Get Your Pup in the 4th of July Spirit With a Firework Costume
Most dogs dread Fourth of July. The sound of firecrackers going off at all hours of the day and night is just the worst. To help our pups get more friendly with fireworks, we created a firework pet costume that will surely encourage your dog to feel better about Independence Day. After all, once you (and your pup) are in the spirit, it will be pretty hard to be in a bad mood on this festive day. Our minimalist outfit includes a red, white and blue tutu and a firecracker headband. Read on for the tutu-orial.
Here’s our gal Brie looking patriotic in her cute little ‘fit.
Let’s get started with our tutu. This is essentially the same process you would use to make one for yourself or your kid.
Materials and Tools:
— red, white and blue tulle
— sewing machine
— elastic (or ideally, a headband)
— fabric scissors
— measuring tape
Instructions:
Tutu Tutorial
1. Measure your dogs “waist” and subtract an inch or two to account for the stretch in the elastic.
2. Cut and sew the ends of the elastic together to create a loop.
3. Cut strips of tulle (mine were 8-12 inches). You’ll need a bunch!
4. Wrap tulle strips around the elastic, completely filling the loop.
Brie’s belly measured 18 inches so I cut the elastic down to 16 1/2 inches. There was also about a half-inch elastic overlap when I sewed the band into a loop. For a small dog, two inches of stretch was just right. Not too tight, not too loose around her bod.
I purposefully cut my tulle at slightly different lengths to add to the crazy firework look.
Add as many strips as possible and vary the placement so that some are pointing up and some were pointing down. This will help fill in the tutu.
There you have it! Tutu-lly adorable.
Onto Brie’s hair accessory: the firecracker headband.
Materials and Tools:
— red, white and blue card stock (or thicker paper if possible)
— pen
— scissors
— tape (not pictured)
— elastic (not pictured)
— wire (not pictured)
Okay, so the original plan was to make Brie some firecracker sunnies, but after a failed attempt at getting them to stay on her face, I decided a headband would work much better. Thus the reason some of the supplies are not in the shot.
Firecracker Headband Tutorial
Instructions:
1. Draw two firecrackers on card stock.
2. Cut out the firecrackers.
3. Measure your dog’s head (going around his/her chin), then create an elastic loop just like you did for the tutu.
4. Poke wire through the elastic and tape the firecrackers to the top.
Draw two firecrackers on a piece of thick paper.
Cut out your shapes!
I used the extra elastic to create another loop that fit around Brie’s head. Then I poked jewelry wire through the elastic and taped the paper firecrackers to the top. I like how the wire is a little squirrelly. It adds to the spastic nature of the firecrackers.
We tried adding a shirt to the mix but found that it was too much. Go minimalist to get the look.
There she is! All ready for Fourth of July festivities.
What Fourth of July outfit will you dress your dog in this year? Show us your puppy photos by tagging us on Instagram + using the hashtag #iamcreative!
DIY Production and Styling: Roxy Taghavian
