I'm dressing my son up as Oliver twist for world book day Any suggestions how to make it look really authentic

Question

I'm dressing my son up as Oliver twist for world book day Any suggestions how to make it look really authentic

Answer 1

I won the Dickens festival when I was a kid, I was the Artful dodger though.

We didn't use mud to dirty up we just burnt old corks out of wine bottles, easier  to spread about and less messy as mud as we had to do this every day for the whole week, and it looked more authentic than mud.

The hat you can get from almost any shops now as they are in fashion, if you are in the UK, Claire's accessories sell them for about £2.

And don't forget to dirty his legs, lots of times at the festival people send their kids with dirty faces and nice clean legs and socks and decent shoes on.

Tatty shoes or boots with no laces and definitely no socks.

Answer 2

tatty trousers - ie school trousers he has grown out of, cut to look ragedly, waistcoat, striped or checked shirt, neckscarf, dirty face, flat cap!  enjoy!

Answer 3

plenty of dirt on his face,

starve him for a week.lol

Answer 4

Dirty face, knees through on his trousers, bare (mucky) feet, bowl in one hand, spoon in the other. And nits hehehehe!

Answer 5

give him a black eye and a thick lip.

Answer 6

i dressed my son as oliver for world book day and he won ! as i was on limited budget i cut an old white shirt of his dads and made a pair of his old school trousers knee length and really scraggy,then took it all to the garden and rolled it in mud, then let it dry, he also wore an "andy cap " cap which i bought in charity shop, teachers were so impressed as loads of kids had turned up in hired costumes,  p.s dont forget to dirty up sons face with mud, for authenticity, i;m sure he'l have a great day

Answer 7

Not sure if you have an open fire.  If you do,  you could send him up chimney to give it a good sweep.  He'll then be covered in soot (v authentic).

Answer 8

Tattered clothes and dirty face, legs etc.  A sweet little cap and perhaps a silky scarf.  Take a look online to see photos/pictures of TV and film productions for Oliver that should help with inspiration.

Answer 9

Tatterd clothing, jaunty cap, also if he wears a white shirt get a tea bag dampen it and rub it on the shirt and crush coffee granials into to make it really mucky looking use face paints paint on a couple of bumps and bruises ect.

wear long socks and tatty shorts and brown sandly shoes if poss.

Answer 10

Helen N's idea for costume is great, don't forget to get him to carry a little wooden bowl for 'more gruel please'.

Answer 11

send him out on the rob.

Answer 12

I was going to almost exaclty the same as Magic said.

Answer 13

Well susie03 has the main point as the bowl defines him as Oliver Twist as most know him from the book - the rest is as the others say (particularly Helen N) - no need to spend a lot of money if he is to be in rags (before it all came good in the end of course!).