How to Make a Spot the Dog Costume

With Halloween right around the corner, it’s officially dress-up season. Grab your needle and thread, follow our easy DIY tutorial, and make a Spot the Dog costume all in under $17.00. The best part, you can wear it anytime throughout the year!

Last year my daughter and I spent Halloween with my family in a part of America where the air is crisp, and everything smells like pumpkin spice. No, seriously, we filled our itinerary with endless fall fun activities visiting pumpkin patches, cider farms, Salem Massachusetts, and best of all, watching Freeform’s 31 nights of Halloween.  

For our list of all the Hocus Pocus filming locations in Salem, continue reading Here. 

This year we are in Australia, and with no set plans to cross international borders anytime soon, it is pretty clear Halloween is going to be VERY different. The fact is, Australians just don’t over-commercialize Halloween like Americans. And let’s face it, given the current covid climate, Halloween isn’t going to be the same for anyone this year, no matter where they live. So I decided to keep it simple.

I began my search for a toddler Halloween costume. First, I scoured Google, then Etsy, then walked endlessly through Kmart, target, and Big W. Unsuccessful is an understatement. Most costumes were coming from America with exorbitant shipping rates and inflated prices. Or there were limited selections and sizes for toddlers. 

Then I received an email from childcare reminding us to dress up our little ones as their favorite character for book week. I decided with Halloween only two weeks after, I would re-use the same costume. It’s a win-win.

How to make a Spot the Dog Costume: step-by-step

A favorite firm character with my toddler is Spot the Dog. We read the same Spot books every night before bed, and without fail each time, my daughter will gasp in surprise as she peers under each flap. 

And so began a new search, this time for a Spot the Dog Costume.

BUT, it just doesn’t exist. There are no DIY tutorials, Spot pajamas, or onesies.

So as a last resort, I decided to go all-in and make one myself. I’ll be honest, though, I ordered a bat costume off eBay in case I royally messed up. You can be the judge. 

 

Tip: Print at least three copies of our sewing patter. One to cut out the tonuge, one to cut out the mouth, and one as a visual aid reference.  

Download your free sewing pattern spot’s face here

• Download my free  SPOT THE DOG PDF

Cutting out

Step 1: The spots

To achieve your preferred diameter for the spots, you can use any circular object. I found a cereal bowl perfect. Using a marker or chalk, trace the bowl onto the brown felt to create two circles, then cut out. 

Step 2: The eyes and nose 

Download, print and cut out the eyes and nose using our free template. I recommend printing at least three copies. Pin the cut-out pieces on top of the black fabric and draw around the pattern pieces using tailor’s chalk. Cut out the eyes and nose for Spot’s face. 

Step 3: The Tongue

Cut out the tongue from our free template. You will use an extra copy of our template to cut out the mouth/ smile. Pin the cut-out piece on top of the pink fabric and draw or cut the pattern piece out. 

Step 3: The Mouth

Cut out the mouth from our free template. I suggest using a new copy of the template, as you might have already cut the tongue out. Pin the cut-out piece on top of the black fabric. Cut the pattern piece out. 

Assembling

Step 4: The spots 

First, choose a location for the spots and pin to the clothing. The great thing about the spots is that you can place them anywhere, and they will still look great. I opted for each side of the dress. Stitch together using a running stitch and brown thread. 

Step 4: Sew Spot’s tongue

Before you can begin to assemble all the cut-out pieces of the face, you will need to sew Spot’s pink tongue to his mouth using pink thread. Use the template as a guide for the location. 

Step 5: Piece together

Using our template as a reference, assemble and pin the cut-out fabric pieces into your choice of children’s clothing. You can overlay the template over the top to make sure the parts are aligned. 

Step 6: Stitch

Stitch the cut-out fabric pieces to the clothing using a tight overcast stitch. An overcast stitch, sometimes called a whipstitch, wraps the threat around the edge of the fabric. This easy stitch will help with all the curves of the material.