The costume industry makes so much money off people, especially those that are creative and need many outfits to present the finally masterpiece that no one else is going to have… you people know who I mean. Usually, you can not buy the ONE definitive costume package that will service all the needs you have to fulfill your frightening vision. I will show you how to make what you need so that you can save lots of money and still have the perfect costume.
Halloween Projects: How to Make Costumes
Many things go into making the perfect costume, so I will point out some basic areas and provide some tips to designing your spooky look:
Costumes: Tip #1
WIGS:
These little things can be so very expensive. What’s worse than spending a lot of money on something that you are only going to wear once a year? Easy, buying something expensive to rat out and make it look its worse. Let’s face it, usually a person wants to look scary on Halloween, not pretty. Why spend so much money on something that will never be fit to wear again?
We have all seen it and most of us buy it every year… and the beauty is that it costs under a dollar to buy. Yep, you guessed it… fake cobwebs. Bags of the stuff are usually (depending on the size) one or two for a dollar in most stores. You can easily rat these out and glue them to the inside of a hat or hood to create a horrifying head of hair. To make this look a little more realistic and blend into the costume you are making, you can use RIT dye to accent the color you desire. Feel free to use hairspray to stiffen it out a bit… just be careful around torches and candles!
Costumes: Tip #2
ATTIRE
Your clothes will most likely need to be dirty and tattered so if you do not wish to part with old clothes lingering around your closet you ,may want to go to Walmart and buy a cheap bag of plain white t-shirts. Using coffee or tea,. Which are usually in every home, you can brew some of this caffeinated liquids to then pour on the intended clothing… mixed with a little dirt from outside and there you have a perfectly dirty and distressed attire. This also works great on mummy wrappings.
Aside from the coloring you may need to tatter your garments. You can use a cheese grater, sand paper and a knife to make it authentic looking. Have FUN!!!! Get crazy! That’s what it’s all about.
Costumes: Tip #3
SPECIAL TOUCHES
For blood spatters on clothing it is wise to use paints… even the cheap acrylics from your local craft stores will do. Mix red and brown and when it looks like rust just fling it on the costume or fell free to smear it on for an extra freaky appearance.
Making the outfit moldy takes only a few minutes but is a really great look for the old and rotting. Put your outfit inside out and with a sponge blot the material with green, brown and black watered down paints. Hang outside to dry. The goal is to make sure that the colors seep through the fabric because when you put it on it will look as if the mold is real and coming from the rotting body underneath.
Blood of course is the easiest stuff to make…. Corn syrup and red food coloring. This one is a no brainer.
Costumes: Tip # 4
MASKS AND SPOOKY FACES
Paper Mache masks are popular and easy to make. Below is the recipe and the ingredients that you will need.
• 1 1/3 cup water
• 3 tbs flour
• 1 tsp. bleach (liquid)
After you boil one cup of water set aside. In another bowl, combine flour and the remaining cold water (1/3) and stir until mixture is smooth, no lumps should be in this mixture. Add slowly the mixture into the boiling water an stir until thick. Once the mixture is thick pour it into a storage container and stir in the bleach to prevent rotting.
Here’s the fun part. Find something that you would like your face to look like. There are many cool things to choose from to enhance your Halloween costume.
• Mannequin head
• Hockey mask
• Plastic skull (life size)
You will need to rub a decent amount of Vaseline/petroleum jelly on to your intended surface so that the paper Mache mask will come off easily when dried and ready.
After your tear up grocery bags and newspapers you’ll need to dip one piece at a time in the mixture and with your two fingers take off any excess liquid and the laying it inside the mold. Keep over lapping the pieces of paper until you have a thick Mache inside your chosen structure using your fingers press down into each grove and dip so that your mask will have very curve that it needs.
*Dry overnight and be gentle when taking the mask out.
You can paint the mask anyway you’d like and you can even put warts, scars, etc on it for personal touches.
Plaster/gauze masks are very popular and relatively easy to make. This is the same concept as a cast, so if you are looking for something sturdy, look no further. For this type of project you will need a guinea pig so pick a very patient friend.
WARNING: DO NOT USE REGULAR PLASTER
The plaster you will be using will be coming from any arts and crafts store in your area. The most common plaster is called Pariscraft and any brand of plaster cloth (gauze) will do. REMEMBER; make sure that your intended target has all of his/her hair in a bandana or shower cap to stop the hair from sticking in the plaster.
Make sure that your entire work area is covers with plastic or paper as it is very sticky and drippy and may cause a heck of a mess.
• Fill a bowl with luke warm water to dip and saturate the strips of gauze
• Make sure you cover your friend’s face wit petroleum jelly first so the mask will not stick to the skin.
• Make sure your friend is comfortable sitting in a chair or lying on your kitchen table.
• Take your gauze strip and dip in into the bowl of water.
• Begin laying the “watered” gauze on your friend’ face and rub in the plaster until the strip is all creamy white and you can no longer see any holes.
• DO NOT cover eyes or nostrils.
• Once you have covered the entire face, smooth it out completely.
• Let the mask dry.
• When removing the mask have your friend lean forward pointing their face to the ground to help the mask come off with ease.
• The mask should dry for at least 24 hours.
• Use scissors to trim any mixture/gauze to the desired shape.
• Use spray paint or any other paint depending how exactly you want to decorate it.
• Use an ice pick to poke holes in the sides of the mask, affix and elastic string and there you have it.
Halloween Projects: Enjoy your Costume
There you have many creative and fun ways to enhance your Halloween. Have fun and be safe.
