Materials

• Making an elf costume is a simple task that will not require too much sewing. You will need 2 yards of red felt, about three smaller pieces of felt in colors such as green, gold or yellow, red thread, a needle, small bells, fabric glue and measuring tape. You can find these items at a local fabric store. You do not have to use red and green for your costume. If you want to be creative, try being a Halloween elf instead of a Christmas elf and choose orange and black.
  
  

Cutting Fabric

• First, fold over the felt and ask your child (or whomever the costume is for) to lie down on the fabric. The fold will be the shoulders of the costume, so you don't have to sew them. Mark the sides of the neck, lower edges of the armholes, and finally the length you want for the costume. Cut it out and try it on over your child's head.
  
  

Elf Hat

• Measure your child's head and mark it on the material (leave about 1 inch extra). Then measure the height of the hat, about 1 foot (don't make it too long or it won't stay on). Cut out the rectangle, roll it into a cone shape, and put it on your child's head (put it over the ears to get the right size). Remove it from the head, and keeping the shape and size, pin the hat together. You will have a little material left over, but that is OK because it won't show once the hat is turned inside out.
  
  

Sewing

• Using a double thread, sew the sides of the costume together, leaving enough room for arms. Turn the costume inside out so the seam does not show. Once that is done, take the elf hat and sew along the pins; be careful as you take the pins out. Once it is sewn together, turn the hat inside out so you cannot see the seam. Last, sew a few small bells at the top of the hat. You can add some of the extra felt colors to the costume by cutting out shapes and gluing them to the tunic.