How to Easily Put Together a Halloween Costume

We LOVE dressing up for Halloween. It can be pretty simple to put together your child's dream costume. In this post, I walk you through the steps of how I create costumes for my kids. Once Halloween is over, we add items that can be added to their wardrobes. Others go to the dress up tote.

We have a lot of fun with Halloween costumes as a family. Each year, we choose a theme and all dress up with that theme. You can see many in this post, and the rest below. We have had to get more creative lately as the girls and the son have different ideas of what they would like to be. 

Above was 2014. We did a Frozen theme. Brayden was the ninja...didn't notice the ninja in Frozen? That is because he was such a good ninja...

This was 2015. The kids wanted to do Harry Potter. Brinley was more into princesses, though. So she was a muggle dressed for Halloween. She was also a different princess for each of her Halloween activities. 

This year, we have a lot of different interests going on among our children, so our costume theme is "Favorite Character." I don't want to give it all away right now. I did, however, want to share how we are creating a couple of costumes. Update: photo of our costumes below!

I have done all sorts of costume preparation. Many years, I have sewn everyone's costume. It is a lot of fun, but a lot of work. As the years went on, I started sewing some costumes but buying the ones that were good enough. I now default to buy unless it must be made. Most costumes can be purchased cheaper than they can be made. Quality is better with a homemade costume, but I am not too worried about fantastic quality for a Halloween costume. 

This year, Kaitlyn wants to be Astrid from How to Train Your Dragon for Halloween and McKenna wants to be Mrs. O from Odd Squad for Halloween. There are Astrid costumes on Amazon, but only for smaller children. There are no costumes for Mrs. O on Amazon. 

Because I am currently in the business of buying costumes and not making them, I didn't want to make the girls' costumes if I could help it. It is much simpler than you might think.

First, I "Googled" the character. "Astrid How to Train Your Dragon." A lot of images came up. These were our inspiration:

Then we just searched Amazon for each item. The great thing about this method is that many of the items we got will be able to be used for everyday wear after Halloween. This post contains affiliate links. 

We started with a search for fur boots. We looked through options and found some Kaitlyn would like to wear even after Halloween. Blossom Womens Tara-Fashion Boots.

We went through the same process for her burgundy shirt and a skirt. For the pants, she will wear some blue jeggings that she already has. We got some things she won't likely wear after Halloween. Arm warmers, a fur poncho, and a huntsman axe are all just part of the accessories. She plans to make a skull belt out of paper and I found a tutorial for making shoulder armor. This tutorial has a lot more than shoulder armor. This girl went all out. 

To finish it off, we will use some yarn for the leather wrapping on Astrid. Kaitlyn's hair is very similar to Astrid's already so we will just do her hair to match.

Now for Mrs. O. Again, I started with a search. "Mrs. O Odd Squad." This is the image I went with:

This one was quite simple, and most of it can be used in the future. Her shoes are fantastic and will be great for everyday wear after Halloween. Her blazer, shirt, and skirt were all easy enough to find on Amazon thanks to school uniforms.

The badge will be just a fun addition to our dress up pile. We also got a purple necklace and just chose one McKenna loved. She can wear it afterward. To finish it off, I will pull her hair back and spray it black. I also plan to get some khaki leggings if I can find some in her size since our area is cold on Halloween. We always need the option of warm clothing with our costumes!

One quick tip, if you are ordering things from Amazon, pay close attention to shipment arrival dates. I often filter my search results to just include Prime items so I know they can get her fast. In situations like this, though, I get things early so I have plenty of time for it to take a month to get here if that is what it is going to take. 

I hope that gives you an idea of how you can create a costume that is easy to put together. It also should give you ideas for ways you can buy things for Halloween that can be worn more than just on Halloween. We have always let our kids keep their costumes out and add them to the dress up. Our kids love to play dress up and use the guts out of each costume. But as they get older, they play dress up less and I want costumes to be more and more usable for other things if possible. 

Related Posts:

• To Dress Up or Not to Dress Up for Halloween

• Having a Happy and {Wholesome} Halloween

• My Halloween Playlist
• Pinteresting Fridays: Halloween

My Halloween Playlist

Every Halloween, I wish I had a playlist of songs that are fun for the holiday. This year, I finally did it! Here are my songs of choice. You will find the songs below. You can click on a link to listen to a sample of each song and/or purchase each track. This post contains affiliate links.

Dark Lord Funk - Harry Potter "Uptown Funk" Parody

This song is a hilarious parody of "Uptown Funk." It is sung from the perspective of Voldemort. We love Harry Potter around here and have really enjoyed this song.

Ghostbusters (From "Ghostbusters")

This just almost seems like a required song for a Halloween playlist.

Thriller (Single Version)

Once again, requirement. 

Harry's Wonderous World

This song is on this album linked (track 02).

Monster Mash

Once again, we are looking at a song that is a requirement for a Halloween playlist. 

Somebody's Watching Me

This is a fun update on an older song. Go for one of the Hi Tack songs on this album.

Time Warp

Another classic. This is Brinley's favorite song on the playlist. 

I Put A Spell On You

This is not your typical Halloween song, but the words work. There are a few artists who have done this song over the years. I like CCR because my dad loves 70s rock and it just brings me back to childhood.

Hedwig's Theme

Another Harry Potter song. I like to have these sprinkled through the playlist. Brayden loves these songs best. 

Werewolves Of London

This is another song not as well-known for a Halloween playlist, but it works.

Black Hole Sun

Any '90s music fans out there will love having this as part of the playlist. 

The Complete Harry Potter Film Music Collection

This is such a great album from the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. I really like track 17, which is only available in an album purchase. This is a great album to get some of the best Harry Potter songs from. 

Superstition (Single Version)

This is another song that is not a typical Halloween song, but fun for a Halloween themed playlist. 

(Ghost) Riders In the Sky

Again, you don't hear this song on its own and think "Halloween!" but it definitely works on a playlist. 

Do you have any favorites for a Halloween playlist?

Pinteresting Fridays: Halloween

Halloween is coming right up! I really enjoy Halloween. I know it isn't a favorite for everyone, but I have found we can Have a Happy and {Wholesome} Halloween. I mean, it is a holiday where you get to dress up and eat a lot of candy, what isn't to love about those aspects? Last year, I shared some Pinteresting Fridays: Fabulous Fall and this year I wanted to highlight some Halloween-specific things.

Halloween Handprint Spiders and Lacing Card Web by Mom Endeavors

I super love doing fun learning activities and crafts with my kids at this time of year. This is a fun one that is super creative.

You can find more learning ideas on my Learning Ideas: Holidays board. I put my favorite finds for holiday learning activities there. Also, don't forget about my eBook I co-authored Babes, Tots, and Kids.  This book has a full year of preschool ideas, including Halloween, Leaves, and other fun fall activities.

Follow Valerie's board Learning Ideas: Holidays on Pinterest.




Dot by Color: Fall Do-A-Dot Printables by From ABCs to ACTs

This isn't Halloween specific, but there are so many fun ideas that are just "seasonal" to Autumn as well. Brinley is super into Do A Dot Art Markers right now, so when I saw this on Pinterest recently, I knew this would be a winner in our house!

I not only have a holidays board on Pinterest, but a seasonal board. Here I put more generic activities that are just great for different seasons. There are a lot of fun Fall ideas there.

Follow Valerie's board Learning Ideas: Seasonal. on Pinterest.



101 Cheap DIY Halloween Costumes by PopSugar

I love dressing up for Halloween, but I don't love spending a lot of money to do it. I really like things I buy for costumes to be usable at other times if possible. For my kids, I don't mind so much because they love dress up play so it is a fun new costume addition to the dress up tote each year. If you are looking for some great and cheap costume ideas, check this article out. I also have lots of other costume ideas on my Halloween board.







Disney Pumpkin Carving Ideas by ClipZine

We each carve a pumpkin each year. I love these printables for Disney pumpkins. If you haven't ever used something like this, they are super easy to use.

















Halloween Carnival Games by Toddler Approved

A big part of Halloween for us is Halloween games. I always help put on a party for one of my kid's classes at school. We like to have fun ideas. This is one resource I have pinned for games.




Follow Valerie's board Halloween on Pinterest.

To Dress Up or Not to Dress Up for Halloween

I recently asked readers on Facebook if they had any requests for posts that are "Fall" related. One reader suggested a post on whether or not to dress up for Halloween.

The short answer to this consideration is if you are okay with celebrating Halloween, then absolutely do dress up! I know many of you do not celebrate Halloween at all. I know many of you do, but want to keep it "good." I wrote a post on Having a Happy and Wholesome Halloween last year with this in mind.

You will see in that post that we really like Halloween at our house. We keep it clean and wholesome. One of our favorite parts is dressing up. Even my husband and I dress up. In fact, on top of dressing up for Halloween day, we host a grown-up Halloween party at our house every year where our friends come in costume. Luckily, we live somewhere where the grown ups don't use it as an excuse to wear nothing. I know that isn't always the case. 

Sidebar, when I was in college, they had a big Halloween dance every year where people dressed up. Our church has an Institute of Religion right by the campus, and they also had a dance that night each year. I was surprised they would compete (yes, I can be naive at times). Imagine my little freshman shock when I went to the school dance and saw girls wearing literally nothing but saran wrap. Literally. So yes, I do know that in some instances, costumes are not a wholesome, fun, innocent activity. Okay back on track. 

We have always picked a family theme and dressed up along that line (you can see pics in that post). Dressing up as a family is a fun way to build family unity and tradition. There is nothing wrong with dressing up as individuals, however. Don't feel like you need to be themed. Don't feel like you need to dress up, either, as parents, though I can promise you that your children will think it is totally awesome if you do. 

A conundrum you might face if you do not celebrate Halloween is what do you do about dress up days at school on Halloween day? This is my advice to you. Treat it as a dress up day and let your child dress up as something to go to school. 

If you do not want your child exposed to costumes at school, then I would just keep your child home that day. 

In the end, you know your area and you know what things will turn into. You know what you feel is right for your family and what isn't. It is great to get opinions from others around you, especially parents you respect and have similar values with. In the end, do what you think is preferable for your family. Dressing up is not inherently bad. Kids love to play dress up. If you want to have fun with it, you can. 

Do you dress up? Do your children? What is it like where you live?

Having a Happy and {Wholesome} Halloween

I love, love, super-love the Fall season. I love it all. Leaves changing color, hiking in the mountains, corn mazes, brisk weather, my birthday....all great things. I even love Halloween. Some of you are thinking GASP! And some of you are thinking "why wouldn't you?"

I know many of you out there are not Halloween fans, and that is fine. I am not here to try to change your mind (not sure why I would want to?). What I am here to do is to share how we have a happy and wholesome Halloween each year so any of you who love Halloween but feel conflicted about the "Pagan" holiday can get some ideas on how you, too, can have a happy and wholesome Halloween. These ideas aren't exclusive, inclusive, nor mandatory. These are just ideas.

1-Do Fun Crafts

We love to celebrate the season with fun Fall crafts. There is no shortage (at all) of Fall and Halloween craft project ideas out there on the great wide Internet. Pictured here to the left, you can see a "leaf man" we made several years ago after reading the book Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. I love to read picture books and then do a craft to correspond with it.

You can also do activities that are slimy:

You can find ideas:

• On the Children's Learning Activities Blog. This is a blog I contribute to with a few other Babywise moms. You can find our Fall ideas here. You can find our Halloween ideas here.
• You can find ideas on the Fabulous Fall board for the Babywise Friendly Blog Network Pinterest account.
• You can find Fall crafts on my Learning Ideas: Seasonal Pinterst board.
• You can find Halloween crafts on my Learning Ideas: Holidays Pinterest board.

2-Decorate With the "Cute" and Leave Out the "Gross"

There is definitely a gory and gross side to Halloween. That side does not appeal to me. I don't really see how it would be appealing to children, either. You can totally decorate for Halloween in a cute way. I have always loved decorating for holidays, and Halloween is no exception. You can find decoration ideas on my Halloween Pinterest board. You can also find ideas on the Fabulous Fall board for the Babywise Friendly Blog Network Pinterest account.

Here are some decorations I have made:

3-Establish Family Traditions

We have many family traditions we look forward to each year. 

We love to go for fall hikes. Where we live, we have mountains close by and the leaves change. It is such a magical time to go for a hike.

Going to the corn maze is another Fall tradition we love. In addition, at this same place we can ride ponies, launch gourds, play in the straw, and much more.  

Each year, we each carve a pumpkin. Carving a pumpkin is such a great learning activity--you get fine motor control practice, art project, sensory activity, and science lesson all in one. We have babies play with the guts. Pre-Toddlers and Toddlers draw and/or paint the pumpkins. Older toddlers and preschoolers draw the face on the pumpkin and we carve it. Kindergarten and older cut out their own pumpkins. You can also start the pumpkin carving off by going to a pumpkin patch:

We also love to go to what is called the Pumpkin Walk. People decorate pumpkins and set them up in a fun scene and you go see their creativity:

My children LOVE to rake up the leaves and then play in them. Time-honored October/November tradition.

4-Eat Good Food

Our Best Bites has a seaonal cook book, and hands down my favorite section of that book is the Fall section. I love Fall recipes! I love pumpkin cookies, pumpkin lattes, butternut squash pastas, soups...mmmmm....and there are  lots of fun desserts to make. There are a bunch of fun ideas on my Halloween board. You can also find ideas on the learning board: Fall ideas here. You can find our Halloween ideas here.

5-Dress Up As a Family

Every year, we dress up for Halloween as a family theme. This is one of my very favorite family traditions. My dad often even gets involved. Here are some of our costumes:

6-Have a Party! 

 Each year we dress up two times. The first time is for our church party. Our ward is so fun and almost everyone dresses up. The second is for trick-or-treating. On Halloween, we get together with family and go trick-or-treating and then come back to our house for soup and family time.

That's not our only party of the month. We also do a party with my husband's family early in the month of October. We do various activities--a fun one is drawing a name of a family member from a hat and then decorating a pumpkin to look like that person. Then you guess who had whom.

We also host an adult-only party with our friends each year. Some years we do murder mystery dinners and some years it is just a costume party. It is always fun.

Conclusion

You can definitely celebrate Halloween without getting gory or gross. You can do it all in good fun! And if you are very anti-Halloween, you can still do lots of fun traditions to celebrate Fall. Children love traditions. Decide on some fun traditions your family would enjoy and do them year after year!

Today, the ladies of the BFBN are all posting on "Fall"--check out their posts:

• Apples: Bake, Create, and Decorate
• Halloween Plate Crafts
• Tips and Tricks BFBN Fall
• 3 Pumpkin Recipes for Fall

And be sure to check out the Fabulous Fall board for the Babywise Friendly Blog Network Pinterest account