Constructing Halloween Costumes

Posted by Kathy Torrence on Oct 12, 2008 in Crafts, Family Stuff |

When I asked Matt and Emily what they wanted to be for Halloween this year, they of course answered that they wanted me to make them costumes (no simple costumes from Target or Party City for my kids this year!).  I do enjoy making their costumes…it’s just that this is my first year back to work and I don’t have nearly as much time as in previous years.  But I thought I’d start early and give it a shot.

One of my favorite sites for Halloween costume ideas is Family Fun – they have tons of ideas and most are fairly simple and inexpensive to create.

After much discussion and debate, Emily decided to try the Pick of the Litter costume:

 

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We started with a white hooded sweatshirt and then added some ‘spots’ made from cut pieces of faux fur (if you try this, let me warn you that cutting faux fur is VERY messy – the fur was certainly flying as we cut it).  We attached the fur with double-sided carpet tape.  We also cut out ears and a tail (stuffed leg of an old pair of tights) and pinned them on.  The directions from Family Fun have you making your own dog collar – I just bought a real dog collar that I’ll use on Daisy or Geddy when Halloween is over.

So Emily will wear that doggie outfit while carrying this box over her shoulders:

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I took a cardboard box and used pipe cleaners to attach some stuffed dogs to the edges (a-la those irritating twist ties in toy packaging that drives all parents nuts on Christmas morning – these dogs certainly aren’t going anywhere).  I also added some strips of newspaper to make it look even more like a box full of newborn puppies.  There are some pieces of rope that will go over her shoulders – the box started to get a little heavy, so I had to watch how many puppies I used (there is also one in the back to help to counterbalance the weight of the three in the front). 

I still want to make her a little doggie tag to hang from the collar, but for the most part, her costume is done.

Matt’s costume on the other hand…

He chose the Alien Encounter costume from Family Fun.  I’ve wanted to try this costume before, so even though it’s a bit complicated, I figured this year I’d give it a try. 

So far, I’ve only had time to create the paper mache alien head using a balloon, newspaper and a strong cardboard tube (I used one from a wrapping paper roll).  The glue is created with flour and water and then you are supposed to add 3-4 layers of newspaper on top of the balloon.  What they don’t tell you is that each layer takes about 24 hours to dry!  So here’s our costume so far (after working on it since Friday):

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Does it look like an alien head?  Maybe after I paint it?  I’ll let you know how it goes…

2 Comments

Invisalign Atlanta
Oct 12, 2008 at 5:43 pm

Wow, the Alien Encounter costume look pretty far out there. Love to see how yours turns out.

Also I thought you might also be interested in this article about candy, kids, and Halloween titled “Dentists Say Eating Tons of Halloween Candy At Once is Okay?” at: http://www.atlantadentalcenter.com/blog/?p=24


 
Joanie
Oct 12, 2008 at 6:16 pm

Hey! Andrew was the Alien Encounter last year! I’ll email you a picture!

Joanie


 

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