Get Halloween Ready
HOW THIS HELPS
Many mass-produced Halloween costumes quickly end up in landfills. Once there, their synthetic fibers will not even break down!
This year, we challenge you to look around your home, in secondhand stores, or get crafty to create a great costume from as few new items as you can. Even better are costumes that can go back to being regular clothes that you will keep wearing all year.
WHAT YOU MAY NEED
- Clothing and accessories from your closet or someone else’s closet (with permission!)
- Access to a thrift store or online second-hand marketplace
- Crafting supplies (e.g., fabric paint, scissors, glue, felt, paper, elastic, feathers)
- Reclaimed recyclables (e.g., cardboard boxes, empty plastic bottles)
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
- There are so many places to find Halloween costume inspiration: Your favourite TV shows or movies. Celebrities you admire. Characters from books or stories. Even a clever play-on-words can be a great costume and are often easier to DIY!
- Be careful not to choose anything that will be culturally offensive to another group. It’s not okay to turn clothing from someone else’s culture into a costume.
Who will you dress up as?
- There are so many places to find Halloween costume inspiration: Your favourite TV shows or movies. Celebrities you admire. Characters from books or stories. Even a clever play-on-words can be a great costume and are often easier to DIY!
- Be careful not to choose anything that will be culturally offensive to another group. It’s not okay to turn clothing from someone else’s culture into a costume.
- Halloween can be a great time to get creative with your friends! Work together to find items in your closets or at thrift stores to make the perfect group costume.
- Some ideas might be: Box of Crayons, Characters from Stranger Things, Ketchup, mustard and a Hot Dog
Could you do a group costume with your friends?
- Halloween can be a great time to get creative with your friends! Work together to find items in your closets or at thrift stores to make the perfect group costume.
- Some ideas might be: Box of Crayons, Characters from Stranger Things, Ketchup, mustard and a Hot Dog
- Using clothing that you already have for costumes guarantees that it be worn again and not thrown away after one night of wear!
- Think about who or what you want to dress up as, do they have a signature style or a distinct wardrobe that really lets you know who they are at a glance? Picking a human inspiration for your costume might make finding things in your closet easier.
What’s in your closet?
- Using clothing that you already have for costumes guarantees that it be worn again and not thrown away after one night of wear!
- Think about who or what you want to dress up as, do they have a signature style or a distinct wardrobe that really lets you know who they are at a glance? Picking a human inspiration for your costume might make finding things in your closet easier.
- Is your costume inspired by someone from a different time period? It might be easier to find the right style of clothes at a second-hand or thrift store.
- Beware - some thrift stores sell brand-new ready-made costumes during the Halloween season. Avoid those if you are aiming to reduce the carbon footprint of your costume!
- Another alternative to a thrift store is an online second-hand marketplace such as eBay or Facebook marketplace if you don’t have a store nearby.
Could you visit a thrift store?
- Is your costume inspired by someone from a different time period? It might be easier to find the right style of clothes at a second-hand or thrift store.
- Beware - some thrift stores sell brand-new ready-made costumes during the Halloween season. Avoid those if you are aiming to reduce the carbon footprint of your costume!
- Another alternative to a thrift store is an online second-hand marketplace such as eBay or Facebook marketplace if you don’t have a store nearby.
- Cardboard boxes are a great starting point for many costume ideas. For example, cardboard boxes along with some scissors and paint can transform you into a MineCraft character
- Not all Halloween outfits need to be costumes. You can upcycle a plain black t-shirt with some bleach into a spooky seasonal shirt!
Can you upcycle old clothes or items from the recycling bin?
- Cardboard boxes are a great starting point for many costume ideas. For example, cardboard boxes along with some scissors and paint can transform you into a MineCraft character
- Not all Halloween outfits need to be costumes. You can upcycle a plain black t-shirt with some bleach into a spooky seasonal shirt!
Share your costumes with us! We would love to see what you come up with.
GO FURTHER
- Share your ideas with your friends. By working together, you can come up with even more costume concepts.
- Plan a Costume contest at your school. You could charge an entry fee and donate the proceeds to an Earth conscious charity.
- Create a tutorial on how to recreate your costume and share it with others.
- Run a Costume Drive or Costume Swap. Have people bring in their old Halloween costumes to share or trade.
LEARN MORE
Photo by Jason Yoder on Unsplash
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