It’s Halloween costume time! And this year is a fun one because I got Ryan to agree to do a couples costume. When thinking about what to be, I was dead set on wearing something yellow (my power color of course). And what’s more yellow than sunshine?! So I’m the sun, and Ryan’s the planet + stars, making us the solar system! Both costumes can be made in a few simple steps, and in no time at all, which is perfect for all you DIY procrastinators out there. Here’s how:
Materials (for the sun costume):
– Rit All Purpose Dye & Rit DyeMore for Synthetics
– White dress
– White sneakers
– White tights
– Gloves
– Headband
– Yellow construction paper
– Scissors + hot glue gun
How to Make a Sun Costume
For the sun costume I used two types of dyes, one for cotton, linen, etc and one for synthetic fabrics like polyester, nylon, acrylic. Be sure to read the label of your materials to determine the correct type of dye to use. My dress and tights were synthetic and my shoes were cotton.
All Purpose Dye:
For the shoes, I recommend removing your shoelaces before beginning so they dye evenly. It also helps to apply electrical tape around the soles to prevent them from dyeing.
To prevent bleeding and to enhance the color, finish with ColorStay Dye Fixative.
DyeMore Synthetic:
Fill stainless steel pot with enough water for fabric to move freely. You’ll want to maintain the water temperature at hot, but not boiling. Once water gets hot, add dye and stir. Add your items and stir constantly for about 10 minutes, then occasionally after that until your desired color is achieved. Rinse in cold water then
For the headband, you can go as large or small as you want! To make the sun rays, cut out triangles and attach to a headband with hot glue.
And that’s the sun costume! I love that I can wear each of these pieces after Halloween is over. And for the other half of the costume (though you can certainly wear this separately too), here’s how to make the space costume:
Materials (for space costume):
– Rit All Purpose Dye in Black
– White cotton sweatshirt
– Gloves
– Felt
– Hot glue
– Scissors + marker
How to Make a Solar System Costume
Dye your sweatshirt (according to the instructions above). remove from dye bath, rinse and wash. While the sweatshirt is drying, you can make the other elements for the costume.
To make the planets + stars, cut shapes out of felt. To keep everything consistent in size make a stencil. I used a candle lid for the circles and made a cut out cardboard for the stars. Arrange everything on the sweatshirt and glue down once you’re happy with the placement.
And just like that, a space costume! If you wanted to really go all out, you could add additional stars to the sleeves and pants.
Put the two together and you have your couples costume! If you’re looking for another colorful option, check out my paint swatch costume that I made last year. Happy Halloween friends, I can’t wait to see what you make!
Process photos taken by The Crafted Life. Final costume photos taken by Allie Provost.Â