This was made using this little boys favorite t-shirt which he outgrew and rather than  mom throwing it in a tubby for all eternity, she chose to make something new.

Next time your little one isn’t willing to part with a favorite item, consider repurposing it into some thing they can enjoy a little longer. It’s an idea where everyone wins!

Have you repurposed a favorite piece of clothing into something new?  We’d love to hear all about it!

These costumes ideas, expensive to buy at the costume shops, are easy to pull off using clothing that you might already have at home, or can readily find on resale and at clothing swaps. [Btw... did you know National Costume Swap Day is coming up soon?  It's a great chance to recycle costumes, or try upstyling old costumes into something fresh and new!]

• Mad Men: The ever popular series with 60′s inspired fashion will make their way to your door this year.  Boys can finally wear that suit or sport-coat they were forced to wear at holiday time again.  Except this time, they’ll enjoy wearing it.
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• Monster High: Bye bye Hanna Montana and Hello Monster High characters.  Monster High is a fictional universe created by Mattel that features the sons and daughters of the world’s most notorious monsters; Frankie Stein, the goth-girl daughter of Frankenstein and Cleo De Nille, whose mother is the infamous Cleopatra.  While these characters are most appealing to the tween crowd.  They are a fun take on the classic costumes.  Use your imagination and re-purpose an old school uniform dress to create the look of Frankie Stein pictured below.
  
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• Zombies: No more Team Jacob or Team Edward.  This year, zombies are the new vampires.  This is an easy to create at home costume and a great way to re-purpose your child’s tattered or ripped clothing.  Zombies don’t need to be gruesome either.  Just mess up your child’s hair and add a little white make-up and you have an instant zombie – minus the gore. 
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• Fairies: We love these beautiful girlie costumes and who doesn’t love a little sparkle?  If you don’t have a tutu or frilly dress on hand, dress your child in a solid color shirt and pants and add wings which are readily available this time of year.    Pop on a cute little tiara and add sparkles to her cheeks.  She’ll look magical in no time.
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• SuperHeros: Caped crusaders and flying heroes never get old.  This Halloween, Captain America and Green Lantern costumes will be popular.  As will the Bumblebee character from the Transformers movie.  OK, Bumblebee might be a little more advanced but Captain America and Green Lantern can easily be created using a green or blue sweatsuit and adding the details that make each one special. 

Be creative, get the kids involved and have fun creating one of the popular costumes this season!   Be green, save green, and make memories.

Not so crafty?  There’s still time to shop LoobaLee for a selection of kids costumes at low prices.   Or, see if there’s a Green Halloween swap near you!

Which is your favorite?   Do you have any great DIY costume ideas straight from your child’s closet to share?   Just comment below via your Facebook login or our easy comment form (no special ID’s required!)

In preparation, I went back and checked some of the Fall Fashion trade show videos for inspiration.   Here are two I thought you might enjoy watching for some upstylin’ ideas!   They are from Kid Style Source.   Enjoy!

KidStyleSource.com on the Playtime trade show floor – Fall Winter ’11/’12 from Kid Style Source on Vimeo.

KidStyleSource.com on the trade show floor – Fall Winter ’11/’12 from Kid Style Source on Vimeo.

How did I think of “Upstyling”?

I shipped out a Gymboree Dress that I sold from the “Teacher’s Pet” line, 2005.  I asked the Buyer if she had anything special in mind for the dress.   And, I found out she lives in L.A. and that her daughter often auditions for TV and Commercials (even has an agent!).   She bought the dress as a potential audition / portfolio outfit.   She’s going to pair with modern boots, so it will fit right in with today’s styles!

This makes me think back to the Gymboree lines I loved from the early – mid 2000′s, which was Pre-CPSIA legislation and prior to the current trends now featured at Gymboree.   The quality in materials and manufacturing today are far different than the workmanship that drove Gymboree’s popularity years back.  You could count on the brand to be indestructible but not anymore!  That, however, is another story.

Today, I want to encourage you to look at the older lines for some real gems.  You’ll find high quality fabrics and sequins, rhinestones, and embellishments that are just too expensive for Gymboree to use today due increased legislation and manufacturing costs.

Take a lessons from the buyer of this dress and look pieces that you can easily update, or “upstyle” with today’s footwear, accessories, or coordinating pieces.   You’ll be glad you did!   Shop LoobaLee’s current Gymboree listings.  You’ll find some awesome deals on great clothing that you can upstyle on your own.

It’s one of those all-around-feel-good kind of things!

Do you have upstyling ideas?  Share below – maybe we’ll feature your idea in a guest post!

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LoobaLee.com/blog: Inspiring the “Conscious Kids’ Closet”… One Outfit At a Time