Halloween
Here’s to a groovy Halloween.
If your child has ever come home from school singing “My buttons, my buttons, my four groovy buttons”, then you’re likely very familiar with Pete the Cat books. The cartoon protagonist of author Eric Litwin and illustrator James Dean’s children’s book series, Pete is a blue cat who wears sneakers, loves giant sandwiches, and learning to surf with his brother Bob. He’s an elementary school fave which is likely why your child might have their eye on a Pete the Cat costumes for Halloween.
With his bright colors and an entire book dedicated to his love of buttons on his yellow coat, he’s a great character to choose as a Halloween costume. And, whether you want to craft a do-it-yourself Pete look or prefer to buy something pre-made, the internet, as always, has all of the answers.
When it comes to DIY materials, something as simple as construction paper might be all you need to craft a Pete the Cat headband with pointy ears and white eyes. Or you can buy a blue hoodie and break out the crafting glue to affix some felt appendages.
Prefer to leave the stitching and gluing up the experts? Turn to Etsy to find homemade Pete the Cat costumes that deliver Dean’s childlike drawing aesthetic in fabric form. Here are some groovy Pete the Cat Halloween costume ideas to jumpstart your search.
We only include products that have been independently selected by Romper's editorial team. However, we may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.
1Best Pete the Cat (Four Groovy Buttons) Costume for Kids
A counting book disguised as a song, Pete the Cat and his Four Groovy Buttons has become a classroom favorite. Kids can learn the basics of one to three while they watch poor Pete deal with losing the buttons of his favorite yellow jacket. Let that book come to life for your little kid with this Pete the Cat costume. A four-piece package, it comes with a shirt with attached mitts, pants with an attached tail, a hood with ears and eyes, and boot covers that look like faux high top red sneakers, just like Pete’s. Your child will be the spitting image of the picture book star in this ensemble.
2Pete the Cat Headband and T-Shirt from Etsy
For a simple and affordable Pete the Cat option, turn to Etsy. This felt headband is designed to look just like Pete’s head with his white nose, whiskers, big eyes, and blue ears. In addition, you can also opt to buy the vendor’s yellow cotton T-shirt with heat pressed vinyl designed buttons in blue, purple, green, and red. Or just go with the headband and enjoy outfitting your child in their own interpretation of the famous cat, like in Pete the Cat: Too Cool for School where Pete debates wearing all kinds of wild outfits including cowboy boots, mismatched socks, a neck tie, and more.
3Best Pete the Cat Costume with Guitar for Toddlers
For Pete the Cat super fans, the release of the Pete the Cat: A Groovy New Year musical was a big deal. Including the voices of Elvis Costello and Diana Krall, the 2017 singalong film made Pete’s parents rock stars and ended with a giant party. Naturally, Pete played guitar, and so can your wannabe Pete with this costume that includes a fake inflatable instrument. The costume itself is a polyester velcro jumpsuit with a detached hood and built in faux sneakers in mismatched red and blue. The hood features Pete’s face. On the chest is also an embroidered heart for an extra special touch.
4Best Custom Made Pete Costume for Kids from Etsy
For a sweet and cozy Pete look, turn again to Etsy and this loose, custom made Pete the Cat costume. The body suit is an all blue one piece that you velcro in the back. And as for Pete’s darling little face, well, that’s on an attached hood with exaggerated cartoon size eyes and ears and yarn whiskers that hang off either side. The costume is designed to be really roomy so your child can move around on Halloween night as well as wear other clothing underneath — a nice option if you’re expecting an especially chilly October 31 evening.
5DIY Pete the Cat Costume with a Blue Hoodie
A hoodie can be so many things. In this case, make it into Pete the Cat by applying The Sensible Home blog’s instructions attaching felt eyes and ears to the top of it. Then take a little yellow short sleeve button down — you could buy this at a thrift store to save money — and grab some oversized colorful buttons from your area sewing store, and replace the shirt’s buttons with those. Now your child can wear the hoodie unzipped over their yellow shirt (or over it if they want to be especially authentic) and get the same Pete the Cat costume look as any store bought options.
Ready to have a groovy Halloween? Think like Pete and grab a skateboard and a blue suit and you’ll have all you need for a perfect Pete the Cat costume this year.
This article was originally published on