Here’s a simple way to make an authentic police uniform for the little officer in your life using badges and patches that are free exact replicas of your local county or city police!

With a grandfather who is a retired police detective, our boys’ love of the force is only amplified! But unlike an expensively-priced and cheaply-made costume, you can make your own hand-me-down worthy dress up uniform!

To make your own authentic junior police officer uniform, first gather your supplies: you will need a long sleeve button down navy blue shirt, a navy blue pair of pants, access to a computer/printer, dark fabric transfer paper (Walmart: in office supply, not craft area), and an iron. A belt with officer accessories (walkie talkie, gun, handcuffs, small flashlight, etc.) are a bonus!

Google search “[your city] police badge” and”[your city] police patch” to find the badge and the patch for your desired city. There among the random mug shots and other photos, you’ll find what you’re looking for! Save the images from the internet, then print them onto dark transfer paper. You will need two “patches” (one for each upper arm) and a “badge” for the chest.

[If you want to go the extra mile, you can [try to find a blank name patch or] make a custom name patch by cut & pasting bits of the badge image border to “build” a sewn-patch-looking rounded rectangle. Then add the last name in all caps to the “name badge” by wither inserting the image into a Word file and adding text over it or by adding text over the image in a Paint or another comparable program.]

If your junior officer has not yet accumulated handcuffs, walkie talkie, etc. over the years, you can usually find a whole playset of police swag at the dollar store this time of year. We have all sorts of random black flip phones and walkie talkies and pouches around the house, it seems! A mini flip-top spiral notebook is great for writing tickets, too. *sigh*

We’ve had this uniform since my now-almost-nine-year-old was four! It has been washed and worn too many times to count and is still hanging in there.

I also made officer shirts as party favors for our eldest’s police birthday party a couple of years ago. I just used inexpensive ringer tees from Walmart. Each child had his name on a shirt. They were a hit! [Umm… Incidentally, I accidentally put “badges” on the sleeves and “patches” on the chest of the shirts… but nobody seemed to notice… THANK GOODNESS!]

Fun! So, I’m curious, are you guys store-bought or handmade (or semi-homemade) costume people? Coordinating sibling/family costumes, or to each his own? What’s everyone dressing up as this year? Do tell!

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