Indian Costumes

From LoveToKnow Costumes

Indian costumes are a necessity for any Thanksgiving play or reenactment. Most people think of pilgrims when they think about Thanksgiving, but remember it was the help of the Indians that allowed the new settlers to live long enough to have anything to celebrate.

Basic Indian Costumes
Most Indian costumes you can purchase in the shops and online look pretty much the same. These costumes are usually made of brown fabric, and include a dress for women or girls and a shirt and pants for men and boys.

The costumes often have a colored bodice and lots of fringe. They may include a headband with a feather, and accessories like headdresses, peace pipes, anklets with bells and war hatchets may be sold separately.

Finish off your costume with bare feet or simple sandals.

Sources for Indian Costumes

Indian costumes can be found at the same vendors who sell Pilgrim costumes, since the costumes are often needed at the same time for a play or special event. Here are some sources to check out:

You might also be able to find Indian Costumes at your local shops during the Halloween season, especially if you’re looking for a sexy Indian maiden costume (obviously not suitable for children’s events).

Make Your Own
It can be difficult to find patterns for Indian costumes, but many pattern makers have costume patterns and you should be able to find a few to choose from around Halloween and soon thereafter. Check at your local craft or fabric store for basic Indian costume patterns you can purchase.

If you can’t find a pattern, you can always improvise. A simple roomy shirt and pants made of faux suede would be great for the American Indian costumes, and it’s easy to make fringe with faux suede because it doesn’t unravel.

A pattern for lounging pants, sleeping pants or even scrubs could get you started on your way. Tunic shirts are really popular these days, and just changing the neckline on a simple tunic pattern would make a good shirt for Indian costumes. Or take the pattern for the top of surgical scrubs and extend the pattern so it will have long sleeves.

If you’re very crafty, you could add beads to the front of your tunic, or use interfacing to fuse a color block to the front like on the purchased costumes.

If you want, you can add accessories like a headband made of construction paper or a "battle axe" cut out of cardboard. An anklet with bells is a lot of fun and easy to make. Just cut a piece of fabric big enough to go around the ankle with a little overlap. Stitch on bells by hand, then use Velcro to make the anklet stay secure around your leg.


 


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