- Creative
Costume Ideas for Kids
- BY LILLIAN VERNON
 |
(ARA) - Halloween
is one of my favorite holidays. I love the outdoor decorations
and I enjoy seeing the creative and clever costumes our neighbors
dream up for their children -- everything from superheroes and
pop divas to cartoon and fairy tale characters, animals and even
insects. One thing I’ve noticed is you don’t have to
be a magician or an artist to make an imaginative costume, even
at the last minute. Here are some ideas that are sure to put
a smile on your child’s face! |
These
are some supplies you will need to get started:
* Scissors;
needle and thread; ruler or tape measure; pins; newspapers for
pattern-making; cardboard for construction; colored markers;
fabric paint; stickers; construction paper for ears and noses;
glitter for space creatures, princesses, fairies; pipe cleaners
for whiskers; yarn for hair, and feather boas.
* Felt -- it’s
colorful, inexpensive, and doesn’t unravel. Netting, tulle
and fake fur also come in handy and little girls’ just love
to play dress-up with these.
* Assorted
items from around the house such as plastic funnels, buckets,
paper towel rolls, gallon milk containers, paper plates, aluminum
foil and bubble wrap.
* Glues to
avoid sewing including white craft or fabric glue, hot-melt glues
used with a gun, fusible webbing when the adhesive is activated
with the heat of an iron, a roll of basting tape, a temporary
two-sided tape and spray adhesives.
Having assembled
your supplies, now you’re ready for some creative costume
fun:
* Start by
dressing your child in a leotard and tights, a sweat suit, or
a T-shirt, turtleneck and jeans. These become the base to build
on and are ideal for creating insect and animal costumes like
a bumblebee, lion or alligator. Black is a perfect color for
pirates, devils, witches, magicians, vampires, mummies, and skeletons.
Use reflective white tape for skeleton bones and wrap white gauze
or felt strips around the entire body. A spider is easy to make
using all black. You’ll need several pairs of black gloves
and long black socks. Stuff the socks and gloves with fiberfill
and attach one glove to each sock; attach each spider leg to
the base costume. Add a black baseball cap with black pipe-cleaner
antenna glued to it.
* A plain white
sheet is the perfect base for ghosts, angels, saltshakers, toga-clad
Romans and pandas.
* A box with
large arm and head holes cut out is versatile. Square shapes
work well for dice, a gift package, a hedgehog, porcupine, TV
or Jack-in-the-box; rectangular boxes are perfect for longer-shaped
costumes like a pencil/crayon, a tree, a domino, a thermometer,
a carton of milk accompanied by a box of cereal or cookies, to
make two costumes, a favorite candy bar, or a rocket.
* Old-fashioned
cardboard is good for many costumes. Cut out a front and back
and attach both sides over the shoulders with strong cording
or Venetian blind tape and decorate. You can design a playing
card like the king and queen of hearts, a chocolate chip cookie
using a beige-felt circular cutout with chocolate-brown chips,
a magazine or newspaper called “The Halloween Daily Planet”
with amusing headlines on the front and back.
Masks and other
accents add the finishing touches:
* Make sure
they have smooth edges and generous eye and nose holes for safety.
* Face paints
and theater-style make-up will come off easily if you coat your
child’s face first with a thin under-layer of cold cream.
Test for sensitivity and color fastness on a small patch of skin.
Lightly powder the finished face to set it. Colored or glittery
washout hair sprays are always fun.
* Add-ons can
be hats, scarves, veils, wigs and hairpieces; jewelry like large
gold-toned curtain rings can be used as earrings; fake eyeglasses,
and false eyelashes.
* Props to
buy: Stick-on noses, theatrical warts, scars, fangs, eyeballs,
quirky ears, long nails, fake beards and mustaches. Voice-altering
masks are devilish too! For safety, buy glow-in-the-dark face
and costume accents or a reflective strip to run down the back
of a costume or on the arms.
The best thing
about Halloween costumes is that after the merriment, your make-believe
fantasy figure is transformed back into a little angel!
- _______________________________________
-
- For more costume
ideas, log on to www.lillianvernonproducts.com or call (800) 901-8758.
-
- Courtesy of
ARA Content
- _______________________________________
- ARTICLE POSTED
OCTOBER 14, 2003
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