Kids love dressing up. They also enjoy arts and crafts. So, wouldn’t it be fun to make your own fancy dress costume at home? Fancy dress is perfect for birthday parties, sleepovers, playdates and more. So, if your little ones love koalas, here’s how to make a koala bear costume that they can enjoy time and time again. 

Start with the Basics

The great thing about a koala costume is that you can typically use items of clothing you already own to create a simple, neutral base. Koalas are grey in colour, so opt for grey leggings or joggers paired with a matching grey t-shirt or hoodie. If you want your costume to look more like the fur or a koala then go for fleecy or faux-fur pieces. This base layer will provide a blank canvas for all the fun details you’ll add later.

Top Tip: If you want to stay on budget, recycle old clothes or look for neutral items in a charity shop or thrift store. This should keep costs down. 

Create the Koala Ears

Now comes the fun part - creating the koala ears. The easiest way to do this is to source a head band and some grey and white felt. As koala ears are round, you’ll need to cut two large circles from the grey felt and two smaller circles from the white felt and glue the white ones onto the grey ones. If you need inspiration, check out the illustrations in The Koala Who Could book if you have it, or find pictures you can copy. Once you’ve made the ears, use a glue gun (with adult supervision) to attach the ears to the headband. This is your first koala accessory made.

Create a Koala Nose/Face

Koalas have big, round, black noses and there are several ways you can create this. Firstly, buy some face paints and simply paint your nose black whenever you dress up. This is quick, simple and will wash off with ease. You could even try your hand at painting your full face.

The other option you have is to create a mask. You can do this using a paper plate and some elastic. Get as creative as you like and make your own koala face using paper, paint, colouring crayons or whatever arty equipment you have. You can then wear this alongside the ears you made. Or, you can make ears out of cardboard and attach these to your mask.

Make Koala Paws

Koalas have long, sharp claws which help them to climb high up into the eucalyptus trees they call home. To make koala paws, get hold of some grey gloves and cut out some black claws using felt or card. You can then attach the claws to the gloves for a realistic look.

If your little ones love koalas, why not book to see The Koala Who Could live on stage? This beautiful story by Rachel Bright and Jim Field tells the tale of a koala who learns to embrace change. It’s playing at the London Southbank Centre in April 2026, so get your tickets today and join in the fun.