Making Halloween Costumes from Household Items
Make Halloween Costumes on a Budget
Not everyone has a budget for buying Halloween costumes, or even for buying materials like faux leather or lengths of satin for sewing your own.
Here are some starter ideas for using items you might already have available around the house, or which you could pick up cheaply at a $2 store.
Here are some starter ideas for using items you might already have available around the house, or which you could pick up cheaply at a $2 store.
Old sheets
If you have sheets or pillowcases you're prepared to cut up, you can have quite a range of possible costumes.
White sheets - can be ghosts or angel dresses.
Black sheets - witch's dress, skeleton, black Spider-Man/Venom
For skeleton and Spider-Man costumes: cut bones/webbing out of white sheeting (or paper coated with decoupage varnish) and glue to black bodysuit costume, or paint on with fabric paint (glow in the dark paint is ideal), or use liquid latex to draw on the black sheeting.
Pastel sheets - princess or fairy dress
Bright blue - Superman costume (add the logo and red underwear)
New sheeting
Sheets you don't want to cut up can still be wrapped as a Roman toga, an Indian sari, or tacked into a glamour dress shape.
White sheets - can be ghosts or angel dresses.
Black sheets - witch's dress, skeleton, black Spider-Man/Venom
For skeleton and Spider-Man costumes: cut bones/webbing out of white sheeting (or paper coated with decoupage varnish) and glue to black bodysuit costume, or paint on with fabric paint (glow in the dark paint is ideal), or use liquid latex to draw on the black sheeting.
Pastel sheets - princess or fairy dress
Bright blue - Superman costume (add the logo and red underwear)
New sheeting
Sheets you don't want to cut up can still be wrapped as a Roman toga, an Indian sari, or tacked into a glamour dress shape.
Old pillowcases
Ordinary sized pillowcases can make a dress for a toddler, or a waistcoat/tunic (ideal for pirate, urchin, and Robin Hood costumes) for a slim adult, while a continental pillowcase will create a waistcoat to fit a larger adult.A pillowcase can also make a pair of boot gaiters (ie, mock boot "legs" to wear above a pair of shoes), but you will need garters to keep them up. Make a loose cuff at the top of the boot under which the garter can hide.
Smear your boot toppers with shoe polish, set with hairspray, and allow to dry for a few days in the sun or near (not on!) a heater. The polish will still rub off on furniture and clothing, so take an old towel with you to protect your host's sofa, and a carrier bag in case you want to remove them.
You can also experiment with acrylic paint straight out the tube. The paint layer will crack a little once dry as the fabric moves, but could produce a nice distressed leather look.
Image by Olaf Gradin
Netting bath puffs
These are my favourite item to hang onto once I'm done using them in the shower. I have a box full of old bath puffs. Unravelled, they are long tubes of tulle netting. (Run them through the washing machine so that they are clean.)
You can use the tube as a sheer boa, or, cut to length, as sheer sleeves on a dress.
Or cut down the length of one side and use as layers of tulle to add volume under a chiffon skirt, or as a pretty ballet tutu.
Make fairy, butterfly, or angel wings by bending wire into shape and stretching the netting over the wire. The holes in the netting make it simple to stitch it attractively into place using a complementary colour thread. You can also easily embroider patterns or designs on the netting.
You can use the tube as a sheer boa, or, cut to length, as sheer sleeves on a dress.
Or cut down the length of one side and use as layers of tulle to add volume under a chiffon skirt, or as a pretty ballet tutu.
Make fairy, butterfly, or angel wings by bending wire into shape and stretching the netting over the wire. The holes in the netting make it simple to stitch it attractively into place using a complementary colour thread. You can also easily embroider patterns or designs on the netting.
Bath puffs
Old black Lycra swimming costumes / bathers
Keep your daughter's old black Lycra swimming costumes as she grows out of them. The fabric is ideal for making bat's wings, using wire to shape the wings, and you can join pieces of Lycra together for bigger projects giving your bat a broken, tattered wing look.
Need some help and ideas?
Try these books
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More great ideas for making kids' costumes
Tips for frugal families
Make your own Harry Potter costumes
Share your tips for budget Halloween costumes, and other savings
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Tipi
Oct 21, 2011 @ 9:37 am | delete
- What a great way to recycle and reuse, just turn your everyday household items into a creative costume, fun and practical!
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riff999
Sep 12, 2010 @ 11:42 pm | delete
- Some great ideas.
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OhMe
Feb 28, 2009 @ 5:44 pm | delete
- Great ideas. Lensrolling to Trunk or Treat.
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Reply
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Oct 3, 2008 @ 12:19 am | delete
- Wow, Making Halloween Costumes from Household Items, amazing!
Halloween means excitement, I have seen your tips really, its a great idea of making the waste things as the most useful one . I like your creativity, thanks for such a useful information.
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stargazer00
Aug 6, 2008 @ 11:04 pm | delete
- Some great ideas here. Lensrolled to my Halloween Lens.
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