DIY "Sesame Street" Costumes

Get a yellow oversized sweatshirt with a hood or matching ski cap and a pair of orange leggings.

Take two polystyrene balls, approximately two to three inches in diameter. Paint half of each ball lavender. These will be Big Bird's eyelids.

Put the hat or hood on your child. Big Bird's Eyes sit on top of his head, so estimate where they will go. Arrange them so the eyelids are slightly visible from the front, as Big Bird has heavy lids.

Draw two black pupils on the eyes, about the size of a quarter. Mark where the eyeballs will go, remove the costume and hot glue them to the top of the hood or hat. Hot glue some yellow feathers sticking up behind the eyeballs.

Glue some large yellow feathers to the lower back area of the sweatshirt for Big Bird's tail. Finish the costume with orange slippers, yellow gloves and a yellow beak mask.

Put your child in a red fleece pajama or sweat suit. Put on a red ski cap.

Draw two black pupils on two polystyrene eyeballs. Glue to the top of the hat so they sit on top of the child's head. Elmo does not have eyelids.

Paint a polystyrene egg orange. Center it right between and just below the two eyes. Glue it on. Add red gloves and red fuzzy slippers to finish the costume.

Get a blue fleece hooded sweatshirt and sweatpants.

Draw black pupils on two foam balls and glue them on top of the hood, facing the pupils slightly in towards each other. Turn the eye on your right, which will be the child's left, slightly upward so the pupil in it is higher than the other one. Cookie Monster's eyes are a bit crossed.

Put on blue gloves and blue slippers. Give your child a rubber cookie to carry.

Lay a green fleece sweat suit or pajamas on the table. Dip a rag in some black shoe polish and blot it well on paper towels. Smudge some of the polish on the outfit with the rag randomly to make it look a bit dirty. Make dirty smudges on a matching green ski cap.

Draw black pupils on polystyrene eyes. Glue them to the top of the ski cap.

Get or make a cardboard tube that fits around your child's waist. It should go from about the knee to slightly below the arm pits. Paint it gray like a garbage can. Smudge it with the rag in some places.

Staple green ribbons or straps to the inside edges of the garbage can so they act like suspenders. Adjust them so the garbage can hangs at the right height on your child. Measure and cut a cardboard circle, about 18 inches in diameter.

Cut a 1-by-6 inch strip of cardboard and staple it to the center of the circle, raising the center slightly like a handle. Paint it gray, smudge it and staple or hot glue it to the back of your child's can.