Yesterday I explained a predicament that my granddaughter finds herself in on occasion. Even though she is a frills and ribbons girly-girl, occasionally, when she wants to save the world, she has to raid her brother's toy box and don some rather unsuitable manly-man superhero attire.
What she needs is a Little Girl Princess Superhero Cape that better suits her personality.
Ergo, the "Little Girl Princess Superhero Cape" was created...
I promised that I'd make available the tutorial, so today I'm making good on that promise. Here's another version of this Little Girl Cape using the pattern I developed. {FYI: All fabrics used on capes were found at Hobby Lobby.}
- Cape: Cut two out of cotton fabric (The length of fabric is determined by how long you want the cape. See comments in "Cape Pattern" below.)
- Emblem: Cut one out of a 9" x 12" piece of contrasting cotton fabric; or use 1 sheet of contrasting Glittered Fabric Rectangle (see below)
- Crown: Cut one out of 1 sheet of "Silver or Gold Glittered Fabric Rectangle" (Found in the same aisle as felt squares at Hobby Lobby.)
- Flat backed craft jewels for crown & fabric glue
- Synthetic fabric and jewel to make fabric flower
- Three inch piece of Velcro
- Jumbo Ric-Rac (optional)
Cape Pattern:
1. To make a cape pattern that will fit your child, start with a toddler size bib. Make sure the bib easily fits around your child's neck and then place it on a piece of paper and draw around the neck portion of the bib, like this:
The trickiest part of making a cape pattern will be the neck. Using a bib to trace the neck ensures that the cape will fit well.
In the photo below I give measurements for the cape that I made. The first measurement is the width of the cape just beneath the back of the neck. This area spreads across the shoulders of the child. The second is the measurement at the widest part at the bottom of the cape. The third and vertical measurement is how long the pattern is from the back of the neck to the bottom of the cape. This measurement can vary, depending upon how tall your child is. Simply take a measurement from the base of her neck to the back of her knees and make the cape that long. This cape was designed for 2 - 3 year olds.
To make the rounded corners on the bottom of the cape simply place a bowl over the lines and trace around the curve of the bowl, then follow the rounded line when you cut out your fabric. When you cut out your fabric from the cape pattern, make sure you cut two -- the front piece and the lining.
Emblem & Crown Applique Patterns:
To receive the pattern for the emblem and crown appliques, all I ask is that you leave a comment below and send me an email. My email address is located on the sidebar of my blog. In the subject line type "Little Girl Princess Cape", and I will send you back an email with a pdf document containing the pattern pieces.
When cutting out the emblem, use a two-sided fusible bond {like Wonder Under} so that it will be easier to attach it to the cape. Go here for a tutorial on how to applique using a fusible bond.
It isn't necessary to use fusible bonding for the crown if you use the fabric I recommend above. If you use a cotton fabric, you should use the fusible bond for the crown as well.
Sketchy tutorial:
I often get compliments on my in-depth tutorials, so if you're looking for that type of tutorial you'll be disappointed this time. Here are some very simple directions...
1. After cutting out your fabrics, center the emblem on the front piece of the cape. Fuse the emblem to the cape using an iron, then stitch around the emblem using a blanket, zig-zag or straight stitch for added durability.
2. Then center the crown and using a straight stitch, stitch the crown to the front of the cape. {The stitches practically disappear if you use a matching thread!} Use fabric glue to attach the jewels.
3. If you want to add ric-rac to the outside edge of the cape, baste ric-rac to the right side of the front along the edges, sewing 1/4" from the outside edge. I only used ric-rac on the outside edges of the cape -- not in the portion of the cape that goes around the neck.
4. Place cape front and lining right sides together and stitch around the cape using a 1/2" seam allowance, leaving a 4" opening in the bottom of the cape. When you are finished stitching trim seam around the neck and pull cape right side out through the opening at the bottom of the cape.
5. Press cape flat and slip-stitch 4" opening shut.
6. Attach Velcro to end of tabs at neck.
7. Optional: Make a synthetic fabric flower to cover up stitching lines where you attached Velcro on the tab ends. Attach flower with fabric glue. Go here to learn how to make a synthetic fabric flower. Keep the flower small so it doesn't tickle or irritate your super hero's neck as she's wearing her cape. Attache flower to tab with fabric glue.
8. Using fabric glue attach flat backed craft jewels to the crown...
Your Little Girl Princess Super Hero Cape is now ready to be used!
We can only hope the world becomes a better place with
a few more Super Heros in it!
