Nugget loves a good dress-up day. Like every day. He lived in his Hamilton costume for a solid 6 months and I bought him a George Washington costume so that the Hamilton costume could get washed with a bit more frequency. We love going to plays and he routinely comes home to sing the songs, make costumes out of paper, rearrange our furniture to look like the set, and make posters advertising his version of the play. He started kindergarten this year and having to wear a school uniform has been killing him. I had to present it as his “school costume” to get him to buy in.
So I knew when I was looking for Christmas inspiration this year that I had struck gold with Little Bookish Wardrobe. It has been so much fun for both of us!
It is a subscription box that you can get on a regular basis or just pick one box as a gift. Each month you get a hardcover children’s book, a related costume and accessories, a card with reading comprehension/discussion questions and suggested play activities, as well as a simple craft that goes with the story. Most months seem to have a boy and girl option, while some months are more gender neutral. You can choose to be surprised or take a look at the monthly hint to make sure it is something you think your child will enjoy. It all comes in an adorable box that immediately gives you a sense of the whimsical nature of the company. Nugget loves the boxes and has been saving them to keep his costumes in.
I initially ordered just one box as a gift in order to try it out. Then I ordered two more. Then I broke down and subscribed. It is just too much cuteness!
Our first box came with a book about penguins arguing about who was the true star of the story, only to be partially erased by the illustrator when they couldn’t get along. When Nugget saw the accompanying penguin costume, complete with penguin feet, he literally gasped in amazed happiness. He immediately put on the costume, crawled into my bed, and asked me to read the story. He wore it all day, and even practiced his waddle while singing songs from Mary Poppins. Because, you know, the penguin song. The pinecone penguin craft was also adorable.
The next box we opened had a book called Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich. I wouldn’t say this was Nugget’s favorite book, but he LOVED the dracula costume. It came with a cape, fake teeth, a bat, black pants, and the ever popular cravat, all of which he immediately began styling in attempt to make it look like Jefferson from Hamilton. He has a bit of a Hamilton obsession. I’m good with that.
Next was a book about all the things Santa does other than deliver presents. It came with cream tights (we re-named them leggings as he was concerned tights may turn him into a ballerina), and a soft sleeveless reindeer vest that zipped up the front and had a reindeer face and antlers on his hood. It even had a red nose! So of course he had to wear that to the optometrist. What? That isn’t what you wear to the eye doctor? You should try it some time. You get a lot of smiles and compliments that make you prance like Rudolph himself. Especially if you are belting out Hamildolph. (Google it. It’s Rudolph’s story set to music from Hamilton. It’s amazing!).
Our most recent box came this week. It contained a book called Big Whoop and I think it was our favorite book so far. A cranky fox has two friends who come up with increasingly wild stories and finally a gift in a effort to make their fox friend smile. It came with a a full body fox costume, complete with a fox head on the hood! Nugget immediately dropped trow to put it on and even wore it to soccer. We haven’t done the moon rock craft yet, but he is excited to do so.
All of the books have been high quality, simple but entertaining stories with beautiful pictures. They aren’t necessarily newly published books, so it has been fun to discover books we may not have otherwise found. The crafts have been simple and fun. The costumes are adorable. They have varied from somewhat better than Halloween costume quality to very nice. Nugget is already debating which one will make the best Halloween costume and has several times said “I wish we could wear costumes to school,” with a long, loud, longing sigh.
Little Bookish Wardrobe has been a treasure find. It allows us to build upon our two favorite things- books and costumes. It has facilitated creative play, snuggle time, extra story time at bedtime, and lots of smiles and excitement. For us as well as the general public. 🙂 I have reached out to the company owner with questions and she has been nothing but prompt and friendly in her replies.
What it is: fun, creative, supportive of literacy and imaginative play, a great gift, a good value for what you get, perfect for the child who loves to dress up, good for the younger child, a learning and conversation tool, a friendly and accessible small business
What it is not: for kids probably over 7 or 8
Would we recommend it? 1000%! It is such a fun subscription box. I only wish we had found it sooner!
You can find out more information at: https://www.littlebookishwardrobe.com/
Adventures with Chicken and Nugget 