2016 Halloween Costumes from Your Closet – No Shopping Nessecary
Halloween is prime time for fun, festivities, and tons of creativity – and your kids certainly don’t need a store-bought costume for any of the above. In fact, creating your own costumes out of stuff you already have in your closet can be much lower in cost and much higher in imagination than any store-bought getup can be.
We reviewed the most popular 2016 Halloween costumes and came up with versions you can make from items you are likely to already own. The only cost would be for an accessory or two to round out the outfit, and we tried to keep the total cost under $10.
2016 Halloween Costumes: Superheroes
Batman is still going strong as a superhero costume, and boys can never go wrong with Superman. Wonder Woman is actually celebrating her 75th anniversary this year, which makes her, Supergirl and Batgirl ideal picks for girls. While you can always try to match the colors and accessories of the well-known superheroes, you can also keep it wholly unique by creating heroes of your own.
Costume Base
- Boys: Unless your little guy wants to borrow a pair of his sister’s tights, the base for a boy’s superhero costume works with a pair of sweatpants and matching T-shirt. Boots or sneakers work for footwear.
- Girls: Tights with shorts, a tutu or short skirt works. Add a matching T-shirt. Footwear can be tall boots or super-jazzy sneakers.
Must-Have Accessories
- Superhero eye mask: Buy an inexpensive eye mask or make one with a piece of felt that can be secured to the head with a piece of elastic.
- Cape: Buy a cape or use a large skirt or part of an old tablecloth, sheet, drapes or other large piece of material you may have around the house. Dye if necessary.
Additional Accessory Ideas
Take a look around your home, garage and yard to see if you have any particularly unique or funny accessories that can top off the getup. Ideas can include things like:
- Super-Chef: Whisk, slotted spoon and/or other kitchen implements
- Super-Garden Guy/Gal: Small shovel, spade or hand-held rake
- Super-Office Mate: Paperclips, phone headset, office supplies
You may want to look around for gadgets and gizmos first to establish your hero, then you can pick clothing colors and other accessories to match.
2016 Halloween Costumes: Super-Villains
The Joker is as big as Batman in popularity for boys’ costumes, while the DC Comics character of Harley Quinn is a hot villain for girls’ costumes. You can again mimic the two with your own supplies, or create new and exciting super-villains of your own.
Costume Base
- Boys: Matching pants and T-shirt once again works, especially with clunky shoes. Ripped-up jeans are another option, as super-villains are always getting into tussles.
- Girls: Super-villain girls also work well wearing pants. Leggings or sweats with a matching T-shirt works well, as do the ripped-up jeans. Clunky, scuffed-up shoes add the finishing touch.
Must-Have Accessories
- Super-Villain Face Paint: Paint your child’s face all green, orange, red or other color that matches with your super-villain character. Mimic the Harley Quinn look with a checkered face using two different makeup colors.
- Eye mask or sunglasses: If face paint is too annoying, you can once again go with an eye mask – or big pair of funky sunglasses.
- Spiked anything: Spiked bracelets, belts, headbands and chokers can add another layer of badness to the costume.
Additional Accessory Ideas
Your kitchen, garage, and yard can again supply a wealth of costume ideas. Super-villain options could include:
- Greasy Food Demon: Greasy napkins, take-out packets of ketchup and other kitchen implements related to fried foods could make for one evil, artery-clogging bad guy or gal.
- Evil Car Eater: Smudge your kid’s face with black eyeliner or other dark makeup, pop on a pair of mechanic gloves, and let him or her walk around with a small tire jack or sets of old car keys.
- Nasty Computer Virus: Old cell phones, chargers, and other electronic accessories can top off the Nasty Computer Virus costume.
2016 Halloween Costumes: Crayola
Crayola costumes are another hot item for 2016, and they are incredibly easy to make. Simply dress your kid in a single color from head to toe, find a matching hat of the same color, and then make a Crayola label out of cut felt or painted cardboard. Attach the label to the kid and, voila, you have a Crayola crayon.
Create a unique twist on the theme by using the same basic formula but swapping out the Crayola crayon label for:
- A Sharpie maker label
- An artist paint label
- A hair dye label
- A food coloring label
Making your own creative costumes can not only save you money, but they can ensure your kids’ outfits are wholly unique. And with villains like Greasy Food Demon and Evil Car Eater, they’re also likely to be remembered for years to come.
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