25 Oct Homemade Halloween Costume Ideas Using Regular Clothes

Homemade Halloween Costume Ideas Using Regular Clothes

Are you in need of a last-minute homemade Halloween costume for your next party this weekend? Whether it’s a lack of funds or a lack of time, nearly all of us have stood in our room at least once, looking at a pile of regular clothes. You can’t help but wonder how on earth you are going to turn your regular garb into a Halloween costume.

Having been born an October baby, I’ve been to a lot of costume parties. They’re pretty much the only thing that gets this old shut-in out and about. Since I’m also that annoying friend who absolutely can’t wear the same costume twice in one year, I’ve developed a shortlist of costume ideas that you can create at home with little to no expense on your part.

These homemade Halloween costumes can be made last minute, quickly, and without betraying how little you actually prepared for this event. 

Bodyguard Homemade Halloween Costume

This costume is the epitome of last-minute prepping as it requires virtually no shopping for most people. All you’ll need is dark clothing, earbud/wireless headphones, a watch, and sunglasses. Simply wearing these articles of clothing and occasionally talking to your wrist with the watch on it will make you appear like a secret agent or bodyguard.

I’d recommend a black T-shirt and jeans personally, but if you have a shirt that says “staff” or “security,” it’ll probably work better. You can also go the secret service route and wear a dark suit, but I don’t know who’s going to guard your body against stains. 

To make it more fun for yourself, pick a friend to constantly tail and keep very loud tabs on. Nothing says friendship like yelling, “The eagle is heading for the toilet,” at a party. To have even more fun, snatch the drink out of their hands to test them for poison. Also, custom dictates that as the bodyguard, you remain stoic and serious for every photo you’re in, but I won’t hold you accountable if you fail that particular mission. 

Zombie Homemade Halloween Costume

This costume puts your design skills to the test. All you’ll need is an old outfit you won’t miss, scissors or a knife, a marker or something else to draw with, and fake blood. You can get fake blood at a Halloween store or quickly make it yourself in the kitchen with flour, corn syrup, and red food dye.

First, put your outfit on and check yourself out in the mirror. Decide where you want to make your rips. Are you going for a sexy look, or realistic? Long slits in suggestive places can help draw the eye to your best features. Bundling small parts of your shirt to cut circles out of can be more realistic.

Fraying, tattering, and even burning holes in your clothing will also make them appear more believable zombified. Just be sure to remove your clothing before you start the alterations. Use the marker you have to draw where you want the rips and then take it off to start your work.

When you’re done, simply put the outfit back on and apply the fake blood to the patches of skin visible through the holes. It’s important to put the blood on after the clothing to prevent smearing. 

Human Canvas Homemade Halloween Costume

The beauty of the human canvas is that you don’t actually have to do anything yourself. It’s truly the perfect last-minute costume idea. All you need is a white T-shirt and fabric markers. From there, simply write something along the lines of “I’m a human canvas. Please draw on me.”

You’ll spend the night having other people fill in your costume for you. Offer your markers around to people at the party and see what they come up with. Of course, the human canvas does come with its risks. Users should prepare themselves to have prophanities and phallic images drawn on their chests. Not to mention all the people touching your body so be sure you’re comfortable with all that. 

If these risks seem more incentive to you, you could also consider the ‘extreme canvas,’ but I recommend it sparingly. In this case, you ditch the white T-shirt and splurge on washable markers instead. Do not skip that step! Then go to the party without a shirt on, or perhaps a white sports bra or something along those lines, and encourage people to write on your skin.

This can save you a few bucks on a T-shirt and make you much more popular depending on what kind of party it is, but the risk for harassment and profanities increase exponentially. It’s really only acceptable behavior for house parties where you know the host and crowd. 

Pothead Homemade Halloween Costume

Ah yes, speaking of crude humor, we have the ever so simple Pot-Head costume. If you’re a fan of a good pun and are going to a more mellowed-out party, then this costume just might be perfect for you. 

All it requires is a pot of some kind. It could be a planter or a cheap piece of pottery. If you can, I’d recommend something plastic to avoid any kind of breakage or accidents. You can also go with a cooking pot, but if your friends have a primitive sense of humor, they’re going to ring your pot like a gong. Which isn’t exactly the most pleasant sensation.

The outfit is pretty self-explanatory. Wear the pot on your head and when people ask you what you are, hit them with your favorite stoner quotes. I’d recommend wearing a tie-dye T-shirt or a Baja hoodie to sell the effect. Bonus points if you wear round glasses, draw a lightning bolt on your pot, and tell people you’re a “Harry Potter-head.”

The hardest part is attaching the pot securely to your head. If you have a planter pot, take advantage of the hole in the bottom. Simply take a scarf or similarly long piece of fabric, push both ends through the hole, tighten and tie them under your chin. If you manage to lay your hands on a plastic pot, you can just cut the bottom out and wear it like a hat. You can also try gluing a plastic pot onto a hat or headband, but I personally tend to avoid the messier arts and crafts. Lastly, you can simply take a cooking pot, flip it upside down, and wear it like a helmet.

Ghosts of References Past

Another great costume for our more artistic readers is the ghost of references past. This is a must-have for anyone who’s really good at roasting people or ideas. This costume only requires a white bed sheet that you won’t miss, a color printer (or solid drawing skills), and tape.

Ghosts are, of course, a classic Halloween costume, but why not personalize it? Think of something you miss or something you’re glad is gone. It could be a TV show or character who died out years ago. Perhaps it could be a celebrity whose career sank after they said or did something very dumb and public. It could even be a meme you used to like. The sky’s the limit here.

Once you have your idea you can simply print out a photo of the object you’re memorializing and tape it to your chest. If the concept is a bit more obscure, feel free to write out what you’re the ghost of.

The trickiest part of this costume is cutting the eyes and mouth. Yes, you need to cut a mouthpiece for safety reasons, otherwise, your ghost costume will be a lot more realistic than you planned. To measure for the eyes I recommend using a pair of sunglasses as a stencil. This should help provide you with enough depth perception not to fall all over yourself. 

Toga, Toga, Toga

Last but certainly not least, we have the timeless bed sheet Toga costume. It’s been worn to parties ever since fraternity dudes were forced to read the classics in school. While the bedsheet toga is far from the actual garment worn by Greeks and Romans, it’s grown into a time-honored tradition that honestly puts the real garb to bed. Get it? 

All you need is a bed sheet you don’t mind risking a few stains over and a safety pin.  If you really want to sell it you can hunt around your yard or local park for some leafy twigs to use as laurels. Just be sure they’re clean of any bugs because that’s one jump scare you don’t need this Halloween.

There are several methods for tying a bedsheet into a toga, and probably hundreds of videos on each one. I’m personally a fan of the basic method. Pick up your bedsheet and drape it from your left shoulder (if you’re right-handed), across your torso. Wrap it around your back, bringing it up to your shoulder where you started the drape.

You might have to wrap it around yourself again if you have a large bedsheet. When you only have about a foot or so of material left to work with, bring it back to the shoulder where you started, so that you can tie it around the back. Finally sticking the bobby pin in a heart portion of the knot to keep it secure.

Accessorize Your Costume

I hope these options helped inspire you for your costume party later tonight. Remember to be safe out there. As a quick aside I want to remind you, accessories make the outfit. If you really want to sell one of these costumes see what you have that might add a little flair to your fit.

Maybe it’s a specific means of death that provides a backstory to your zombie. Perhaps a cardboard lightning bolt that transforms you from the common citizen to a fabled God. Get creative and entertain the crowd of onlookers with your words and actions throughout the party. 

What costume will you be making? Swipe up and comment below to let me know!