The topic of sewing a wizard's cloak came up on Ravelry this morning and I thought it was worth posting my reply here as well, since there are stitchers who don't knit or crochet and might want to know how to make a basic wizard cloak for their kids.

The question was how to sew a simple Hogwart's style cloak for a quick costume. Thanks to an old library book on Elizabethan costuming, I knew the answer :) This is a slightly expanded version of my reply to the original poster.

Wizard cloaks are made from a circle.

Big circle with the radius as long as you want the cloak to be. Fold it in half.

Cut a hole in the middle of the circle for the neck.

Cut down the front of the circle for the front opening.

Cut slits for the sleeves, making sure that the bodice is wide enough for the chest measurement with a bit of ease.

Sew sleeves and side seams and hem everything else. Stick a button and a buttonhole on the front. Or ties.

To make a better finished cloak you can add facings to the neck and front opening.

A fancier cloak might have pockets in the side seams for holding the wizarding essentials (wand, toad, vial of goo etc), or a hood.

A hood can be made of two pieces of fabric shaped like this

Sew them together along the top and back, hem the front and sew it to the neckline. Or sew it to the neckline and then hem the hood and the front at the same time (I think that might work).