Whether you have cardboard, poster board or foam board we have a costume idea for you.

We have come up with an adorable sibling costume and two other cute costumes that any child or adult can wear.

• Washer / Dryer / Laundry Basket

Sibling Costume Idea

Using packing boxes that you paint white you can make an inexpensive and easy washer and dryer costume for your children. Adding some recyclable items and embellishments to the boxes transforms the boxes into adorable sibling costumes. Have a third child? Head to your local dollar store and grab a plastic laundry basket and a white baseball cap to become a wearable costume with some laundry items attached to the hat and basket. Your kids will look so cute with this great DIY set of costumes.

 

For the Washer and Dryer Boxes:

First, put the boxes together. Then, paint the packing boxes white (all sides) and after they dry, cut out two arm holes on the sides of the box and one hole on the top of the box where the head would be. You do not need the bottom of the box I would just cut off those flaps. Keep them aside you need them.

 

When making the dryer you need:

a paper plate, 2 bottle caps, a clothing store circular, an empty dryer sheet box, black and silver paint and a hot glue gun.

Directions:

I painted the paper plate silver and hot glued it to the front of the box. I then used the silver paint to make the shape of the dryer door. (shown in pictures below)  Using black paint I wrote the word Whirlpool in the top right corner.

I thought it would look cute if we had clothes inside the dryer and my neighbor, Joanne suggested I cut out pieces of clothing out of the Sunday paper circular and tape them inside the plate center of the dryer. I think it looks so cute to have the clothing pieces turned in all different directions as if they were spinning inside the dryer.

Next, hot glue two bottle caps to one of the extra white flaps that you cut off the bottom of the box. Paint the words on/ off on one of the buttons and Load Size on the other button using black paint. Attach the white flap to the top of the box so that it stands up straight. Your dryer is complete.

 

When making the washer you need:

a paper plate, 4 bottle caps, a ,a mason jar lid rim, blue cellophane, a clothing store circular, an empty small detergent bottle, black and silver paint and a hot glue gun.

Directions:

I painted the paper plate silver and hot glued it to the front of the box. I then used the silver paint to make the shape of the washer door. (shown in pictures below)  Using black paint I wrote the word Whirlpool in the top right corner.

I taped the pieces of clothing I found in the clothing circular to the middle of the plate and then I taped a blue cellophane square piece over the clothes. This made the washer look like it was filled with spinning clothes in water.

Then, I hot glued the 4 bottle caps to the extra white flap and painted the words and numbers around each button. (shown in pictures below) For the minutes setting I surrounded one of the bottle caps with a mason jar lid rim for a metallic addition to the box. *If you don’t have a mason jar lid rim just paint a black circle around where I placed the rim.

Your kids will love playing in these washer and dryer boxes.

 

Laundry Basket:

you need: a colorful basket from the dollar tree, utility knife, baseball cap, safety pins, socks, a towel, pieces of clothing

Directions:

First, have an adult cut out the bottom of the basket so that your child can put their legs through. Please be careful cutting the bottom out, it is plastic and can have sharp edges. I suggest adding duct tape to the removed edge so that your child does not cut themselves.

Next. safety pin at least 4 different socks (the more colorful the better) to the top of your baseball cap.

Then take any extra material you may have. (I had the front of a pink t-shirt in my fabric craft box) I cut the front of the shirt in half and used those pieces to tie around the holes of the basket to make “overall type” strap to hold the basket up around my child. The t-shirt material was light and soft to have over her shoulders.

I put the extra clothes and towel and safety pinned them together and stuck some of them through the holes of the basket to make it look like a messy laundry basket.

I think it looks super cute and adorable.

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• Chocolate Shopkin

  A Foam Board Costume Idea

Shopkins are so popular and you can transform a piece of poster board into one of your favorite characters. I chose Cheeky Chocolate as my favorite to transform into an easy costume that can be easy taken on and off with black clothes worn so that the costume sticks out.

 

Supplies: 1 piece of Elmer’s White Foam Board , 8 square paper plates, aluminum foil, Acrylic Paints (dark brown, sky blue, metallic gold, black, white, baby pink and white), scissors and a hot glue gun

 

Directions:

Paint the 8 square paper plates dark brown. Once dried, cut the small square center of the paper plate out.

Paint one half of the foam board dark brown and the other half sky blue.

Hot glue the brown squares to the top of foam board that is painted brown. Using the gold metallic paint, paint around each brown square and paint a heart in the center of each square. These make the squares look like the chocolate pieces of the Cheeky Chocolate Shopkin.  Then, hot glue pieces of aluminum foil in the center of the board along the line that divides the two colors. Finally, using the black, white and baby pink paints draw the face on the sky blue half of the foam board.

 

Finish the Cheeky Chocolate Shopkin by hole punching a hole on each side of the top of the foam board. Tie a string from the top left of the board to the top right of the board. You can comfortably hang the board in front of the person wearing the board costume.

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• Paper Doll Costume

An adorable Poster Board Costume

Elizabeth Hashagen is the perfect Paper Doll in this super inexpensive poster board costume. Transform into a classic toy that children or adults of any age will recognize.

Supplies needed: 3 blue poster board pieces, one white poster board piece, scotch tape, scissors and a black sharpie marker

 

Directions:

I have to be honest, I free handed most of this costume.

I taped two pieces of the blue poster board together. I placed the poster board on the floor with the back side face up. I then had my adult female neighbor lay down on the floor as I traced her body outline with pencil. I made sure her waist was across the line where the two poster boards met so when the costume is worn the person wearing it can sit with the costume being able to fold with the person wearing it.

 With tracing her body I then had my estimate of where the shoulders should be and how wide the costume should be to cover her body up. I then cut the shirt shape and the skirt shape.  I then added white poster board around the collar and two strips on the edge of each sleeve. and of course every paper doll needs it white paper tab flaps. I added black lines to look like the edging along the white. (seen in the photo below)

I then cut out a purse shape and a bow shape. I added the white flap tabs to those , too. The bow I attached to a dollar store headband.

I absolutely love this costume, I hope you do too!

See these costumes on air during the morning show of News 12 Long Island on Monday: October 10th, 2016.

Check out their Fall Fun Segments and see ours under Make Your Own Monday  —> here

Inspiration for these costumes came from Pinterest:  follow our Halloween Costume Board

 

 

 

Please note:

These costumes are great DIY Costumes that are inexpensive and fun to make. However, making these costumes requires using equipment that is not suitable for children. A hot glue gun and utility knife should never be used by a child. We do not recommend allowing a child to use these even under supervision since the hot glue gun gets so hot and a utility knife is so sharp. We do not want anyone to get hurt making these crafts so please use caution when making them.

 

–        Anne Caminiti ( Momee Friends of Long Island)

Website: www.momeefriends.com   Blog: www.momeefriendsli.com