Halloween is almost here. Have your kids made up their mind about costumes yet? Store-bought costumes can be expensive, yet not well made. Also, not everyone wants to spend hundreds of dollars on an outfit for a few hours!
Children grow up so fast that last year’s costumes won’t even fit. Not that they would want to repeat the costume anyway. So what’s a parent to do? Go the DIY route of course. Homemade costumes are inexpensive, it goes without saying. But you don’t need a lot of time or materials to make them either. Some ideas are simple enough that you don’t even have to sew if you can’t.
Check out some whacky costume ideas for your kids this year:
Food
This one is a perennial favorite. Dress your child as their favorite fruit or vegetable. Why stop there? You can make them up to look like their favorite pieces of candy or other desserts. A quick Google search brings up plenty of instructions for a donut and other candy costumes. You can even dress them up as a meal. Think spaghetti and meatballs or mac and cheese for inspiration.
Not all costumes need sewing either. Sometimes all you need is some clothes in the right colors and some markers/felt. You can easily draw, paint or stick pieces to shirts for the ‘costume.’ For instance, a strawberry costume needs a red dress and some glued on yellow felt seeds. With a green necklace for the leaves and a bright red headband, your little one is all set!
Famous Fictional Characters
Buying an official Harry Potter or Princess Leia costume is expensive. But these famous fictional characters have a signature look that is quite easy to replicate. For Harry Potter, you need a lightning-shaped scar, some round glasses, and dark hair. For Princess Leia, the space buns are a necessity.
Think about other fictional characters and what exactly defines their costumes. You can always DIY the details.
Superheroes
There is no shortage of superheroes to choose from. Whether you go for the classic Spiderman, Batman, Superman or the newer cast from The Avengers, you have a range of heroes to pick from. Once again, the key to these costumes is to think about what makes them unique. You don’t have to purchase the complete outfit from a store or online.
If your child wants to dress up as Thor, for example, you can spray paint a toy hammer and dress them up in shiny silver clothes. For Batman, you’d need a dark outfit, a black cape, and a pointy face mask. Young children won’t really notice or miss the details.
A great way to get older kids excited about their costumes is to involve them in making it. Why copy an existing superhero when you can make one yourself? Ask them to come up with a name, their superpowers, and even a logo/emblem. Paint or stitch the emblem on their custom outfit. Add a cape (or not!) and you have a perfect costume.
Spooky Characters
Halloween is the season of all things creepy and spooky. So why not take inspiration from that? Some great ideas for children’s costumes are the like ghosts, witches, and skeletons. They don’t have to be a specific character from a movie or book. A genetic witch costume just needs black clothes and a pointy hat. Accessorize with a broom and you’re ready!
