Have you ever looked at your child creating something and thought “how did they think of that?” It happens over here a lot. I am constantly amazed at my kids’ creativity, and it really shows in their cardboard costumes. I love Walt Disney’s quote,
“our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children.”
This quote sums up the process of my children creating something they need. We try to go as thrifty as we can for Halloween costumes. I love dress up and I love creativity and it feels like Halloween can merge those two passions so beautifully. Cardboard is a cheap material, so they often opt to make a cardboard costume for Halloween.
Do I Buy or Make a Costume?
For the record, I am NOT about paying a ton for a costume that you wear one time. Yet, we had probably a half dozen Toy Story costumes when our kids were younger because they literally lived in them all day long.
So, knowing your children and their interest level is important when deciding how invested you want to be in a Halloween costume.
Now that we have big kids, they wont wear the costume again. Dress up is not one of their everyday hobbies anymore. In that case, we want to have fun, play, and have something to wear and celebrate the day. Cardboard costumes can be quick, resourceful, inexpensive, fun and get the job done.
What do I need to create a DIY Cardboard Costume?
Big boxes can be the whole costume. I will never forget being out on a walk and seeing Sponge Bob run up to me. It was one of the funniest parenting moments. Who expects to see their child in a cardboard box version of Sponge Bob run up to them!?
A box box can be taped shut, painted and have holes cut for the arms and legs and be pretty amazing.
Our Caleb loves shoes. He buys shoes, he paints shoes, he draws shoes, and he even sells shoes. Do you know anyone like that? You can see more of his love for shoes/art on his YouTube channel. It made perfect sense that he would dress up as a shoe box one year. When we let our kids create their own costume, it can be more personalized and tuned to their individual interests.
Maybe you just have a sheet of cardboard laying around. It ca be turned into a mask. It can be as big as a pumpkin (wearing sunglasses) or smaller like an animal face. I love that the DIY style lets you be as elaborate or simple your time frame and heart’s desire cares to invest.
Our Reagan loves to create, so of course she spent more time on the fox mask than I did on the large cardboard piece we used for a skit.
We all are ordering online these days. By having things we love shipped directly to our door, we can have smaller cardboard boxes pile up. Am I right!? A smaller cardboard box can be the perfect addition to clothes you already have at home.
Have you ever been to a stadium baseball game or basketball game where the ushers are going up and down the stairs selling drinks? One year, our Caleb dressed up as a Dr. Pepper sales guy and it still makes me laugh to look at this picture. DIY Cardboard costumes can be hilarious and so fun. Caleb literally gave away some caned Dr. Peppers during our trick or treating that night. You should have seen the kids asking to trade candy for a drink with him!
What do you think? Do you still need a costume for this year’s trick or treating or Halloween party? Have fun imagining the possibilities! You can save a trip to Walmart and some $ by recycling your cardboard box into a creative costume.
Need more help tapping into your exquisite imagination? Join me in this 30 day challenge to practice imagining and allow the interesting, rewarding possibilities to emerge!
Has Encanto been on repeat at your house too!? My Reagan has easily seen the movie over a dozen times. If we are honest though, I love it too.
If you treat this project like the movie’s theme, “the miracle is not some magic that you’ve got, the miracle is you”, than you will have a blast. Gather some supplies and have fun!
It’s no secret that I love to use what supplies we have on hand. The creative process should not be expensive. So gather some basic supplies that are close to what is pictured or listed below and then we will tap into that imagination!
Our house is a little more narrow then the Madrigal house in the movie, but it is the type of board we had on hand. If your house is wider, than you may be even able to add more windows and details in this next step than we were able to add.
The final step is in all the details! Add as many layers of paper you want to make your magical house pop! We added trees, windows, flowers, and then drew in a magical candle.
We were inspired by the Madrigal house, but now you are making your own magic house. There is no right or wrong. This is your moment to take an inspiration and play with the process!
We had so much fun creating and playing with color!
Isn’t it fun when something unplanned catches your eye? I think there is beauty in the unexpected.
What I did not expect was the papers that I used to insert between my journal pages to become their own beautiful canvas. These papers were intended to simply catch the paint that rolled off the current page I was painting. I wanted them to catch paint from oozing below and hurting past pages I had painted.
The papers dried as the pages dried. I then moved them up and inserted them in between new pages, as I kept filling my journal with color. What happened in the process was layers and layers of paint filling up and creating fun abstract mini paintings.
I started to love the pages. All of a sudden I didn’t want them to get ruined, and I contemplated stopping to use them and get new papers, so I didn’t “mess them up.”
By the time I finished my journals, I had this stack of papers that I found so beautiful and loved as much as the journals. I cut them up into smaller sections and planned to use them as cards or bookmarks.
Once I had a stack of now ripped mini abstract paintings, I picked a blank, colorful greeting card and sewed my painting to it. The result was a fun, textured, colorful, messy (yet finished) greeting card. 
What do you think? Do you love them as much as I do?