the arm to the costume and sewed down the underside of the arm.
- Seriously narrow the arm at the elbow to a tight fitting sleeve at the wrists.
- This costume does not not have the big floppy sleeve. However, to create the image and illusion of over sized PJ’s with the extra length of the sleeve that was then rolled up four times.
Max Costume – Where the Wild Things Are – Sleeve Pattern
- Make long placket to be placed on the front seem and attached it.
- Glue the covered buttons to that placket.
- Use white craft store foam as a base for the buttons to cover with the fleece.
- The PJ’s are closed with velcro squares placed on the underside of the placket.
Max’s Tail
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When cutting the tail leave a good bit of bulk for the inside seam so there is no stuffing.
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The tail is attached to elastic and sticks through the PJ’s.
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Attaching a tail directly to the PJ’s weighs the costume down.
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The extra tail fur will trim the crown.
PJ Buttons
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The PJ’s close with velcro.
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Buttons are not real buttons but are hot glued fabric on craft store foam.
- The buttons are hot glued on body suit.
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First cut your buttonbase into an oval piece from craft store foam.
- These are oversized – extremely large and support the oversized look of rolling up the arms and the legs.
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These are decorative buttons only
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The velcro holds the costume close
Standard Costume Hood with Band
- It has two sides sewn together
- Make two complete hoods and join them right sides together.
- Cut four pieces of the hood as shown below — adjusting for the size of your Max.
- Two and two are sewn together to make two hoods.
- Then the two hoods are sewn together to make one hood with a lining.
- The bottom of the hood is banded, just as Max’s hood is banded.
Max Costume Hood Ears
- I used 14 gauge wire and slipped it through the top of the hood to hold the ears
- The ears are stuffed with extra fleece cut in small piece.
- Ears are slipped over the wire
- Ears are sewn to hood
