DIY Halloween Costumes

This year, my roommate and I decided to approach Halloweekend in a way that would not only make sure we were original but would also go easy on our wallets. So I signed up to make the costumes!

I can't take credit for the loofah idea however, I saw it months ago on Pinterest, and knew that's what I wanted to be, even if none of my friends would do it with me. My roommate Lauren wanted to be something more in the Halloween spirit, so we decided to turn her into a mummy.

 You can find the original post on how to make your own loofah costume here, its super helpful, but I've also listed the simple steps below (with photos) !

You will need:

25 yards of NETTING

1/4 inch elastic

1 1/2 inch elastic

1. The tutorial I used called for 20-25 yards of NETTING (not tulle), and I can say from experience that in order to make sure your full enough to go with 25 yards. I'm a average weight and 5'6'' and I used every bit of 25 yards. Lay out the netting, without unfolding it and cut it into 90 inch sections.

2. Fold your 90 inch sections into thirds, so that its ultimately 30 inches long.

3. Bunch the 30 inch sections in the middle and tie with the thin 1/4 inch elastic so that it looks like a bow tie!

4. Cut your thicker elastic (1/1.5 inches wide) to fit your waste, and another to fit your bust, and sew the ends together, then tie the bunches of netting onto the elastic. You should have an elastic for your waist and another for your bust.  I ended up with 6 bunches on my waist, and 4 on my top.

5. You can also attached a loop of white cord/upholstery trim/home decor trim for your loofah's string.

I wore a pair of spandex shorts and a bandeau, and slipped my loofah on top. Once you're wearing the elastic, fluff up your loofah and you're ready to go! I also added a headpiece as the night went on, seen below, it really made the outfit that much cuter! Just simple take and extra piece of the netting and tie it around your head, leaving the ends loose like a bow! You can also wear your rope around your neck for a sort of halter top.

The mummy costume was equally as simple, and just as easy! 

All you need is:

5-10 yards of muslin

sewing machine/hand needle

thread

1. Wrap your muslin, unfolded, around your body to then sew into a tube for an under dress, sew a single seam to create the tube, and if you want you can hem the dress so that it looks finished, as you can see in the second picture.

2. Cut lengths of muslin and tie then together to create a long chain.

3. Slip the simple tube dress on and gather whatever excess material there may be, then simple start wrapping the chain on muslin around you to create the mummy effect! The more layers of muslin, the better!

To "age" your mummy look you could also spray your muslin with tea, or diluted paint to dirty it up a little!