Who says you have to go out and buy new costumes each year? I was asked to #HariboShareTheScare with my readers this year, by Haribo, what better way to share the scare than to give my readers some fun tips on how to upcycle old clothes for Halloween costumes. I love being creative and making things, I try to make the time to do this every year. Here are my top ideas on how to make use of what you have already… 

What have you got? 

First things first, work out what you have in the cupboards and drawers. By this I mean; what old Halloween costumes do you have? What old clothes do you have that you could possibly cut up or upcycle? Then, you need to know what craft items you have; glue gun, iron-on transfers, sewing kits, fabrics. Depending on what you have in stock, can depend on what creations you can make. Oh, and if you haven’t already, stock up on the face paint! 

Our Halloween house

Old Halloween costumes 

This is where I start. For example, in the main photo the cape was something we re-used from the year before and it is something I will reuse with Isla this year. Using these old Halloween costumes as your basis means you can create your vision from this. So, for Noah I turned him into a bat. You can do this by making your own bat style tee, making a bat mask and putting dark trousers on. A really simple way to make an outfit for Halloween.

Haribo sweets

Creating a Halloween tee

This is my favourite activity; I love making my own tee’s using my Cricut machine.  This year I am going to make a sparkly bat tee for Isla and a colourful tee for Noah. I think the idea for Noah this year is a joker. I am going to make lots of coloured spots and a green tie to iron them on to an old tee of Noah’s to create his top. This will be a different twist on the Batman Joker look I am going for as he normally wears a suit – but this is the idea. Be creative. It doesn’t have to be exactly the same. Make it your own version! 

Making the tee

Face paint 

I am going to add a jacket layer to Noah’s outfit and paint his face like the Batman joker. I have lots of green face paint so I can colour his hair too. If you use a make-up sponge, add quite a bit of water to the green face paint and using the sponge make circular motions in the green until it loosens up. When the face paint has softened it will apply, quite easily, to hair and give the desired effect we want. 

Face Paint bundle

Making a mask 

We have quite a collection of old masks, so we try to reuse or upcycle this as much as we can. Using a glue gun and card or old fabric you can easily cover an already made mask and create your own. To make a bat mask for Isla I can add black card on to a black mask in the shape of bat wings. 

#HariboShareTheScare

So, this year we are going to go for a retake on Batman and Joker with Batgirl and a not so scary Joker! I am really excited about revealing their costumes this year in photos – I will share the scare on Instagram later on. What are you going to make for Halloween? I would love to see your #HariboShareTheScare tips from costumes to home décor, face paint to food = on social media: @mummyconstant. Make sure you use the hashtag #HariboShareTheScare

What do you think?

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3 Comments
  • Debbie Skerten
    Sunday, October 27, 2019

    Absolutely fantastic. I love the creativity and hard work that you’ve put into these lovely costumes. The children look brilliant.

  • justine meyer
    Sunday, December 1, 2019

    I think it is soo much better when you make your own things and get crafty rather than choosing the easy option of the shop