From sci-fi novels to ’80s movies, robots create a sense of wonder and intrigue around the concept of artificial intelligence. With this robot costume, you can create a mechanical look that’s as fun to make as it is to wear to your next Halloween party.

Robot Costume Materials

• Colored permanent markers
• Rubber gloves
• Silver spray paint
• Styrofoam balls
• Scissors
• Dryer hose
• Tin foil
• Hot glue gun
• Colored cellophane
• Door knobs
• Elastic
• Bicycle reflectors
• Silver duct tape

Create a Homemade Robot Halloween Costume
First, prepare your robot body and head. Use your scissors to cut the flaps off your large and small cardboard boxes. Next, cut a circle on the middle of each box’s bottom to act as head openings and cut circular arm holes on either side of the larger box. Cut slits on the face of the smaller box to represent the robot’s eyes and mouth. Cover both boxes, rubber gloves, doorknobs and styrofoam balls with silver spray paint.

Next, assemble the rest of the costume body. Cut a lengths of aluminum dryer hosing two inches longer than each of your arms and legs. Affix your leg hoses to the inner sides the large box, while attaching the arm hoses just inside its arm holes with hot glue and elastic. Cut colored cellophane to affix inside the small box to create reflective, robotic eyes. Finally, wear the larger box as your costume body and place the smaller box over your head. Decorate your robot costume with hand-drawn dials, doorknobs and bicycle reflectors. Finally, don the rubber gloves and silver tennis shoes for maximum effect.

Yearning to grant reprieve to the poor and tired huddled masses, the Statue of Liberty has become an icon of freedom and the American Dream. You can recapture this inclusive spirit with a homemade Statue of Liberty costume that can be worn on Halloween or Independence day alike.

Statue of Liberty Costume Materials

• Hot glue gun
• Green face paint
• Green costume body paint
• Scissors
• Gold tissue paper
• Green bed sheets
• Poster board
• Black permanent marker
• Hot glue gun
• Gold pipe cleaner
• Green construction paper
• Green wig
• Magazine

Create Your Own Statue of Liberty Halloween Costume
Start your iconic look by creating the Statue of Liberty’s torch. Fashion a strip of poster board into a conical shape to make the base of the torch. Cut the poster board into a circle that will fit the open end of the cone and a separate sunshine shape with its center removed to fit your head. Spray paint your poster board shapes green and allow them to dry. Use scissors and white glue to create a flame shape out of several sheets of gold tissue paper mounted on each other. Attach a gold pipe cleaner to the back of this shape with hot glue and poke it through the poster board circle to attach the flame and secure in place. Hot glue the flame top to the cone base to create the torch.

Take an old magazine and spray paint it with green paint. Cut letters out of green construction paper that say “July IV, MDCCLXXVI” and hot glue them to the magazine cover when dry. Drape the green bed sheets around you to create a toga look and secure with safety pins. Wear the sunshine-shaped crown over the green wig and use green body paint to cover exposed skin. Lastly, carry the torch and “book” to create Lady Liberty’s patriotic look.

This Halloween, you can dress up as one of the old horror stand-bys–the good scientist gone mad! This Mad Scientist outfit makes a great last-minute costume idea and is sure to leave partygoers awestruck, hoping they aren’t the next subject for your crazed experiments.

Mad Scientist Costume Materials

• Plastic mice
• Glasses
• Laboratory coat
• Oxford style shirt
• Single hole punch
• Neutral colored swimming cap
• Long wig
• Hot glue gun
• Slacks
• Bowtie
• Beaker
• Food coloring
• Dry ice

Make a Mad Scientist Costume in Your Home Laboratory
Begin by creating your mad scientist headpiece. Take your swim cap and punch holes throughout the sides of the cap. Place the swim cap over the long, curly wig and affix it to the top of the wig with hot glue. Next, pull long tresses of the wig through the cap so that it resembles someone with wild hair and upper balding.

Next, create the base of your mad scientist costume by staining the laboratory coat with food dye. Allow the coat to dry and put on your slacks, oxford shirt, laboratory coat and bowtie. Place water in the beaker and add a few drops of food dye to create your favorite color. Add dry ice to the beaker to create a “chemical reaction” effect. Glue plastic mice to your costume to evoke a basement-experiment feel.

Legendary creatures featured in storybooks and fables, unicorns have become a favorite animal of preteen girls everywhere. You can recreate this magical, mythical creature with a few household supplies and costume shop purchases.

Unicorn Costume Materials

• Glitter spray
• White construction paper or posterboard
• Braided gold fabric trim
• Two long curly white wigs
• Hairbrush
• Ribbons and ponytail holders
• White leggings
• Long-sleeved white t-shirt
• Scissors
• Needle and thread
• Hot glue gun
• Face paint

Create a Magical Unicorn Costume at Home
Begin by twisting the posterboard or construction paper into a cone and hot glue it to secure the shape. Next, poke one end of the braided gold fabric trim down the top of the cone and glue it into place. Twist the gold braiding in a wrapped swirl shape down the cone, securing it as you go with hot glue to create the unicorn’s horn.

Next, gather the hair on one wig into a tight ponytail and secure with a ponytail holder or rubberband. Cut a small hole in the rear of your leggings and sew to reinforce the edges. Hot glue the wig base inside the leggings tightly, pulling the ponytail through the hole and securing it into place. Brush the protruding hair and tie a decorative ribbon at the top of the tail. Next, hot glue the cone shape to the top of the second wig and then brush the wig and wear it. Decorate your face with costume face paint, wear the white t-shirt and leggings and cover your costume, “mane,” and tail with spray glitter for an ethereal effect.

As the central figure in the comic-strip and animated Peanuts gang, Charlie Brown tugs at the heartstrings of kids and adults alike. With a few household items and craft supplies, you can dress up as America’s favorite underdog this Halloween.

Charlie Brown Costume Materials

• Yellow t-shirt
• Scissors
• Dark, laced dress shoes
• Paintbrushes
• Flour
• Tupperware
• Black sheer fabric
• Infatable beach ball
• Newspaper
• Table salt
• White, pink and tan acrylic paints
• Yellow socks
• Black felt
• Black shorts

Fashion a Homemade Charlie Brown Costume

First, lay out your black felt fabric and make a single, long cut in an even zig-zag pattern. Move 4 1/2 inches down the fabric and make a parallel cut to create a thick zig-zagged cutout. Use your hot glue gun to wrap the felt cutout around the chest of your t-shirt and affix it to the outside, placing the seam under one arm.

Next, mix the flour with water and boil for three minutes to create a papiér mâhe mixture. Cut long strips of newspaper and run it through the cooled mixture and begin to cover the beach ball in thick layers, leaving the base of the ball uncovered.
Deflate the beach ball to reveal a large “head” shape and use scissors to cut mouth and eye holes and then glue your black sheer fabric behind the costume’s “eyes.” Mix your acrylic paints to create a flesh color and paint the head, decorating it with Charlie Brown’s nose and signature curlicue of hair. Wear your black shorts, yellow zig-zag shirt, socks and shoes to complete the outfit.