Okay, let’s get one thing straight right now–kids are expensive. I’m sure you knew that, right? Also, I don’t know about you but ever since Summer started it’s been worse. I mean, it seems like all my kids want to do is eat all day, every day. So–what does that have to do with a diy cow costume? Well, in case you didn’t know one of my personal most favorite days of the year is tomorrow. That’s right folks, it’s time for another Cow Appreciation Day thanks to the wonderful folks at Chick-fil-A. Of course, if you’re going to celebrate right you need a cow costume. No worries though! You don’t have to spend a lot or have any special equipment to make one. And if you’re like me your kids can use their diy cow costume for years to come! That’s a mom win right there!

what is Cow Appreciation Day?

First of all, if you didn’t know let’s get this out of the way–it’s Cow Appreciation Day. Not Cow Day, Free Food Day, or Dress Like a Cow Day. I swear, every year I overheard someone on the phone with friends or family telling them to “get down to Chick-fil-A right now! It’s Cow Day and they’re giving away free food!”

Cow Appreciation Day started 15 years ago and is basically Chick-fil-A’s way to show their customers some appreciation. Dress up like a cow (or at least cow-ish) and you’ll get a free entree, no strings attached! It used to be a little different and depending on your level of cow-ness you would either get a free entree or a free meal. However, they changed it last year to make it more cohesive across the board. You can also upgrade to a meal and just pay the difference if you’d like to.

how to make a diy cow costume: two ways

Over the years I’ve made two different types of diy cow costumes, a sewed version and a no-sew version. Both are super simple and totally affordable to make. The first step of the process is the same for both, just cut out cow spots from either material. Then either sew on or use an iron to adhere the heat transfer material.

sewed diy cow costume

For this version of the cow costume you’ll need:

• black felt
• black thread
• scissors
• needle or sewing machine

This really is “sew” simple because all you need to do is cut out random splotches from the felt. I have learned the bigger the better–otherwise you risk looking like a dalmatian. And I’m pretty sure there’s not a Dalmatian Appreciation Day…

no-sew diy cow costume

For a no-sew version you’ll need the following:

• black heat transfer material (also known as htv)
• scissors
• iron
• parchment paper

If you’ve never used heat transfer material before it’s very simple and you don’t even need a cutting machine. You can cut your cow spots out of the material by hand and then use your iron to adhere it to the blank shirts. Make sure you follow all directions on your heat transfer material. Always use a no steam setting on your iron and I like to use parchment paper as a barrier between the iron and plastic backing on the heat transfer.

Once you have your cow print tees you can complete the look with some white and black accessories or go all out with face paint if you want. It’s really fun to go and see what people come up with for their own DIY cow costume!

Do you celebrate Cow Appreciation Day? What’s your favorite entree at Chick-fil-A?