3 DIY Costume Ideas

Hello everyone. I was busy on some days this quarter making costumes because my kids were involved in different school activities that require them. As much as possible, I don’t buy the costume from the market right away. If I can make it as a DIY project, I do it. First and foremost, it helps us to save money and second, I want doing projects. It allows me to use my brains and use the little creativity that I have.

So, in this blog post, let me share with you some of the costumes of my kids and how I made them.

Astronaut costume

The last week of September was designated as Science Week by the school. In line with this, the Grade 1 pupils were asked to choose a scientist that they are going to introduce to the class and they were to wear a scientist or mathematician costume. I know that the typical costume of a scientist is simply to wear a lab gown or perhaps have a business attire.

The first thing we did was to look for the scientist that Angel is going to present. After some Google searching, we found Sally Ride, who is an astronaut and an astrophysicist. She was the first American woman in space aboard the space shuttle “Challenger” in 1983.

Astronaut Sally Ride

So, we decided that Angel will wear the costume of an astronaut. My first option was to look for a blue polo and pants (just like Sally Ride’s in the photo above), but I didn’t find any. So, my second option was to look for a white long-sleeve and white pants, typical clothing of an astronaut. I found one and thought it would do.

The next thing I did was to look for images of the patches on Sally Ride’s uniform. I downloaded them and printed them on sticker paper. Then, I put the sticker patches on the appropriate places on the white top.

I also made a simple astronaut helmet, but this one is just for props. It cannot be worn on the head.

How to make an astronaut helmet

Materials: Popcorn bucket with transparent plastic cover, white satin cloth, cardboard, packaging tape and scissors.

Instructions:

• Cut a cardboard strip – 2 inches wide and the same length as 3/4 the circumference of the bucket.
• Fold the cardboard lengthwise with 1/2 inch on each outer edge.
• Cut slits on the folded 1/2-inch edge (both sides) about 1 inch apart.
• Cut out the satin cloth. The length is 1 inch longer than the cardboard. The width is about twice the height of the bucket.
• Attach the satin cloth along the inner side of the folded edge of the cardboard strip using masking tape.
• Attach the cardboard-cloth to the edge of the bucket. Fold the cardboard and pull back the attached cloth and secure with masking tape at the bottom of the bucket.
• Print a NASA patch on sticker paper and stick it on top of the helmet.

The astronaut costume looked something like this.

Astronaut Angel

My 2 other daughters had their mass dance this week during their school’s 27th Foundation Day celebration. Janel wore an igorot costume, while Kristel wore a lapay or seagull costume.

Igorot costume

The igorot is one of the ethnic groups in the Philippines located in the Cordillera Administrative Region which include Benguet, Ifugao and Mountain Province.  To make the Igorot costume for girls, I bought a black t-shirt and 2 pieces of cotton cloth with ethnic prints at P35/yard. These were not the real Igorot cloth, which far differs in texture and design.

I cut a 4.5-inch wide strip from one edge of one of the cloth for the headdress. The  rest of the cloth was used as a wrap-around skirt. I sew a running stitch on the edges of the cloth, first, then it’s ready. I just wrapped it around Janel’s waist and secured it with a pin.

I took the other cloth and folded it lengthwise until it is about 3-inches wide. I just tied it around Janel’s waist like a belt.

Igorot head dress

How to make an Igorot headdress

• Cut a piece of cardboard that is 2 inches x 13 inches.
• Fold the strip of cloth cut from the skirt (wrong side out) and sew the long sides together.
• Invert the cloth to show the right side and insert the piece of cardboard in the middle.
• Seal the edges with a running stitch. Put this headdress on the wearer’s head and tie the ends together.
• Staple 3-5 pieces of feather on the left or right side of the headdress. Cover the staple wires with masking tape on the inside just to avoid scratching the head.
• (Optional steps in case you can’t find feathers. I actually wasn’t able to buy feathers. It is Janel who made the feathers using white paper, piece of stick, watercolor and crayon)  Cut out 2 pieces of paper in the shape of a feather. Glue the two pieces together with a piece of stick in the between. Cut diagonal slits on both sides of the paper to resemble a feather. Color the feather using watercolor: black along the mid-section and brown on the sides. When dry, color with black crayon using diagonal strokes.

We also made a paper beads necklace as an additional accessory to what we already have at home.

How to make Paper Beads necklace

Paper beads necklace

• Cut strips of colored paper. (Janel and I used a colorful magazine page, but you may want to use a paper with solid colors.) You may do a straight cut or a tapered cut for a different design.

• Roll a paper strip around a toothpick and put a dab of glue when you reach the end of the strip. Do this with all the strips of paper.

• Get a yarn that is long enough for a necklace and insert this into the hole in the middle of the paper beads.

• Tie the two ends of the yarn when you have inserted all the beads.

The Igorot costume looks like this.

Janel (girl on the left) in Igorot costume

Grade 4 Students in Igorot costume

Lapay – Seagull – costume

Kristel and her classmates performed the Lapay Bantigue folk dance. Lapay is the local name for seagull in Barangay Bantigue, Masbate. This folk dance imitates the graceful movements of seagulls and was created by a certain “Lola Felissa.”

The costume for the girls is very simple. They just need a white t-shirt and black leggings. Then they made a belt with strips of white crepe paper. They tied their hair into a bun and put a floral headdress.

This is how the lapay costume look like.

Kristel (girl in the middle) with classmates wearing Lapay costume

We were not able to get a full body picture of Kristel, so I just embedded their Lapay Bantigue folk dance video below so you can see how their costumes looked like.