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Craft your own Halloween costume
Updated: October 28, 2012 6:14AM
Oak Park — How many times have you wandered through the aisles at a big box store, picking through uninspired Halloween costumes?
Sure, you could be a witch or a Jedi AGAIN. Or this year, you could get creative and make your own costume.
I am proud to consider myself a diehard fan of the do-it-yourself costume. Combining thrift, ingenuity and a little elbow grease into a homemade masterpiece that only needs to last a few days is my crafting specialty. My polar bear, Maude Lebowski and garden gnome costumes were fun to make, and – more importantly – unique at costume parties. Once you are resolved to get serious about costume construction, where do you turn for inspiration?
Pinterest (pinterest.com), the red hot image search and pin engine, is the best place to look for the best in costume ideas. Want a ton of great no-sew toddler costume ideas? Done! Looking for the best group costume of Joss Whedon’s Firefly crew? No problem. The more specific your search, the fewer results you’ll get, but a general board search for “diy costume” or “Halloween” will return tons of fantastic results.
Craftster (craftster.org) is a forum for serious crafters with an indie streak. It’s a great resource for detailed tutorials and interesting submissions from folks all over the world. Whether you want to learn how to make a simple hoodie with dinosaur spikes or get a step-by-step reproduction of a Dr. Who costume, this is a great place to go.
Or check out these books from the library:
There’s a wonderful range of costume ideas in Halloween: A Grown-up’s Guide to Creative Costumes, Devilish Décor & Fabulous Festivities by Joanne O’Sullivan. Maybe you’ll be a walrus or a Pollock painting?
Pick up Witch Craft: Wicked Accessories, Creepy-Cute Toys, Magical Treats, and More compiled by Margaret McGuire and Alicia Kachmar and get patterns for “Wicked Mary Janes” and ideas for edible party favors.
Be inspired by the elegant sunflower and lily-of-the-valley bonnets in Halloween: The Best of Martha Stewart Living. There’s a section on masks and makeup and, of course, all the crafts and recipes you would expect.
Want to really get in the mood for Halloween? Take “Haunted Places 101” online. Just go to oppl.org/research/online-tools and click on Universal Class. Enter your Oak Park Public Library card number and PIN. Fill out the new member form, find “Haunted Places 101” and start learning.
