The most popular addition is the old striped tea towel wrapped around the head. If you don't have a suitable tea towel, you can try using a pashmina which can be wrapped around your child's head, turban-style. If you've got a little Joseph or a Shepherd, you'll be pleased to know this is one of the easier costumes to rustle up! You simply need to make a plain or stripy tunic and tie it around your child's waist with a length of rope or a leather belt. If you need to provide your own baby Jesus prop, you can use a child's doll, swaddled in a blanket or towel, for your little Mary to carry. Kids love any excuse to get out the fancy dress box, and Christmas is no exception. If your little one is keen to put on a Nativity at home, or is playing a starring role as Joseph in the school play, look no further for info on how to put together a DIY Joseph costume!

All this took place in fulfillment of what the Lord had spoken through the Prophet, ‘Mark! The maiden will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call His name Immanuel’–a word which signifies ‘God with us’. When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded, and brought home his wife, but did not live with her until she had given birth to a son. The child’s name he called JESUS.”Of course, don't forget the crown! You can easily make a crown out of cardboard, and use some coloured tissue paper or glitzy wrapping paper to create the sparkling 'jewels'. And they'll need a present to carry for the baby Jesus; you can make this from an old cardboard box, covered in gold or shiny wrapping paper, too. So many Nativity costumes can be started by making a simple tunic, otherwise known as a tabard, which is a long rectangle of fabric that can be adapted to be the basis of almost any costume. You can even cheat and adapt an old pillowcase (for tiny tots). There are certainly many places you can buy animal outfits which can be used for Nativity plays, but another really simple, cheap way to get into the role is with a simple headband, tail and face paints.

Again, you can make a simple tunic for these costumes –just use a colourful or velvet fabric for a King or a Wise Man. For more regal accessories, add a statement piece of jewellery, such as a large pendant. For the complete look, follow our step-by-step picture guide to making an Angel Nativity costume here. 6 How to make a stable animal Nativity costume

How to make a tabard for a Nativity costume

You can then decorate it in the colours of the animal. For added authenticity, cover the cardboard in furry fabric. Faces can then be painted to add an extra cute dimension to your child's outfit. To make your angel's halo, you can simply use a plain headband with some silver or gold pipe cleaners. Easy! Find more steps on how to make a halo here. TIP: Using coloured card makes this job much simpler and for added sparkle you could also cut out smaller gold stars to hang from the pipe cleaner around your head. The circumstances of the birth of Jesus Christ were these. After his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they were united in marriage, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. All you need is a long rectangle of fabric to fashion into a tunic, or you can even cheat and adapt an old pillowcase for little ones!