How to Make a Ziggy Stardust Costume (DIY Guide)

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If you're looking for a costume that's relatively easy to create yet still has that "wow" factor, David Bowie's glamorous alter ego, Ziggy Stardurst, is the ideal choice.

After a quick trip to your local drugstore's makeup aisle, you'll be armed with all the affordable supplies you need to transform yourself into the iconic, out-of-this-world rockstar. With a little eyeliner (and a whole lot of face paint), you'll be ready to jam like an extraterrestrial rock sensation.

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Completing the David Bowie Ziggy Stardust costume by wearing a retro bodysuit is encouraged but not required.

Things You'll Need

  • Primer

  • Glue stick

  • Light shade of foundation

  • Beauty blender

  • Light shade of concealer

  • Concealer brush

  • Translucent powder

  • Powder brush

  • Powder bronzer

  • Bronzer brush

  • Red face paint

  • Red eyeshadow

  • Copper eyeshadow

  • Eyeshadow brush

  • Blending brush

  • Fan brush

  • Small eyeshadow brush

  • White highlighter shadow

  • Eyeliner brush

  • Black eyeliner

  • Black mascara

  • Red pencil eyeliner

  • Flat brush

  • Black liquid eyeliner

  • Blue pencil eyeliner

  • Gold lip gloss with shimmer

  • Optional​: Bodysuit or jumpsuit

Add Primer to Your Face

Apply a layer of primer to your face so the makeup has something to adhere to.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Add Glue Over Your Eyebrows

Use a glue stick to apply glue over your eyebrows. This will help you conceal them with makeup in a later step.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Add Foundation

Apply a light shade of foundation over your entire face, using a beauty blender to get even coverage.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Conceal your eyebrows with foundation by going over the glue you applied earlier, using a beauty blender to add more pigment as necessary.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Add Concealer to Your Forehead

Apply a light shade of concealer to the center of your forehead, the bridge of your nose, around your eyes (including over your eyebrows) and to the middle of your chin just below your bottom lip. Blend first with your fingers and then with a beauty blender as needed.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Set these highlighted areas with translucent powder, using a powder brush.

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Blend in the Concealer

Use a concealer brush to blend the concealer around your eyes.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Apply Bronzer

Use a bronzer brush to apply powder bronzer under your jawbone, under your cheekbones, on the sides of your nose and along your hairline. Remember, you want that harsh contrast for dramatic glam rock effect, so apply bronzer liberally.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson
Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Add Some Color Around the Eyes

Use an eyeshadow brush to apply highly pigmented red face paint to your eyelids.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Set the paint with red eyeshadow. Starting in the center of each lid, use your fingers and a blending brush to blend the shadow outward — toward the corners of your eyes and up toward your brows.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Use a clean eyeshadow brush to apply a copper shadow to the center of each lid and in the corners of each eye.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Tip

Clean up any shadow that's fallen onto your cheeks with concealer and a beauty blender.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Use a bronzer brush to apply red shadow over the contoured areas — along your hairline, under your cheekbones, on the sides of your nose and under your jawbone. Blend with a fan brush.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Apply red shadow to your lower lids using a small eyeshadow brush. Keep the pigment brighter in the middle and outer corners.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Highlight the inner corners of your eyes with a white highlighter shadow. Then, take black eyeliner and line your lower lid from the outer corner to the middle of your lid, bringing the liner up on the outer corners slightly. Blend and smudge with an eyeliner brush.

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Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Apply black mascara to your upper lashes.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Outline Ziggy Stardust's Lightning Bolt

Draw the outline of Ziggy Stardust's signature lightning bolt with red eyeliner. Starting from the center of your hairline, bring the liner down to the arch of your left eyebrow. Then, draw a parallel line from your hairline to the beginning of your left brow. Draw a triangular shape above your nose and the beginning of your right brow to complete the upper half of the lightning bolt shape on your forehead.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Complete the bolt outline on your left cheek with the red eyeliner. Then, fill in the bolt using red face paint and a flat brush.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Trace the Lightning Bolt

Use a black liquid eyeliner to trace along the outer edge of the bolt line, starting from the bottom and working your way up.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Using a blue pencil eyeliner, trace along the black liner.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson
Image Credit: Michele Anderson

Tip

Set the lightning bolt with translucent powder, using a powder brush, to ensure the makeup doesn't budge.

Add Lip Gloss

Apply a lip gloss in a shimmery gold color for your final Space Oddity touches.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

All that's left to do is squeeze yourself into a bodysuit and channel your inner Starman with this DIY Halloween costume. If you have a cape and happen to be rocking a mullet, you'll be mistaken left and right for the iconic rocker himself.

What's so great about David Bowie's fashion sense is that it's unisex, so anyone can use this Halloween costume idea to become a glam pop star.

Image Credit: Michele Anderson

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