Easy Halloween Costumes That You Can Make at Home

You don't have to spend a lot of money to have a creative costume for Halloween.

Adults and children alike look forward to Halloween. It's the one day each year that you can dress up as anything you like. Children get trick-or-treat candy and adults have an excuse to party. Halloween gives adults a chance to be creative with costuming. Children love the opportunity to let their imaginations turn them into princesses and skeletons. Buying costumes can be expensive, however. If your budget is limited, you and your children can still enjoy Halloween by making your own costumes at home.

Crayons

This colorful option works for children or adults. Find pants and a shirt in a solid color. Cut four strips of black felt for the bottoms of the pants and sleeves. Draw a wavy line down the center of each strip. Cut the felt in half along the line. You should now have six strips. Attach two strips to each sleeve and pant leg, leaving space between the wavy sides for color to show through. You can secure the felt with glue, or you can purchase self-adhesive felt. Cut the letters for the word "crayon" out of black felt as well. Attach these letters vertically down the front of the shirt. Add a party hat of a matching color to form the tip of your crayon costume.

Grapevine

Dress in an outfit of green or brown. Blow up green or purple balloons. You will need enough to cover your torso and back. Attach the balloons to your clothes using duct or masking tape. Try to cover as much of your body as you can. This will start to resemble a bunch of grapes. Buy a silk or plastic vine from your local craft store. Tape it between balloons or hanging down your arms and legs to embellish your grapevine costume.

Ninja

You might already have black clothing in your home. This can easily be turned into a ninja costume. Assemble a completely black outfit consisting of a long-sleeved black shirt, black pants (sweatpants or workout pants work best), black socks, and black shoes. Add black gloves if you have them. Find or buy black fabric. Cut the fabric into two long strips. The first strip can be tied around the waist to form a sash. The second should be wrapped and tied around the head to create the ninja's signature face mask. As assassins, ninjas carried weapons. You can add to the look by purchasing toy swords, sai, nunchucks or throwing stars at your local party store.

Pirates and Gypsies

These two costumes require the same basic pieces of clothing, so you can choose whether you want to make a pirate or a gypsy. For girls, use a loose, button-down blouse and a long skirt. Boys can use baggy pants with a button-down blouse. For pirate costumes, include a pair of boots. Your gypsy can go barefoot in the house or use skin-tone ballet slippers. Cut strips of fabric to make sashes and headscarves for both costumes. Embellish a pirate costume with an eye patch and a toy sword. Add jewelry to a gypsy costume to finish the look.

References

• Colorful and Easy Crayon Costume
• "Seventeen"; DIY Halloween Costumes; Dan Koday