How to Make a Crusader Costume

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Things You'll Need

  • Measuring tape

  • Butcher paper

  • Pencil

  • Scissors

  • Shiny silver fabric, 2 yards

  • Sewing machine

  • Thread

  • Colored fabric

  • Cardboard

  • Acrylic paints

  • Paintbrushes

  • Fabric paint

  • Leggings

  • Costume sword

  • Belt

  • Safety pin

The crusaders carried coats of arms to identify each other.

The crusaders were the military force of knights sent by the pope on a Crusade to free the Holy Land from Muslim forces. The Crusades occurred at different points between the years 1095 A.D. and 1291 A.D. A crusader usually wore a uniform of mail with a tunic identifying his family over it. Many crusaders, particularly the Knights Templar, wore uniforms with a cross to signify their devotion. You can make a crusader costume from a silver fabric with a few additional materials.

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Step 1

Make an outline of your body, or the person who will wear the costume, on a sheet of butcher paper. Outline the arms and torso to create a shirt pattern. Measure the length of your head down to your neck. Draw a rectangle 3 inches longer than this measurement, and as wide as your face to make one side of the hood pattern.

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Step 2

Cut out the patterns. Lay the patterns onto shiny silver fabric. Cut out two of each pattern. Lay the fabric pieces with the shiny side together.

Step 3

Sew the sides of the shirt pattern together, leaving an opening for the head and hands. Do not sew the bottom of the shirt either, so you can slip the costume on. Sew the hood closed along one long side and one short side. Turn the items right side out.

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Step 4

Cut two pieces of fabric as wide as your body and as long as the distance between your neck and mid thigh. Cut a circular neck on one of the fabric pieces. Face the right sides of the fabric together and sew the shoulder seams and the side seams. Leave about a 24-inch opening to fit your arms through. Turn the tunic right side out.

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Step 5

Make a cardboard shield into whatever shape you want. Make a handle on one side of the shield with duct tape. Paint the shield with paint to make a family crest. Make the same crest on the front of the tunic with fabric paint.

Step 6

Put on the leggings and the silver shirt. Put the tunic over the shirt. Put on the hood and use a safety pin to hold the two sides of the hood together under your neck. Belt the tunic at the waist. Wear boots or dark colored shoes with the costume. Carry the shield and sword.

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