If you've just discovered that tomorrow is World Book Day you might be considering crawling behind the couch for a good old sob.
While some parents revel in the opportunity to recreate their child's favourite book character, others are a little less enthusiastic about the occasion.
This year's event takes place on Thursday, March 2, and with just hours to go, you might be wondering what character your child can possibly go as and how on earth you're going to be able to pull something together at the last minute.
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Well never fear. We've taken inspiration from the fabulous yet simple creations our Manchester families sent to us in recent years, to help you come up with some easy costume ideas.
Here we share the 15 simplest creations that won't take much effort at all - and certainly won't involve any sewing.
The Slightly Annoying Elephant
Sometimes all you need is a onesie and a book to make it work, like this little one who went as The Slightly Annoying Elephant from David Walliams' book.
If you've got the Doh Nutters board game, you could always use the elephant mask from that. Or if you have any other animal onesie, then there's no end of books you could choose - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Dear Zoo, Monkey Puzzle, you name it.
Room on the Broom
You don't even need a full witch's costume for this to work - just a hat and the book would do, or a hat attached to a headband like Isabelle's wearing here.
If you have a dress it'll look better but if not, it'll work with black leggings and top.
You can easily make a handmade broom and if you've got any teddies of characters from the book - like the dog, cat or frog - you could take those along too.
Matilda
Probably Roald Dahl's most emulated World Book Day character is Matilda - the little girl with special powers and a love of books.
And you don't need much to make it work. A denim dress, denim shorts and tights, or dungarees will do the job. Finish it off with a red hair ribbon and a copy of the book and you're there.
Bruce Bogtrotter
Also from Matilda is the character Bruce Bogtrotter - the one punished for eating the headteacher's chocolate cake by being force-fed the entire thing.
Three-year-old Laurence Lowrey pulled it off brilliantly and you can do the same with just a white top and a whole lot of cake. Shouldn't be too difficult persuading your child to eat cake for breakfast now should it!
Charlie Bucket
Perhaps one of the easiest creations of all is Roald Dahl's Charlie Bucket.
Just plain clothes, messy hair and your very own Wonka Bar or golden ticket, which you could easily make yourself.
If you want to make it even easier there are loads of free Wonka Bar printable templates online, so you don't even have to get the felt tips out.
Tintin
A special kind of sticky up hair will help when it comes to creating Tintin, the character created by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. But there's always hair gel to help with that.
A blue jumper and brown culottes, or some other cut off trousers will do the trick, along with some formal shoes.
Try to find a white dog teddy if you can as Tintin was always accompanied by his white Wire Fox Terrier Snowy. I think you could get away with a different breed though!
Angelina Ballerina
Many little ones might already have their own ballet costume so Angela Ballerina is another easy one to opt for.
Just a tutu and headband or bow would be enough to make it work if you've not got the whole kit and caboodle.
101 Dalmatians
There's no costume required for this one - just a white T-shirt and a black pen to make the doggy dots.
If your child doesn't mind face painting then you can do that too, like 10-year-old Yousef Chowdhury did here.
He went as Dalmatian number 57 and was accompanied by his sister Safah, who dressed as Moana.
The Paper Dolls
World Book Day wouldn't be the same without Julia Donaldson's characters in the mix and this one's a very simple one to recreate.
The Paper Dolls features just that - so you can your own paper dolls - and wear a simple dress and cardigan as the little girl in the story.
The Boy In The Dress
What could be simpler than The Boy In The Dress.
Whether it's their sister's or friend's dress, most boys can find someone willing to offer them a frock for the day. Shoes might be a bit trickier, but any old flats or trainers would do the job.
Some clip-on earrings and a bracelet or necklace would help them pull it off too.
Billionaire Boy
Another Walliams favourite is the popular Billionaire Boy and it's pretty simple to create your own Joe Spud.
Julia Gallagher's son went as the character, wearing a golden hat and with 'money' falling from his pockets.
Either buy some pretend notes or make your own and stick them over your child's clothes. You could also buy a fake gold medallion to put around their neck, or make one at home.
Captain Underpants
Freddie Butler went all out with the Captain Underpants costume, but you could easily recreate this with some white or pink clothing underneath some - yes you guessed it - underpants.
Just don't forget to put some undies on the bottom layer too!
Sophie from The BFG
The BFG himself is a big hit for World Book Day, but if you don't fancy creating those big ears, this could be an easier option.
Sophie is a very simple character to recreate. All you need is pyjamas or a nightie, some glasses and your own tub of 'sweet dreams' and you've got your very own orphan.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
It's mostly school clothes you've probably already got for this one, with just shorts and white top needed.
Even the poorest of drawers could probably make the face for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but if you're really struggling you can simply go online to get a printout.
Oliver Twist
Step back in time a bit for this one but it's not hard to create your own Oliver Twist.
Shorts and a tatty shirt will help, as will a flat cap.
And you can always make your own 'boy for sale' sign like Beth Brocklehurst's son Eddie did here.
Oh and don't forget a bit of dirt on their face too.
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