Materials Needed:
Black Thread
Long Strip of Felt Black Material (approximately 40″ x 6″)
Stuffing (Fiberfill, or Cotton Balls)
Pipe Cleaners (If you want your cat tail to be posable)
Turtleneck Black Shirt with Long Sleeves
Black Cotton Leggings or Slim Fit Pants
Black Slip on Shoes or black boots
Black Gloves made of thin material
Long Fake Fingernails, preferable Black but if you can’t find Black, also buy Black Nail Polish
Nail Glue
Black Cat Ears and/or Face Mask (see for Cat Masks options)
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Tools Needed:
Scissors
Tape Measure
Sewing Machine (optional but will make it easier)
Straight Pins
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Steps:
- Glue your fingernails on the end of your gloves and set aside to dry. If you need to use the black polish, then paint the nails when they are dry. Three quarter length gloves are best to use if you can find them as they will tuck neatly underneath the sleeves of your shirt. Regular gloves will work ok though too. Try to get your gloves in a thin material if possible (no winter gloves). To see a video on how to do this, check out the bottom of Cat Masks home page.
- Lay your long strip of material out. If you want to be able to pose your tail, then twist the pipe cleaners together at the ends to attach one pipe cleaner to another. Make the pipe cleaners long enough to fit inside your long felt strip but about an inch and a half shorter. On both ends on your ultra long pipe cleaner string you made, curl the ends in an U shape so as not to poke through the tail.
- Fold your long strip in half lengthwise. If you can tell your material has a different feel on the wrong side (most felt doesn’t) then fold it over with the wrong side on the outside of each side folded.
- Pin the material together all the way down, about an inch from the open edge.
- Using a sewing machine, or just a needle and thread, sew a straight line all the way down on the edge next to the pins. When you get to the end of the tail, sew the one end closed.
- Turn your tail inside out so that the right side is showing and the sewn edges are on the inside. Put your long pipe cleaner inside the tail and then stuff it with the fiber fill or cotton balls. Now sew other end closed.
- You have several ways to attach your tail. You can cut the inside seam of your pants, and pull the end of tail through, and then sew back up. Or if these are pants you want to wear again, you can just tuck the tail in the waist band (use a safety pin to secure it). Once you put the shirt on, pull it over the top of your pants so the tail peeks out under it.
- Put your gloves on and pull your sleeves down over the edges of the gloves so the skin of your arms isn’t showing.
- Now slip on your shoes, your cat ears and mask (pick out one on the front page here: Cat Mask or if the costume is for a child, pick out a cat mask here: Children’s Cat Masks.
Your ready for your party or trick or treating!
Note: If you don’t want to go to the trouble of sewing your own tail, you can find some very reasonably priced ones on Amazon here: Cat Tails.
