How to Choose the Perfect Princess Dress Up Costume

Princesses and dressing up are all the rage among little girls and adults alike.  However, choosing a good and quality princess dress up costume for your little girl is not as easy as it seems.  There are varying qualities and styles when it comes to the perfect costume.  For example, you may find dress up clothes at a dollar store or even at Walmart or Target that will last for a couple wears and then fall apart destined to be thrown in the trash along with your money.  On the other hand, you can easliy find beautiful and frilly dress up costumes at local department stores or high-end boutiques that cost a fortune, but will last a longer than their cheaper counterparts.

If you don't like either of those options, you are like the rest of us, searching for a costume for our girls that is somewhere in between the cheap falling apart costumes and the fancy dresses with the fancy price tag that doesn't fit into our budget no matter how much we stretch it.

Usually if you can cut out the middle man (a.k.a store, or building) you cut out most of the markup.  Department stores and high-end boutiques have to pay thousands in rent, buy racks and pegs, hire sales associates, equipment, heating and lighting bills, etc.  Look for online retailers that sell what you are looking for.  For example, Cinderella is pretty much every girl's favorite princess.  You will be safe if you buy Cinderella because most girls will adore the dress.  So, if you are looking for a Cinderella princess costume, you can Google, "Cinderella princess dress up". 

You can also look for good deals on new costumes on ebay.  You can find machine washable costumes for under $30 and free shipping with a generous return policy in most cases.  You will want to loook for a costume that is fully serged on all the edges so it doesn't fray and without a lot of embelleshements to fall off or rip.  This especially happens when you get a princess dress that is really full with a tuelle skirt.  Little girls tend to step on them and rip the tulle.  It is better to buy a fullness slip to go under the princess clothes so the child won't ruin the dress during her tea party, birthday party, Disneyland vacation , or just every day dress up play.

Most importantly, measure your child to avoid getting the wrong size!  You will want to measure how many inches she is from her shoulder to her ankle.  Getting a dress that is too long is frustrating to her and you as she steps on the hem and trips as she walks.  You will want to get one that will last for a long time and is made from quality fabrics.  A good brand is Little Adventures.  All of their princess dresses are fully serged, made from soft and comfortable fabrics that are not itchy and they are machine washable.  You can find their brand from retailers that sell online, ebay, or at brick and mortar stores.

Good luck choosing the perfect dress for your little princess!