Fleece Poncho DIY

I am completely done with my Christmas shopping!  I was actually done with the majority about a week ago (finishing up right after Thanksgiving), but have now completely finished with the exceptions of homemade gifts.  

I will repost my DIY present list from a couple years ago soon - but I have gotten a little creative this year too and found this super cute tutorial for making a fleece poncho for little girls for super cheap.

Ruffled Toddler Poncho by Gluesticks

What I liked about this idea is you don't have to do a whole lot to make it and it's cheap.  If you have ever made a no sew fleece blanket, this is even easier.

I went to Hobby Lobby and bought one yard of fleece fabric - got it on sale (30% off) and paid $8 for it.  

I started as soon as I got home so I wouldn't get distracted and measured out a 27 inch square and cut.  Then I folded it in half and if there was extra hang off on either side, I cut it off.  Just like in the tutorial, I used a bowl to cut a half circle for the head and then cut about an inch up along all the edges.

I just estimated about the same size cuts and the same width of each fringe and cut.

And that was it.  Picked it up and put it on Calla to see if it would fit.

I found that the 27 inch square of fleece fit Calla perfectly - so that would work perfectly for a little girl in a size 2T.

Since the one yard of fleece makes two ponchos (and leftover scraps), I decided to make another one for my niece.  Without having her here to measure or estimate, I tried one on Zander (roughly her size).  He was a very enthusiastic model and was sad when he found out he wasn't getting one.

I found that for each size up, you add about three inches to your square.

So for a 3T size, cut out a square about 30 inches.  For 4T, cut out a square about 33 inches.  And it worked out!

My lovely Lella wearing her "cape".

All in all - I made two fleece ponchos for two very special girls at $4 a piece.  If you are struggling at an idea for a gift or don't have a ton of money to splurge on a present - this is an awesome idea and can't get much easier to make.  It took me about 20 minutes to make both and that was only because I unfolded the ponchos to try them on my models.

If you have a child that wants a cape (like mine), there are also some awesome cape ideas that are just as cost efficient and easy to make:

DIY Superhero Cape Tutorial - by the Southern Institute
Superhero Cape Towels - by Martha Stewart
Superhero Cape Logo pattern - by Vanilla Joy

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