A scarecrow can be paired with other costumes such as a lion, tin man, and of course Dorothy from the classic Wizard of Oz movie for a group of people, or it can stand alone as a familiar, autumn-time character. Simply use what you have around your house to create a realistic looking scarecrow costume.

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!