In the previous post I threw out a few ideas for making quick, inexpensive and last minute Halloween costumes. For this post I thought it would be fun to combine those ideas in a cost-effective way to get more bang for your buck. I will also explain how to create them based on whether you want a more authentic look, as well as how to create the same ideas on a tight budget.
For these examples I’m going to focus on one particular piece of fabric: The jumpsuit. Sometimes also called coveralls, the jumpsuit has been a popular outfit for many cinematic characters throughout the decades.
In particular, our examples will showcase very well known characters, all blockbusters in their own right:
Ghostbusters, Maverick of Top Gun fame and Loki from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
So pick yourself up a long-sleeve, tan jumpsuit and let’s Begin:
MAVERICK – AUTHENTIC, FAST OR CHEAP
All you need is a jumpsuit for everyone’s favorite fly-boy. Technically army green, we are going to cheat a little bit on this one. But if you want to be more authentic just use this costume as your last and dye a tan jumpsuit with dark green Rit washer dye and you’re good to go. Alternatively, if you have a green bomber jacket, throw that on over and follow the steps below.
As far as patches go, (and as far as all costume ideas on this post), you have three options: Authentic, fast or cheap. Those last two can sometimes become synonymous with one another, but not always…
For a more authentic look, you can order replica patches online. Amazon has some for $5-10ish dollars per patch, and Etsy hosts quite a few sellers with bundle pricing, some around $15 for 5. Simply using small dots of hot glue sparingly with a low-heat glue gun will allow you to attach the patches securely, but be able to rip them off easily.
For a more inexpensive option, you can recreate the patches yourself using Cricut Design Space and layering different colored vinyls to interpret the different patchwork. Cricut Access offers such a large selection of images, fonts, etc, that if you have the know-how and patience, using vinyl that you most likely already have on hand will produce an incredible DIY jacket at little cost. Basically heavy duty stickers, they should withstand a fun night out of dancing, and be easily removed in the morning.
In regards to fast, if I were on some crazy competition show and had to produce the Maverick look in some sort of Ru-Paul’s Drag Race, 15-minute Quick Change sort of way, I would use Printable HTV. Now here me out…
I would do a quick google search for ‘Maverick patches’ or “Authentic Naval Air Force patches’. When I found an image showcasing multiple authentic patches with good picture quality, I would save the image as a PNG and drop it into Cricut Design Space as a Print-Then-Cut file.
The software now has a new feature that automatically removes the background, so after resizing it to my liking, I would do the whole Print-Then-Cut thing and slap them right onto the jumpsuit (or jacket).
That way when I was done I could take off the vinyl patches and repurpose the jumpsuit for some other costume idea as well.
Of course the truly authentic way to do this is buy an army green jumpsuit, order the actual patches and permanently attach them.
Regardless of your plan of action, all you really need are the aviators and a smile anyway…
LOKI –
(Marvel Studios)
I created this look Halloween 2021 for a group costume inspired by the newer Marvel television series. My friend Lara was Wanda from Wandavision, Drew was the Winter Soldier from Falcon & The Winter Soldier, and I was freshly arrested Loki from, you guessed it, LOKI.
Creating the VARIANT jumpsuit look was quite possibly the quickest and cheapest costume I have ever created. (Though looking back at the photos I do wish I had purchased a more authentic wig and had the foresight to create a legit Tesseract instead of wrapping a square box with blue cardstock last minute.)
Firstly, I collected some reference photos online, then I found and ordered a tan jumpsuit off of Amazon for around $25.00.
I dropped in a reference photo of the TVA logo into Procreate and simply traced it out. Then I saved it as a .PNG so I could drop it into Cricut Design Space.
After it was resized on the canvas to the appropriate dimensions, I sliced out the varying color so it could be cut out in the appropriately colored HTV.
Also in Design Space I typed out the word VARIANT and played around with fonts until I found one that looked similar to the one used in the reference photo.
Then I selected Make It, mirrored my image and sent it off to the machine to do it’s thing.
For each side I pressed the HTV at 315-degrees for 30 seconds.
Add a wig and Vois La! Super quick, super cheap.
As far as repurposing this for a different costume afterwards, I would simply substitute permanent adhesive vinyl for the HTV. It’s a strong enough bond to stay on all night, but not so tacky to damage the vinyl/canvas once removed.
GHOSTBUSTERS –
An oldie but a goodie — And yet still very current. Firstly with the previous season of Stranger Things recharging the collective zeitgeist for the franchise, which in turn inspired the Requel of Ghostbusters: Afterlife (borrowing a term coined by itself a Requel of the Scream franchise of the same name).
It is immediately recognizable, and perfect for those who have multiple nights of costume partying but don’t like to wear the same thing. Here’s what you do:
For the first night you will buy a full-sleeve tan jumpsuit and quickly modify it with a name tag and logo that you quickly made with a quick online search and printable vinyl. Fill a cheap-o black backpack with an empty cardboard box for shape; decorating backpack is optional. Hot glue a light rubber hose or similar from Ace Hardware to the backpack, then tape the other end of the hose to a kid’s toy gun, the hilt of a lightsaber or your Dyson…you know, whatever you have laying around. Add some elbow pads you probably found for virtually nothing at the thrift store and Presto! Costume complete.
The second night switch the vinyl patches for Maverick, forget the backpack and throw on some aviators. On the third evening, take off the printable vinyl, cut down the sleeves, and then follow the directions listed above for the LOKI costume. Blamm-o! 3 totally different costumes at (almost) no extra cost!
Honorable Mentions –
Below are a couple more jumpsuit alternatives, though admittedly a bit harder in the category of ‘repurposed’ as it would take dying it to the appropriate color. But nothing some proper timing and a little Rit dye can’t handle. And still worth mentioning.
MICHAEL MEYERS –
A Michael Meyers costume is pretty straight forward: Blue Jumpsuit, Mask, Knife.
But that’s too basic for me, so I prefer to doctor it up a bit. And there are a couple of ways to do so:
In the past I have used both fake blood and acrylic paint to simulate that soiled, dried blood effect. Dripping or flinging fake blood onto the fabric and using a technique called dry brushing to add a weathered look will help to create a more realistic worn-in/killed-in look.
I find this method works great, but only assuming you aren’t going to sit on anyone’s light colored couch. I’ve learned the hard way, no matter how dry, color transfer can still happen between fabrics.
Creating simulated blood splatter with HTV is a good way of not staining your car seat while commuting to your party destination. And if you happen to be a horror-loving-cool-ass parent, it is a nice and tricky way to make a children’s otherwise scary costume a bit more palatable.
In Cricut Design Space under Images, use liquid-specific search terms like, “splatter”, “blood” or “drip”. Select a few of your favorites and bring them onto your canvas.
For the ones used here as reference, some are simple basic cut images, some are grouped multiple layer images and others are Print-Then-Cut designs.
Obviously the basic cut images will only really need some resizing.
The grouped images can be used as is, or separated by clicking on Ungroup and modifying, and/or deleting layers or welding them all together to be one color.
If you find you like the look of a Print-Then-Cut image’s shape, you can change it to a Basic Cut by selecting Operation and selecting Basic on the drop-down menu.
Alternatively you can also create or find your own splatter shapes online and upload the .PNG files into Cricut.
Then let your machine cut them out, press them on and Tah-Dah! A comfy costume that runs no risk of staining your friends and family.
US –
Jordan Peele’s US was only recently released in 2019, but given how the past few years have played out, it sure seems like a lot longer.
Though it may not be the most current of references, the movie did create a simple yet iconic look. If you happen to be shorter than average, adding some prop scissors, a brown fingerless glove and of course that creepy white mask to your slightly high-watered red jumpsuit will surely put even those who haven’t seen the movie quickly on edge.
Unless you’re dying the fabric yourself, this one isn’t really a crafter’s project, as there isn’t any other need to modify. But since we’re on the theme of coverall costumes, I thought I’d add it in.
AND THAT’S IT!
Hopefully this quick and painless speed round of ideas helps if you’re a social butterfly that doesn’t like to drop a ton of money on your costume this holiday season. Did I forget any famous jumpsuit-wearing characters on the list? Let me know in the comments below.
Stay Spooky, Stay Well…
…Okay, bye.