Welcome to day 4 of Homemade Costume week. This bumblebee Halloween costume looks great in person, and could not be simpler to make. A black shirt, yellow duct tape, some pipe cleaners, and a pair of dollar store wings. You can make this no-sew bee costume in about 15 minutes.

Project Estimate:

• Black hooded sweatshirt, on hand
• Yellow duct tape, $3
• 2 yellow chenille stems, on hand
• 2 yellow pom-poms, on hand
• 1/4″ elastic, $1
• Hot glue gun and hot glue stick
• Pair of bee wings from dollar store, $1

Total: $5

To make a no-sew bee costume:

I originally made this costume for Kaboose.com, a site that closed down several years ago, and unfortunately, there is no longer an internet archive of the instructions, and my version of the instructions are long-lost on my old defunct computer.

Basically, add yellow duct tape stripes to a hoodie, then hot glue pom-poms to a couple of chenille stems, then duct tape them to the inside of the hood. Curl the stems around a pencil.

Add a pair of yellow dollar store fairy wings to complete the look.

My Design Process:

I don’t know if you folks care about seeing my sketches or not, but it amuses me, so I’ll just keep posting them. My original sketch was slightly more complicated than the costume ended up — I originally envisioned a black hoodie with a yellow t-shirt over it, but when I started making the costume, I eliminated the yellow t-shirt and just went with yellow duct tape stripes. I also called for the costume to be stuffed with grocery bags (to make it more round) but I decided the stuffing was unnecessary when I put it on my model (my 4 year-old).

My craft planning process is this:

• sketch the project and label what each part is
• think through the actual process of making it and what supplies I will need
• write down the process as I imagine it (so I have “instructions” to follow)
• then take a step back and see if there is anything I can eliminate in terms of supplies or extra work
• collect my supplies (from my stash, or shop for them)
• do the project and change something (usually!)
• make sure to photograph most of the steps so I can remember how I made it

How do you plan for your craft projects? Do you have a sketchbook?

The post Make a No-Sew Bumblebee Costume appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

No-Sew Candy Costume: $5

Fun fact: This was one of the first tutorials I wrote for Dollar Store Crafts, in October 2008.

Easy Tutu Pattern for Little Ballerinas: $3

I drew this tutorial based on a halloween costume my mom made for me when I was a little girl (back when legwarmers were cool – the first time around).

Last-Minute Firefighter Costume (No Sew): $7

I made a couple of these for my boys last year. Using duct tape is a great way to make a custom costume in a hurry!

Max from Where the Wild Things Are Costume (Dollar Store Version): $6

Jess from Mad in Crafts made this great costume out of jammies and some dollar store items.

Gift Bag Robot Costumes: $1

I love this idea from Lindsey at Filth Wizardry. She used metallic gift bags to make these fun robot costumes. Fab idea for a last-minute costume.

Additional Resources:

• Last Minute Halloween Ideas including a fantastic costume inspired by the Hitchcock movie “The Birds”
• Last Minute Halloween Costumes for Kids at Woo Jr

The post Homemade Costume Week: Greatest Costume Hits Roundup appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Welcome to day 5 of Homemade Costume Week with our last quick and easy no-sew costume: the Rapunzel costume complete with long braid and tall tower. This Halloween costume is the one in the group that I wasn’t sure I could pull off, but I was excited by the concept and wanted to give it a try. There were two unknown components: the long braid (turned out just like I imagined) and the wearable tower (totally different than I planned). Find out how to make this costume over at my post at Kaboose: [how to make a Rapunzel princess halloween costume]

Project Estimate:

• 2 yards of plain cotton fabric, $5
• Duct tape, on hand
• 2 sheets of foam core board, $2
• 2 yardsticks, $2
• 1/4″ elastic, $1
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks

Total: $10

The original concept called for a box with a window cut out in the front, and arm holes in the sides. When I tried it out, the box was awkward and unbalanced on the child and it just didn’t work. I wanted to make sure the costume construction was uncomplicated, so the box idea wasn’t good enough. It could have worked with a tall, narrow box, but those aren’t easy to find and it wasn’t a practical solution.

I ended up using two pieces of foam core board attached sturdily together with yardsticks in the back to brace them together and add enough substance for the child to wear them without being afraid the foam core would disintegrate.

What are your big Halloween costume plans this year?

The post Make a Rapunzel Costume appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Welcome to Day 3 of Homemade Costume Week at Dollar Store Crafts! This week, I’m bringing you several costume ideas that are simple, no-sew, and frugal. Today’s featured costume is the no-sew Octopus costume. I used several pairs of striped knee socks to create the octopus legs. You can find knee socks at the dollar store, or shop at Target or Wal-mart for more selection. [get instructions for making the Octopus costume at my Kaboose post]

I originally imagined this costume slightly different, with the sock legs coming out of the chest and the child’s arms as one pair of legs. I decided to make the legs more like a skirt coming off of the sweatshirt and add the face to the chest of the sweatshirt instead of the hood.

Project Estimate:

The post Homemade Costume Week: Octopus appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

It’s Day 2 of Homemade Costume Week at Dollar Store Crafts! This week, I’m bringing you several costume ideas that are simple, no-sew, and frugal, of course! Today’s featured costume is the no-sew Spider costume. I used dollar store socks to create the spider’s spooky extra legs. I couldn’t find a stocking cap at the dollar store when I was working on the costume (high summer), so I used a long sleeve from an old shirt and tied it at the top to create the eight-eyed hat. [get instructions for making the Spider costume at my Kaboose post]

This costume turned out just like the sketch too, but I had to omit the gloves because I couldn’t find them in stores in August. I think it would be fun to use white gloves and a bow-tie to make a formal spider. Or, wear a black and red tutu, add a red hourglass on the shirt, and a fancy cocktail hat for a Black Widow costume.

Project Estimate:

The post Homemade Costume Week: Spider appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I recently made a few no-sew costumes for Kaboose.com, so I wanted to show them off to you. I’ll post one a day for the next several days: Homemade Costume Week. These costumes are simple, no-sew, and frugal, of course! My favorite idea was this one: a Paper Doll costume. I loved playing with paper dolls as a kid, and so the idea of dressing up like a paper doll made me smile. The best part? It’s easy to make, even if you don’t think you can draw.  Oh, and it’s super cheap, too! [how to make a paper doll costume]

Another thing I love about this costume is that it turned out just like the sketch I drew when I had the idea. I love it when everything works out just like I imagined!

Project Estimate:

The post Homemade Costume Week: Paper Doll appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.