Girl’s Cinderella Costume

For my niece’s fourth birthday, I decided to make her a Cinderella dress. She was going to Disney World that fall and I thought it would be a great costume to have. I used Simplicity 2817:

Pattern Description: Child’s and Girl’s Snow White and Cinderella Disney Princess costumes.

Pattern Sizing: It was for my niece’s 4th birthday, and I cut a size 4 in the Cinderella dress.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Exactly. I chose to purchase white gloves (instead of the light blue pictured) as I believe that is what Cinderella actually wore.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, I made this dress several years ago and I had only been sewing for a couple of years at this point. Even though taffeta and organza were a challenge to work with – it was a child’s dress so it didn’t feel like an overwhelming amount of material.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I didn’t like that when I attached the organza sleeves to the taffeta bodice you could see the unfinished seam allowance through the organza. The pattern didn’t call for anything to cover the seam allowance but it really probably needed some kind of binding. As a plus, I thought the sizing of the bodice was pretty close to accurate.

Fabric Used: Blue taffeta and and lighter blue organza.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I had to hem quite a bit off of the bottom. I bought a regular child’s headband (like the one pictured below) and hot glued the taffeta fabric to it and then added some jewels. I bought black ribbon for the choker necklace, tacked velcro to make a closure, and added a jewel to it.

White 1 Inch Plastic Hard Headband with Teeth Head band Women Girls (Motique Accessories)

The white gloves were purchased online from Amazon –

Showstopper Shiny Satin Elbow Length Gloves for Girls

Would you sew it again? I would sew it again if there was someone else I knew who really wanted a Cinderella dress. The Snow White dress on this pattern seemed way more complicated so I’m not sure it would be worth trying that one.

Would you recommend it to others? Yes, it was definitely precious and she certainly felt like Cinderella in her costume!

Conclusion: Great Cinderella costume – could also be changed to a regular princess costume if you varied the colors.

To make the dress and purchase the accessories it cost around $23.00. My sister mentioned that when my niece wore the dress around Disney World people would stop her to ask if she purchased it at The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in the Magic Kingdom. Just as a price comparison – according to their website- to get a basic princess dress from there you have to spend a minimum of $199.95 plus tax as part of the “Castle Package.” To purchase a Disney Princess gown made with heirloom-quality fabrics (among other things) as part of the “Princess Signature Package” you have to spend a minimum of $450.00. With all these packages you get other things like a crown, a makeover, an experience, etc. But at 4 years old, I think the dress is most important! So you can save a ton of money if you decide to make your own!