How to Make a Swamp Thing Halloween Costume
If you're child wants to portray a monster next Halloween, you can assemble a costume and send him out of the house looking like Swamp Thing. There are a variety of ways that you can make it, each with their own since of personalization, with just a bit of fabric, yarn and some patience.
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Things You'll Need
- Green t-shirt
- Green sweat pants or shorts
- Multicolored green and yellow yarn up to 4 skeins
- Multicolored swatches of green muslin (2 yards total)
- Green and yellow spray paint
- Sewing machine
- Green thread
- Scissors
- Wig
- Twigs
- Fuzzy green monster slippers
- Rubber snakes
- Green and yellow face and body paint
Instructions
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The Costume Body
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1
Tear long strips of the fabric. Muslin and light easily tangled fabrics are best. Do not hem the strips. You want them to appear ratty and tangled on your costume.
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2
Cut long multiple lengths of the yarn using the scissors. The yarn needs to be long enough so that it drapes and swings freely when doubled over and sewn onto the shirt or sweat pants.
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3
Grab small bundles of torn fabric and yarn and sew them onto the t-shirt and pants so that all areas of the shirt and pants are hidden. Don't sew each group into rows; scatter them about the clothing starting at the top of the shirt and work your way down. The fabric and yarn should hang from the shirt down to cover the top of the pants.
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4
Spray the green and yellow spray paint in a random pattern around the costume. This will add more color depth to the costume, and create a sense of the camouflage that an actual swamp monster would require in a swamp.
The Final Touches
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5
Spray green and yellow strips into the wig so that it appears moldy. You can carefully add strips of yarn and the torn fabric to the wig as well. This will draw the wig down and into the rest of your costume giving it a cohesive look.
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6
Tangle small twigs, with or without their leaves, into the yarn and fabric body of the costume, as well as into the wig.
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7
Add rubber snakes into the wig and in a few spots on the body of the costume. Common areas are over shoulders, and around ankles, legs, waists and wrists. The snakes may need to be sewn down so that they will stay during normal wear.
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8
Paint all of the visible skin of the costume wearer green. While this paint is still wet, add yellows, and other shades of greens, browns, whites and blacks to the paint so that you create a mouldering, mottled and somewhat reptilian look to your subject.
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9
Put on your fuzzy green monster slippers and head out the door to your swamp thing costume party.
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Tips & Warnings
This costume is great for parties, as long as the wearer doesn't wish to participate in a lot of physical activities.
If you don't have a sewing machine, or aren't comfortable sewing by hand, you can use a hot glue gun to attach your twigs, leaves, snakes, yarn and fabric to your costume.
If you don't have fuzzy green slippers, you can paint your own by using some green spray paint over just about any other color of fuzz. Just be aware that the paint will make the fuzz stiff, and can't be removed.
