(ARA) - Halloween
is one of my favorite holidays. I love the outdoor decorations
and I enjoy seeing the creative and clever costumes our neighbors
dream up for their children -- everything from superheroes and
pop divas to cartoon and fairy tale characters, animals and even
insects. One thing I’ve noticed is you don’t have
to be a magician or an artist to make an imaginative costume,
even at the last minute. Here are some ideas that are sure to
put a smile on your child’s face!
These are some supplies you will need to get started:
* Scissors; needle
and thread; ruler or tape measure; pins; newspapers for pattern-making;
cardboard for construction; colored markers; fabric paint; stickers;
construction paper for ears and noses; glitter for space creatures,
princesses, fairies; pipe cleaners for whiskers; yarn for hair,
and feather boas.
* Felt -- it’s colorful, inexpensive,
and doesn’t unravel. Netting, tulle and fake fur also come
in handy and little girls’ just love to play dress-up with
these.
* Assorted items from around the
house such as plastic funnels, buckets, paper towel rolls, gallon
milk containers, paper plates, aluminum foil and bubble wrap.
* Glues to avoid sewing including
white craft or fabric glue, hot-melt glues used with a gun, fusible
webbing when the adhesive is activated with the heat of an iron,
a roll of basting tape, a temporary two-sided tape and spray adhesives.
Having assembled your supplies, now you’re
ready for some creative costume fun:
* Start by dressing
your child in a leotard and tights, a sweat suit, or a T-shirt,
turtleneck and jeans. These become the base to build on and are
ideal for creating insect and animal costumes like a bumblebee,
lion or alligator. Black is a perfect color for pirates, devils,
witches, magicians, vampires, mummies, and skeletons. Use reflective
white tape for skeleton bones and wrap white gauze or felt strips
around the entire body. A spider is easy to make using all black.
You’ll need several pairs of black gloves and long black
socks. Stuff the socks and gloves with fiberfill and attach one
glove to each sock; attach each spider leg to the base costume.
Add a black baseball cap with black pipe-cleaner antenna glued
to it.
* A plain white sheet is the perfect
base for ghosts, angels, saltshakers, toga-clad Romans and pandas.
* A box with large arm and head holes
cut out is versatile. Square shapes work well for dice, a gift
package, a hedgehog, porcupine, TV or Jack-in-the-box; rectangular
boxes are perfect for longer-shaped costumes like a pencil/crayon,
a tree, a domino, a thermometer, a carton of milk accompanied
by a box of cereal or cookies, to make two costumes, a favorite
candy bar, or a rocket.
* Old-fashioned cardboard is good
for many costumes. Cut out a front and back and attach both sides
over the shoulders with strong cording or Venetian blind tape
and decorate. You can design a playing card like the king and
queen of hearts, a chocolate chip cookie using a beige-felt circular
cutout with chocolate-brown chips, a magazine or newspaper called
“The Halloween Daily Planet” with amusing headlines
on the front and back.
Masks and other accents add the finishing touches:
* Make sure they have
smooth edges and generous eye and nose holes for safety.
* Face paints and theater-style make-up
will come off easily if you coat your child’s face first
with a thin under-layer of cold cream. Test for sensitivity and
color fastness on a small patch of skin. Lightly powder the finished
face to set it. Colored or glittery washout hair sprays are always
fun.
* Add-ons can be hats, scarves, veils,
wigs and hairpieces; jewelry like large gold-toned curtain rings
can be used as earrings; fake eyeglasses, and false eyelashes.
* Props to buy: Stick-on noses, theatrical
warts, scars, fangs, eyeballs, quirky ears, long nails, fake beards
and mustaches. Voice-altering masks are devilish too! For safety,
buy glow-in-the-dark face and costume accents or a reflective
strip to run down the back of a costume or on the arms.
The best thing about Halloween costumes is that
after the merriment, your make-believe fantasy figure is transformed
back into a little angel!
For more costume ideas, log on to www.lillianvernonproducts.com
or call (800) 901-8758.
-Courtesy of
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