My brother’s unexpected Halloween costume request on a Sunday evening sparked a fun and creative DIY project. Earlier in October, he had declared he wouldn’t dress up, a decision I found rather uninspired. So, when he suddenly announced he wanted a costume, I was thrilled and ready for the challenge. And not just any costume – he wanted a Hogwarts uniform, specifically a Slytherin uniform.
Brother showing Slytherin pride with green and silver colors for his Hogwarts house uniform.
His Slytherin house allegiance, determined by the Pottermore house quiz, is a source of great excitement for him. It seems Slytherin truly resonates with his personality. Plus, the house colors – green and silver – perfectly align with his lifelong favorite color, green! This made creating a Slytherin uniform even more fitting.
Enthusiastic young Slytherin house member posing in his DIY Hogwarts uniform components.
With the request for a Slytherin robe placed, I immediately dove into my fabric stash. My “shopping” trip yielded a queen-sized black sheet and a green elastic waist polyester skirt in the ideal shade of Slytherin green. The sheet, already partially cut for a forgotten project, surprisingly held just enough fabric for the robe. The origins of the green skirt remained a mystery, but its presence in my refashion bin was perfect timing for the hood lining and facings of the Slytherin uniform robe. For a pattern, I turned to Simplicity 8723, the official Harry Potter robe pattern, a serendipitous purchase from a Hobby Lobby sale.
Fabric and sewing pattern for creating a DIY Slytherin house robe from Harry Potter.
With fabrics and pattern in hand, the only missing piece for the basic Slytherin uniform robe was the house patch. Local stores were Patch-less (pun intended!), and online ordering wasn’t an option due to time constraints. Improvisation was key. A quick dash to Joann’s just before closing on Sunday evening resulted in the purchase of a quarter yard of Slytherin quilting cotton. Covered in Slytherin house badges, it was the perfect solution for our DIY Slytherin uniform.
Slytherin house quilting cotton fabric with house badges for a DIY Harry Potter robe.
Carefully cutting out a badge and fray-checking the edges proved successful. The Slytherin badge was secured, and the Slytherin robe construction could begin.
Close-up of a cut-out Slytherin house badge from quilting cotton, ready for the Hogwarts robe.
Monday, my day off, was dedicated to bringing the Slytherin uniform robe to life. Cutting the robe pieces from the repurposed black sheet was a fabric Tetris challenge, but I managed to just squeeze out the front, back, sleeves, hood, and inseam pockets. The sheet was completely used up, leaving only scraps behind. Repurposing materials for this Hogwarts Slytherin uniform was proving both economical and resourceful.
Pattern pieces carefully arranged and cut from black fabric for a DIY Slytherin robe.
The green skirt provided the fabric for the front and back facings, hood lining, and sleeve hem facings – a detail not in the original pattern, but one I felt elevated the Slytherin robe. These 2-inch wide facings offered a clean finish and a subtle flash of green when the wide sleeves moved, a much more refined look than a simple hem. Again, the skirt was completely utilized, leaving only remnants after cutting.
Green fabric pieces cut from a skirt, used for lining and facings of the handmade Slytherin robe.
After a quick thrift store visit on Monday morning (more on that later!), sewing the Slytherin robe was straightforward on Monday afternoon. The construction was simple, and the pattern instructions remained untouched in their envelope – completely unnecessary. The biggest challenge was definitely the fabric Tetris during the cutting stage!
Sewing machine and partially assembled black Slytherin robe, showcasing DIY costume progress.
Once the robe was assembled, the final touch was attaching the Slytherin badge. Using a tight zig-zag stitch on my sewing machine, I appliqued it to the front of the Slytherin uniform robe.
Close-up of the Slytherin house badge being sewn onto the DIY Harry Potter robe.
The Slytherin robe was complete! Presenting it to my brother upon his return from play rehearsal Monday night was a joy – he was absolutely thrilled with his DIY Slytherin uniform.
Brother excitedly receiving his handmade Slytherin house robe for his Halloween costume.
To complete the Slytherin uniform, we paired the robe with basic black dress pants, shoes, and a white button-down shirt already in his wardrobe. The perfect finishing touch was a green and gray striped silk tie, a lucky thrift store find from Monday morning.
Full Slytherin uniform costume with robe, tie, dress pants, and white shirt.
My thrift store mission was initially to find a solid green tie to paint silver stripes onto. However, fate intervened, and I discovered a tie already striped in green and gray, perfectly mirroring the official Slytherin uniform tie. No alterations needed – costume perfection achieved!
Close-up of the green and silver striped tie, a key element of the Slytherin uniform costume.
On Halloween, as soon as school ended, my brother transformed into a young wizard, ready to distribute (and sample!) candy at our parents’ church Trunk-or-Treat event, proudly sporting his Slytherin uniform.
Brother dressed in his completed Slytherin uniform, ready for Halloween trunk-or-treat event.
At Trunk-or-Treat, house rivalry was alive and well! He encountered a couple of small Gryffindors who groaned at his sight, exclaiming, “Ugh, a Slytherin.” My brother, embracing his house pride, retorted with a snarl, “Gryffindor!” Thankfully, even amidst house rivalries, respect for authority prevailed, particularly for the Gryffindor head of house, Professor McGonagall.
Brother in Slytherin uniform interacting with friends at a Halloween trunk-or-treat event.
Even the Slytherin!
