Area residents share some of their best handmade children’s costumes

 

We asked for people who make Halloween costumes for their children or grandchildren to show us some of their creations. From skilled seamstresses to creative problem-solvers, we found people who brought beloved characters — as well as creations of their own — to life. One girl is this feature even did most of her costume work herself (with a little help from Mom).

 

Scarlett and Markey Samp

Age: 7 and 11

Dressed as: flappers

Costume made by: grandmother Kim Stevens

Costume materials: wigs, feather boas, shoes, necklaces, gloves; dresses and headdresses made by Stevens

Previous costumes: Elsa and Anna from “Frozen,” characters from “The Wizard of Oz”

 

Paizley Lowe

Age: 8

Dressed as: Winifred Sanderson from “Hocus Pocus”

Costume made by: Lowe and mother Jes Williamson

Costume materials: spray-on hair dye, fake nails, rings, vampire teeth Williamson shaved down to look like Winifred’s and then used denture glue to keep in place, fabric picked out by Lowe and Williamson and sewn together, gold paint for fabric details

Previous costumes: Sally from “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” a “Ghostbusters” character, Voldemort from the “Harry Potter” series

 

Caleb Flicek

Age: 14

Dressed as: Marty McFly from “Back to the Future”

Costume made by: Flicek and mother Kendra MacIntosh

Costume materials: orange vest, flannel and denim shirts, jeans, old skateboard painted

Previous costumes: vampire, zombie

 

Olivia Sharpsteen

Age: 7 in September

Dressed as: a winged unicorn, or alicorn

Costume made by: mother Kristina Garcia

Costume materials: hooded sweatshirt and tights, wings, yarn for the tail and mane, cardboard with glitter paint and rubber bands for the hooves

Previous costumes: owl, butterfly, mouse — all paired with her mother’s costume

 

 

Costume tips for your trick-or-treaters

• Keep the footwear simple.  When Kristina Garcia was making an alicorn costume for her daughter, Olivia Sharpsteen, she knew to make the footwear easy for her daughter to walk around in. She made cardboard hooves that could be fastened to her daughter’s sneakers with rubberbands. They stayed on all night and didn’t make her daughter trip or step on them.

• Dress in layers. “There’s nothing worse than having to wear a coat over your costume,” Garcia said. She usually incorporates sweatshirts and tights into her costumes. That way, if it’s cooler, layers can be added underneath without taking away from the costume.

• Leave yourself plenty of time. This can be taken in different ways, depending on who you ask. Garcia said to leave plenty of time to dress up in the costumes so you or the children aren’t rushed or stressed getting ready to go out. For Kendra MacIntosh, it means leaving enough time to make the costume ahead of Halloween, if possible. When helping her son, Caleb Flicek, and her daughters put together their costumes, sometimes they’ve changed their mind on what to wear a little too close to the holiday for MacIntosh.

• Have fun. “Get creative,” Garcia said. “This is your chance to be a kid again.”