Making your own costume can save money and is a terrific activity for children. Taking part in the creation of the costume–coming up with the idea, brainstorming supply ideas, searching for the final touch, can be a good learning experience. This costume is great if you plan to spend a lot of time dressed up or are attending an after trick-or-treat Halloween party. You can transform from the Ghost of Charlie Brown to simply being Charlie Brown. The following will provide you with the simple items for making this costume.

What You Will Need

• Yellow Polo Shirt or T-shirt
• Yellow Socks (optional–white can be used)
• Black Shorts or Pants
• Black Shoes
• Black Fabric Marker or self-stick felt material
• White Sheet (or large piece of white material)
• Scissors

How to Make Charlie Brown’s Outfit

Step 1: Draw or apply a thick zigzag line across the chest of the shirt to resemble that of Charlie Browns shirt. To use the self-stick felt material, cut out a zigzag, remove backing and apply the material to the shirt.

NOTE: You can also purchase a t-shirt from many online retailers including Amazon and 80stees.com The shirts vary in price from $10 to over $30. To keep cost low you could make your own if you don’t plan on wearing it after Halloween. Using the self-stick material will allow the wearer to remove the stripe after Halloween and reuse the yellow shirt.

Making the Ghost of Charlie Brown

Step 2: Take your white sheet or material and drape it over your head. Have a friend help you even it out over your body and gently mark the eye holes.

Step 3: Remove the sheet and cut out the eye holes. On the interior of the sheet mark the eye holes using a marker. Just simply mark around them to help you locate them when putting the sheet on.

Step 4: Remember, in the classic “It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown,”  by Charles Schulz, Charlie Brown had trouble with the scissors. Be sure to cut several holes throughout the sheet to replicate his mistakes. The circles around the eye holes on the interior of the sheet will keep the eye holes distinguishable from the rest of the holes.

Step 5: Assemble your costume by putting on the shorts, shirt, socks and shoes. Then place the sheet over top of your costume.

NOTE: Adding the Ghost element provides an additional dimension to the costume. If you don’t have a white sheet you can simply go as Charlie Brown. Just don’t be surprised if you end up with a few rocks in your candy bag!

This costume is great because you are dressed up as Charlie Brown’s ghost as in the movie and then if you are attending a party following trick-or-treating you can simply become Charlie Brown. It is also simple to wear because it is basically normal clothing. This makes a great costume for the boy who fusses at just about everything.

This is a simple costume you can create out of things you may already own.  It is great for small children because it is comfortable and it is also a good costume for a cool or cold Halloween night of trick-or-treating. Making the ears and the tail of the cat costume may be the most difficult parts, but can be created without sewing. Here is the basic idea to get you started.

What You Will Need for a Cat or Black Panther

• Matching Sweat Shirt (hooded or regular) and Sweat Pants (Black is the most common color)
• Black face paint or marking pen (eye liner also works well)
• Black Socks (or match your sweat clothes)
• Black, Brown or White Shoes
• Black Ribbon (about 18 inches in length–match your clothes)
• Black felt, Craft Foam or other material to make ears (match your clothes)
• Plastic Head Band
• 3 safety pins or stapler (or you can sew or staple on the ears and tail)
• Scissors

How to Make Cat Costume Ears

Step 1: Cut out two ears large enough to resemble cat ears. The ear should be triangular in shape. Craft foam is pictured here because it is a sturdy material that will stand up on its own to form the ears.

Step 2: Fold the craft foam in half.

Step 3: Cut the foam in half.

Step 4: Cut triangles with the foam folded. Unfolded the ears will be in the shape of a diamond.

NOTE: If you are making a panther costume, the ears of a panther are still in the shape of a triangle, but slightly curved at the top. Simply trim away the top point of the triangle to create a rounded top.

Step 5: Place the ears around the headband and staple the ears together as shown (see Making Mittens Ears Below for more detail).

NOTE: You can also attach the ears to the hood of a sweat shirt or if you do not have a hooded sweat shirt or a black headband you can purchase a set of costume cat ears from a local retailer such as Halloween Express or on line from Shindigz.

How to Make A Cat Costume Tail

Step 6: Create a tail using the black ribbon. If you want a more three dimensional look you can roll up a piece of fabric and glue or sew it in the shape of a tail.

NOTE: The tail should not drag on the ground or weigh too much. This could be a potential tripping hazard as your child goes trick-or-treating.

How to Assemble the Cat Costume

Step 7: Assemble the costume by putting on the pants, shirt and ears. (Apply layers of clothing underneath the outfit if the weather is going to be cold.)

Step 8: Paint a black or pink nose using face paint or eye liner. Apply lines for whiskers and other facial accents.

Step 9:Put on the socks, shoes, and gloves to finish the costume.

NOTE: This process can be simple or as complex as you want. Young children will often do better if the make-up is kept simple and non irritating.

Alternatives: This outfit can be transformed into Mittens from the Disney Pixar hit movie, Bolt (2008) with a few modifications. Simply add white gloves and shoes, and a white tip to the tail. You may also want to add white “fuzzy” material to the chest of the sweat shirt. You can by small remnants from local fabric stores for a fraction of the price and this can be sewn on or simply glued on to the front of the shirt. The left ear of Mittens has a small piece missing, so just add a small triangle cut out of the ear to enhance the look of the costume. You can also add small triangles of pink to the interior of the ears with glue. Mittens nose is pink. You can use heavy blush or lipstick if you don’t have costume makeup.

Making Mittens Ears

Step 1: Cut off small strip of pink craft foam.

Step 2: Cut out triangles to fit in black cat ears.

Step 3: Staple on pink to black ears.

Alternative: Another simple cat idea is to use a hot pink sweat suit and add Cheshire Cat Ears and Tail available at ShinDigz.com to create the purr-fect Cheshire Cat costume. Use costume make up to create the huge devious grin the Alice in Wonderland character is known for.

Creating a cat or black panther costume is simple. Remember to add on glow in the dark accents such as glow bracelets, flash light or light up shoes to prevent accidents. Use caution when crossing streets. This is a great project for young children and it is cost effective. Have fun and be creative when designing your own costumes.

Do you have any suggestions or comments? Happy Halloween!

What You Will Need

• Old Jeans
• Miscellaneous pieces of cloth
• Flannel Shirt
• Straw Hat
• Face Paint/Eye Liner
• Light Brown/Yellow Yarn
• Leather Work Gloves
• Rope for a Belt
• Boots or Shoes
• Hot Glue Gun or Needle and Thread

How to Make a Scarecrow Costume

Step 1: Begin by adding “patches” to your jeans. You can use a hot glue gun or needle and thread to sew on the patches. Not many are needed–two or three to make the jeans look worn. Here we used a combination of a sewing machine and sewing by hand.

NOTE: You can use any type of pants such as corduroy, slacks, or jeans.

Step 2: Use the yarn or twine to create the appearance of straw hanging out the ends of the sleeves and pant legs. Simply turn the garments inside out and use a hot glue gun to attach the yarn to the sleeves. You can also sew the yarn to the inside of the sleeves if you do not have a hot glue gun.

Step 3: Allow the items time to dry if you use glue (about 24 hours).

Step 4: Assemble the outfit by putting on the shirt, pants, belt, hat/hood and tying off the bottom of the pant legs.

Step 5: Paint your face white and add “stitching” using a black face paint pencil or eye liner.

NOTE: The face paint is optional and highly inadvisable for small children based on irritation levels making trick-or-treating a bad experience. Keep your child’s costume simple to avoid problems while walking around.

Step 6: Put on the shoes/boots and gloves and your outfit is complete.

Alternatives: Using tan material or a burlap sack you can make a hood for your scarecrow outfit rather than using a straw hat.

How To Make a Burlap Scarecrow Hood

Step 1: Using a burlap sack or tan material, straighten and fold the material with about 18 inches of overlap.

Step 2: Cut off the excess material.

Step 3: Unfold the material and sew a hem in the edge around the face.

Step 4: To sew the hem simply pin the proper amount of material along one side of the material. Use a sewing machine to quickly hem the material.

NOTE: Sewing a him will prevent the material from fraying, but it is not necessary. If you do not have access to a sewing machine you can sew it by hand or simply leave the edge raw.

Step 5: Fold the material inside out and line up the edges.

Step 6: From the front edge of the material move towards the center leaving enough space to form the top of the hood. This distance will vary based on the size of the wearer’s head. It is typically about 9-12 inches.

Step 7: Mark the spot using a pin and pin the fabric together all the way down to the bottom edge.

Step 8: Sew the back of the hood together.

Step 9: Cut off the excess material leaving a quarter inch seem allowance.

Step 10: Turn the hood right side out.

Step 11: Place the hood on the wearer’s head and pinch the fabric together below the chin.

NOTE: The hood should be tight enough not to fall off, but not too tight to make the wearer uncomfortable.

Step 12: Remove the hood from the person and cut two small holes, one on each side, where the fabric was pinched under the chin.

Step 13: Using twin or other rope, attach a piece to each side of the hood securing the rope through the hole.

Step 14: Place the hood on the wearer and tie the two ropes together to form the hood of the scarecrow.

Scarecrows are often associated with fall activities and can be modeled after more famous characters. The costume is flexible and comfortable and can be worn by people of all ages. It can be used for school plays and for costume parties. Have fun and use what you have to create a great Halloween costume!

What You Will Need

• Black clothing–sweat cloths, yoga pants, etc.
• Black material
• Black Ribbons
• Plastic Ninja Sword (or other toy weapon)
• Black boots or shoes
• Black gloves

How to Make a Ninja Costume

Step 1: Assemble the costume by putting on the black long sleeve shirt and long black pants.

Step 2: Use the ribbon to create the appearance of tightly fitting pants from the knees down. Do not tie too tightly as to cut off circulation or to make the wearer uncomfortable. This is optional if you simply want to wear a pair of skinny pants or leave the pants baggy.

Step 3: Create a belt around the waist line using the material. This should resemble a martial arts belt and the ends should be neatly trimmed.

Step 4: Create a hood and sash from the remaining material leaving only the eyes visible. Or you can wear a winter hood with a face mask already attached. Try to find one without any decorations or symbols.

Step 5: Put on shoes and gloves to conceal any reaming parts of the body.

Alternatives: Using all black is traditional of a ninja, but other colors such as red and gold are often seen depicted on Ninjas. Use your imagination to add artwork such as a snake, dragon, or skull on the outside of the material. If the clothes are not going to be used again you can use a material paint available at most craft stores, or use a washable paint if you do not want the painting to stay on the material after Halloween.

Let us know what you think. Feel free to leave questions or comments below.

Creating a pirate costume is easy and flexible. With the popularity of such films as Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean, pirate costumes are very popular. Many of the items used such as pants and blouses are already in your closet, or you can purchase cheap ones from your local Goodwill store or other second hand shop. The following will provide you with a simple foundation for creating a pirate costume. You can add details with toys or other items as necessary.

What You Will Need

• Old Pants (ones that can be cut)
• Bandana
• Baggy Shirt such as a White Button Up (could be a woman’s blouse)
• Vest
• Sash, scarf, or long piece of fabric (preferable the same or similar color to the bandana)
• Sword or other pirate objects (gold, chains, skulls, etc.)
• Eye patch (optional)
• Black Boots
• Scissors

How to Make a Pirate Costume

Step 1: Take your pants and cut a zig-zag pattern at the bottom of the legs. Or if you prefer you can simply tuck your pants in the top of your boot. This works best with black pants and tall black boots.

NOTE: If you cut your pants you can wash them to make the cuts less uniform to give them a worn out appearance.

Step 2: Tie the sash/piece of cloth around your waist leaving enough hanging down the side to create the look of a pirate. Here we used a uneven cut piece of red material left over from another project.

Step 3: Lay the bandana flat on a table. Fold the bandana in a large triangle. Take the bandana and place it on your head and tie securely in the back.

NOTE: If you do not have a bandana a large piece of fabric cut into a square can also work. We used more of the leftover red material to create the head covering for this costume.

Step 4: Assemble your costume by putting on the pants, shirt, bandana, and cloth belt.

Step 5: Add accessories such as the eye patch, vest, sword, or make-up to create a pirate image.

The pirate costume is flexible and you can be creative when putting items together. Boys can look rough and rugged and girls can look sexy but strong. The choice is yours.

Do you have any suggestions on making a pirate costume for Halloween? Feel free to post questions or comments below.

Sewing can be easy with the right tools–especially when all you are doing is repairing a small hole in the seam of a pair of pants. Many sewing machines are available for under $50 and can save you a bundle over the life of the machine. If you don’t sew and prefer to take your clothing to a dry cleaners or tailors for repair, you may end up paying over $7 for what you can do in about five minutes. If you choose not to repair the item and simply buy new pants, you may be looking at spending over $10 each time a seam splits. In the long-run this can cause you to spend well over the cost of owning a small sewing machine. The following will demonstrate how easy a minor hole repair can be.

How to Mend a Hole using a Sewing Machine

Step 1: Locate the hole and turn the garment inside out.

Step 2: Flatten the fabric together at the location of the whole making sure no other part of the garment is in between the layers you intend to sew together.

Step 3: Place the garment in the sewing machine by lifting the foot up and sliding in the material.

Step 4: Begin sewing about 1/2 inch above the start of the hole. NOTE: Prior to reaching the whole (within the first few stitches) reverse the machine to backtrack over your stitching to lock it into place.

Step 5: Sew through the area where there is a whole and past the hole about 1/2 inch and reverse stitch to lock the stitching in place. NOTE: If your fist pass does not seem strong enough, remove the fabric from the machine and stitch another line parallel to the first line. This will reinforce the area where there was a hole.

Step 6: Carefully trim any loose threads from the garment.

Step 7: Turn the garment right-side out and check over the area to ensure the entire hole was mended.

In about five minutes you have saved yourself about $10!

Do you have a basic sewing question? Please feel free to comment we would love to hear from you.