Back in the day, all it took was a pair of red sweats and a towel and (believe it or not) you were The Greatest American Hero. I love a good homemade costume. Growing up, my parents were always big into the homemade costumes. There was rarely sewing involved, but my folks were masters at embellishing stuff we had around the house in a spectacular way. Take a basic dress, add a Spanish scarf, some fashion boots, loads of mom’s bohemian 70s costume jewellrey—VOILA! I was a gypsy! Take some overalls, cut up dad’s old plaid shirt and make a little satchel of treats on a stick? BAM! We got ourselves a hobo. My parents were really creative and my whole family always loves dressing up.
Even though most people buy their outfits (and trust me, there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that! we do it too) I still love seeing what people whip together for their little ones. Sometimes the homemade costume turns out amazingly well and then sometimes….welllllll, not so much. But there is something undeniably charming about doin’ it your own way.
Which leads me to this: we want to see YOUR homemade kiddo costumes. And let me be clear, you don’t have to be a Mini Martha, we’ll take it all! Perhaps you made something so stinkin’ cute you got compliments everywhere you went. Or maybe things didn’t work out QUITE the way you expected (a la Dottie’s spectacular Craft Fail—which I thought was pretty adorable anyway). Either way, we want to see ’em all.
Don’t be shy—the good, the bad, the ugly are all welcome. Vintage/retro photos welcome, but I’m looking for recent examples of your craftiness! We’ll be posting them here on Modern Kiddo in a Costume Parade Photo Gallery the week before Halloween to offer inspiration—and perhaps a little “what not to do”—to all of our beloved readers.
So what are you waiting for? Send me those photos!! Email them to: Alix [at] modernkiddo.com. We prefer 550-600 pixels wide, if possible….and feel free to include a link to your blog, if you have one. Looking forward to seeing what you scare up!
What on Earth ever happened to the gypsy thing? I think that I was a gypsy at least four times as a kid! It was totally the go-to costume back then.
Eartha, I was TOTALLY a gypsy for probably two years and a bag lady one year as well.
My favorite homemade costume ever was my dad’s, in 1983ish–he had an old plaid blanket, cut a hole for the head, put a black hat on, and went as The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly. His Magnumstache helped the look.
gypsy here! i LOVED being a gypsy, because i got to wear my mom’s clothes and put paint on my face…just like the real gypsies did haha. then after a few years, gypsy turned into punk. orange hairspray (i still remember the smell) eyeliner, holes in pants, chains… i don’t think i ever wore a store bought costume!
now i have to find the photo of me as the gypsy….it was always fun to put tons of makeup on huh!!
That rainbow brite costume is really somethin!
Love the pantyhose on the head. What was the deal with kids doing that in the 80s? I distinctly remember doing that too for some reason.
hahaha…jeannie you are the only person to comment on that….I thought it was hilarious! it looks like they have sweatsocks on their head AND pantyhose!!!