Learn how to make a DIY Princess in Black costume using HTV and some black fabric. Add in a cape, black pants, and black shoes for an easy DIY costume!

Last week my kids got to dress up as one of their favorite story book characters. My daughter has loved reading all of the Princess in Black graphic novels, and she decided to be the princess when she was dressed in black and fighting all the monsters.

I’ve loved the Princess in Black since I first read the books and couldn’t wait to make a costume. I was able to use black leggings and a black cape that we had in our house, and then I made the tunic just like the book.

The Princess in Black is a princess during the day that wears a pink fluffy dress and goes to tea parties and events. Whenever there’s a problem in the kingdom, she changes into her black disguise and saves the day.

It’s a whole series, and my two girls love reading each book. I decided to just recreate the top to make the costume easier to make.

Since my daughter was wearing the costume to school we skipped the black eye mask, but that would be easy to add if she were to wear the costume somewhere else.

Do you love to make costumes? Check out these fun ideas:

Diy Princess in Black Costume

supplies

Black t-shirt
1/2 yard black fabric
Sewing tools
Sewing machine
white, yellow, and gray iron-on vinyl OR white, yellow, and gray felt
Princess in Black cut design (flower, belt, sleeve details)
Cutting machine like the Cricut Maker
Easypress 2
Black leggings (you can use this Upcycled legging sewing pattern), black cape (learn how to make a cape from a t-shirt), black shoes

Use the cutting machine to cut out the flower, belt, and sleeve details. If you don’t have a cutting machine, you can cut felt by hand and sew them on instead.

Weed the iron-on vinyl designs.

First, apply the sleeve details to the sleeves. I cut out 5 ovals for each sleeve, but I ended up only using three for each sleeve. How many you use will change depending on the size of the sleeves.

You kind of have to wrangle the sleeves to get them flat without many wrinkles underneath them.

After the sleeves are cooled and the plastic backing has been peeled off, apply the flower and the belt to the front of the shirt. The flower will have to be done twice, one for the white and one for the yellow.

Let the HTV cool and then peel the plastic backing.

Cut the black fabric into two long rectangles that are 1.25 longer than the circumference of the bottom of the shirt.

Place them right sides together and sew around the two shorts sides and one long side. Curve the bottom two corners as you sew. Trim the fabric to 1/4 inch on each seam.

Turn the piece right side out and press flat. Finish the top edge with a serger or a zigzag stitch.

Pin the black fabric on the bottom of the shirt below the belt. Pin the fabric so that it’s pointing up towards the shirt and the finished edge is pointing down to the shirt hem.

Sew around the black fabric with a 1/4 inch seam allowance and a zigzag stitch.

Flip the fabric down so it’s hanging down like a skirt. Topstitch around the top of the skirt with a zigzag stitch. This will help keep the fabric from flipping up.

Add in the rest of the outfit and you finished!

DIY Princess in Black Costume

Yield: 1 Princess in Black Costume

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Active Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Difficulty: Beginner

Estimated Cost: $15

Learn how to make a DIY Princess in Black costume using HTV and some black fabric. Add in a cape, black pants, and black shoes for an easy DIY costume!

Materials

black t-shirt
1/2 yard black fabric
white, yellow, and gray iron-on vinyl OR white, yellow, and gray felt
Princess in Black cut design (flower, belt, sleeve details)
Gray leggings, black shorts, black cape, black shoes

Tools

Sewing tools
Sewing machine
Cutting machine like the Cricut Maker
Easypress 2

Instructions

Use the cutting machine to cut out the flower, belt, and sleeve details. If you don't have a cutting machine, you can cut felt by hand and sew them on instead.
Weed the iron-on vinyl designs.
First, apply the sleeve details to the sleeves. I cut out 5 ovals for each sleeve, but I ended up only using three for each sleeve. How many you use will change depending on the size of the sleeves.
You kind of have to wrangle the sleeves to get them flat without many wrinkles underneath them.
After the sleeves are cooled and the plastic backing has been peeled off, apply the flower and the belt to the front of the shirt. The flower will have to be done twice, one for the white and one for the yellow.
Let the HTV cool and then peel the plastic backing.
Cut the black fabric into two long rectangles that are 1.25 longer than the circumference of the bottom of the shirt.
Place them right sides together and sew around the two shorts sides and one long side. Curve the bottom two corners as you sew. Trim the fabric to 1/4 inch on each seam.
Turn the piece right side out and press flat. Finish the top edge with a serger or a zigzag stitch.
Pin the black fabric on the bottom of the shirt below the belt. Pin the fabric so that it's pointing up towards the shirt and the finished edge is pointing down to the shirt hem.
Sew around the black fabric with a 1/4 inch seam allowance and a zigzag stitch.
Flip the fabric down so it's hanging down like a skirt. Topstitch around the top of the skirt with a zigzag stitch. This will help keep the fabric from flipping up.
Add in the rest of the outfit and you finished!

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If you make something using this sewing project, I’d love to see! Please share it on social media with the hashtag #heatherhandmade and tag me!