Craft your own quick costumes

When I was a kid, Halloween costumes were usually put together in the days leading up to October 31st. Back then (it wasn't THAT long ago!) the holiday wasn't the huge commercial event that it is now. We rarely bought costumes because they were expensive, cheaply made and inevitably came with a plastic mask with eye holes that didn't line up with your own.

Okay, I'll admit that I was a bit jealous of the kids with bought costumes, but looking back, I realize that a big part of the fun was creating a costume from things we had around the house. It was especially great to raid my Mom's closet.

Last-minute costumes don't have to mean store bought. This Halloween I'll be dressing up as a scarecrow for my Brownie party and when I take my daughters door-to-door. Here are the instructions for this simple costume, plus a few more ideas.

What you need
-- Raffia
-- Braided elastic
-- Hot-melt glue sticks and glue gun
-- Craft stick
-- Plastic tablecloth
-- Pen
-- Safety pin
-- Old pants, shirt, hat
-- Gloves
-- Face paint

Last-minute scarecrow costume

Collecting your materials: Child or grown-up, this costume fits all. Just raid the giveaway bag for clothes that are on their way out the door. If you don't have any, a trip to a thrift store will get you started on the cheap. You'll need pants (floods look best), a turtleneck shirt (to keep the raffia from scratching), an old button-down shirt (plaid, if you've got it), a hat, gloves and boots. Pick up raffia (looks like straw but less itchy), braided elastic, and a hot-melt glue gun and glue sticks at the craft store. If it's cold on Halloween night, layer all you want.

Step One: Cover your work surface with a plastic tablecloth. Measure and cut elastic cord to fit around the head, neck, wrists and calves. Mark each elastic so you don't get them mixed up.

Step Two: Heat up the glue gun (when working with hot-melt glue, keep a finger bowl of water nearby in case of burns). In a nut shell, you're making mini 'grass skirts' for each wrist, the calves, and neck, plus a wig. For the wrists, calves and neck, cut raffia into roughly 4-inch lengths (10 cm). There's no need to measure, just eyeball it. Working a bit at a time, squeeze glue onto the elastic and set the raffia into the glue. Use a craft stick to push the raffia into the hot glue. Continue until the elastic is nearly covered. Leave a half-inch free. Repeat for each wrist, calf and the neck.
Step Three: For the wrist and calf pieces, glue the ends of the elastic together, overlapping, so that the raffia is on the outside (less itchy this way). DO NOT glue the neck piece together. You will use a safety pin to attach this.

Step Three: For the wig, cut roughly 3-inch lengths for the bangs and longer raffia for the rest of the hair. Glue the bangs in the centre, then add longer hair at either side. Trim if needed. Glue both ends together, again, overlapping and so that the raffia is on the outside.

Step Four: For make-up, paint on an orange triangle nose, add some black 'stitch' marks around the face and make a big smile with black paint. I actually use certified non-toxic acrylic paint on the face. It comes off very easy! Put on the old pants and turtleneck. Tie the hair back (or use a swim cap). Put on the wig and top with a hat. Add the neck piece (raffia pointing up) and pin in place. Put on the jacket and add the wrist pieces (pointing out). Slide the calf pieces on and slip on boots. You're all set!

More last-minute costumes
Robot (like WALL-E): Cover a cardboard box with aluminum foil, add bottle top buttons, etc. Use lengths of dryer vent on the arms and legs. Cover a helmet (hockey, bike, skating ...) with aluminum foil.
Fortune teller (like Professor Trelawny): A favourite when I was little! Wear layers of colourful clothes, a flowing skirt, many beaded necklaces, hoop earrings, and a kerchief. A plastic globe light shade with a glow stick inside and aluminum foil on the bottom makes a safe 'glass' ball.
Spider or lady bug: Use 2 sheets of Bristol board to make a 'sandwich board' style costume. Red with black spots for the lady bug and black with eight legs for the spider. Use a hair band, chenille stems and pompoms to make antennae. Dress in black and slip the sandwich board on top.
Static Cling: An oldie, but a goodie. Dress in black and use double sided tape to stick socks, underwear (if you dare) etc. all over.
Mad scientist: Dad's old white dress shirt makes a good lab coat. Tease the hair and add some white corn starch. Dust dark eye shadow on the face to look like an explosion has happened. For glasses, use old ones no longer needed (check thrift shops or dollar stores), pop out the glass, tape around the bridge. Add a pocket protector and some pens.
Mummy: Dress in white clothing. Cut white fleece into strips. Wrap the body with the fleece (it's stretchy so the child can move!), and tape in place with white hockey tape.
Ghost: Keep young ghosts warm with a white fleece ghost costume. Fleece usually comes in 60 inch widths ? wide enough for little trick-or-treaters. Cut the fleece into a 'circle', make eye and mouth holes, cut arm holes and scallop the edges. Make sure the child won't trip! After Halloween, make warm scarves from this no-fray fabric.
Do you have last-minute costume ideas? Please share them by leaving a comment!
Happy Halloween!