AnimalsNo. 2928 · The 2026 edition
Halloween!
Turn your little one into a towering giraffe with this handmade costume featuring clever loftstrand front legs.
Our own summary of the original — the full post and photos live at elenadoodle.blogspot.com.
This DIY giraffe costume is built around a size 3T shirt and custom pants that mimic the fit of 3T pants. The pants are constructed from pieced fabric and attached to 2T bloomers inside, using no elastic. Loftstrands serve as the giraffe's front legs for an extra playful touch. The creator is offering to send the completed costume to one lucky responder.
You'll need
Directions
- Build the child's loftstrands into the costume so they serve as the giraffe's front legs.
- Make the pants by piecing material together.
- Sew the pants to 2T "bloomers" inside the pants; the pants themselves do not have elastic.
Tips
- The costume top is a size 3T shirt that the author thinks runs small; the pants are modeled after a 3T pant.
- E is close to 36" tall and weighs 26 lbs, which is the sizing reference for the costume.
- The author offers to send the costume free to anyone who has or knows a child—especially one with loftstrands—who would like it, and will pick from responses.
- She is willing to hold onto the costume until the next year so a family can see how much their child has grown and hope it fits.
- For trick-or-treating, the goal was to visit at least 5 houses, with E using her crutches at every house, doing something (but not necessarily everything) at each one—up the driveway, up steps, down steps, across stones.
- E was pushed in her stroller between houses, and the family went trick-or-treating with friends from down the street for the first time.
- E ended up going to over 10 houses, and afterward the group stopped at G & R's house for a bathroom break and stayed to play over an hour.
Facts from the original
- Elena dressed as a giraffe for Halloween.
- Elena's loftstrands were incorporated into the costume as the giraffe's front legs.
- Some past Halloweens were hard for the mother, especially before E was more mobile, seeing other kids move around easily.
- Before trick-or-treating, E had two Feldenkrais sessions with a lot of walking downtown in between, and napped before heading out.
- In the basement playroom, E walked the whole room (at least 13 feet) and only fell once.
- E did the indoor slide on her own, tried to stand up from the floor several times and succeeded once, and did not complain about her AFOs hurting.
- The experience made the mother think that soon E will be able to play safely in a strange place with other people while she is in another room.
- Three comments appear on the post, including one from Tara Bennett asking to share the idea and pictures on kidz, and one from April noting she shared it in a post of adaptive Halloween costume ideas.
More photos
Photos hosted by elenadoodle.blogspot.com.
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