Crafty Costumes for Kids

Hello, crafty parents! I have a very fun project to share with you today. My baby girl loves the color red, and my son likes blue, so I've wanted to make these Halloween costumes for a while now. Sure, buying costumes would be less time-consuming, but DIY costumes allow for a greater level of creativity and personalization. You can design a costume that perfectly matches your vision, rather than being limited to the options available in stores. Making your costume can be a fun and rewarding process. It can be a great way to spend time with your kids. DIY costumes can often be more cost-effective than buying a new costume. With a DIY costume, you can often use materials you already have at home or buy inexpensive items to create your costumes. Of course, DIY costumes are also more environmentally friendly than buying new costumes. Many store-bought costumes are only worn once simply because kids outgrow them by the next year or they don't want to wear the same costumes each year. I try to make Halloween costumes with the idea that I can remove the added materials afterward and wear them regularly.

Before we begin the DIY process, let's gather all the materials. You will need a red outfit for the red monster's costume and a blue outfit for the blue monster's costume. The first place to look is your kid's closet. My kids don't own a lot of primary colors, so we just got some t-shirts from the craft store. I would also suggest checking out Once Upon A Child for solid dresses, sweatsuits or even puffer jackets if you live in a cold climate region. You will also need a red hat and a blue hat. If you're able to get hoodies, you can attach the eyes to the hood instead. I was only able to find a blue beanie and a red cap. Next, you will need some small foam balls from the craft store. If you have ping pong balls on hand, they would work great for this project; I didn't have any, and these foam balls were cheaper. For the red monster's nose, you will need a large orange pom-pom ball. I got this one from my kid's sensory bin. You can also make one out of orange yarn or paint a foam ball orange. Lastly, you will need hot glue or any heavy-duty glue, sharp scissors, black felt and a black permanent marker. I had most of these materials on hand, so I only spent $17 total for two costumes.

To DIY your own red and blue monster costumes, follow these steps:

Red Monster Costume:

1. Get 2 foam balls and draw a black circle on each one using a black permanent marker
2. Line up the eyes to be centered and even, then glue them on your hat or hood
3. Glue the orange pom-pom in the center below the eyes

Blue Monster Costume:

1. Get 2 foam balls and draw a black circle on each one using a black permanent marker
2. Glue them on your hat or hood to mimic the blue monster's googly eyes
3. Using an image as a reference, cut out the black felt to create the mouth shape
4. Glue the mouth below the mouth

Wasn't that the easiest DIY costume ever? You can also use this concept for other monster characters your kiddos love! I hope this inspires you to try a DIY costume this Halloween. Happy Trick-or-Treating!

If you're interested in making an astronaut costume, here's a link to my tutorial on YouTube:[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3MoHS2nTao]

Blog By: Jenny Nguyen | @jenny8carrots