Costume made from waste material, interesting and simple ideas

Features and Benefits

Making an outfit for a fairy-tale character, superhero or transforming robot from available materials is actually simple. It is enough to use your imagination and not be limited to one type of material. Original things come from:

paper (old newspapers, candy wrappers, cardboard boxes);
plastic (bottles, disposable tableware);
polyethylene (garbage bags, oilcloth, packaging bags);
natural materials (dry leaves, cones, dried flowers).

The main advantages of creating an outfit are the availability of materials and ease of execution. Most often, the costume is assembled literally from garbage that can be found in every home. Disadvantages include the fragility of the products and the lack of comfort in them. It is worth understanding that these are things not for everyday use, but for performances or games.

Made of plastic

Made from polyethylene

Made from natural material

From old newspapers

Knitting with cellophane

Garbage bags can also be used as knitting material. Using a hook, you can create an original, attractive outfit that will be quite difficult to recognize as ordinary bags.

Material for knitting must be prepared in advance and in large quantities, since if there is a shortage of packages it will be difficult to select others by color.

We cut strips as threads of yarn from a large number of bags. We crochet No. 2 with the simplest pattern - a stitch in a circle.

A dress with a knitted top and a fluffy skirt made from inflated bags will look interesting.

Another option for using cellophane strips for a skirt. If you crochet the base of a dress from usually yarn in the form of a mesh, and create a voluminous skirt with stripes as follows: cut strips of equal length and width. Then we fold each strip in half and insert it into the mesh base, securing it with a knot. As a result, the two ends of the strip will form the fullness of the skirt. An example of a dress in the photo below:

Related article: Shawl “Dancing Leaves”: diagram and description of the master class

Manufacturing process

When starting work, it would be useful to talk with your child about who he wants to be, what materials he would like to use most. And based on his preferences, prepare the necessary funds for making an unusual costume.

From cardboard boxes

Boxes are an ideal material for creating a costume for a boy. For example, it’s very easy to make an image from the future – a “steel” robot.

To create you need:

two boxes (rectangular for the body, square for the head);
foil;
scotch;
scissors;
colored paper;
wire;
hot glue;
gouache.

The work process will take a little time, the main thing is to do everything step by step.

Head. The excess parts are cut off from the box to create a cube with three sides. Make a cutout for the face on one of them. Cover the top of the box with foil. If desired, make the decor in the form of a small antenna (use wire, colored paper and tape for fastening).
Torso. Trim the excess pieces so that the box does not have a bottom base. Cut a recess on the top for the head, and on the sides for the arms. Cover the box with foil, use colored paper and gouache to work out the decor (buttons, mini-screen, energy stripes).
Legs, arms. It is enough to put a regular black or gray suit on your child and attach several foil elements with double-sided tape.

In addition to the robot, the following costumes for children can be made from the boxes: knight, dinosaur, house, Lego piece, SpongeBob and others.

From plastic bottles

This material allows you to make incredible DIY dresses for girls. Images of flower fairies, mermaids, and princesses will appeal to little fashionistas.

To make a mermaid dress you need to prepare:

bottles of blue, white, blue colors (at least 20 pcs.);
scissors;
nail polish (pearl pink);
glue Moment.

Work process.

Cut oval scales from bottles (4-5 cm for the bodice and 6-7 cm for the skirt and train).
Cover the elements with nail polish to get a color shimmer effect.
Glue the scales to the base (you can take an old dress). Cover the bodice with small details, the skirt and train with larger elements. Arrange them randomly, imitating fish scales.
Make a wreath. Cut 3 flowers from the green and blue bottles. Put the blue one into the green one and glue it. Wrap a plastic bag around the rim, straighten the free end, and fold it into a flower shape. Glue 3 bottle flowers to it.

When cutting out costume parts, you can easily get hurt on the edges of the bottle. This stage of work should be entrusted to an adult.

You can also make a costume from plastic bottles for boys (alien, transformer, superhero).

From disposable tableware

This material allows you to create simple but effective children's costumes. To make a ball gown for a girl, you need the following materials:

plastic cups (depending on the child’s height, on average 200 pieces);
stapler;
scissors;
zipper;
thread, needle.

Work process:

Bodice. Cut the glasses in half and remove the bottom. Place the two parts one inside the other (the top one is 2 cm higher than the bottom one), and fasten it with a stapler. Lay out the resulting fastened parts in 2 rows from bottom to top to the height of the bodice. Make the sides and back from smooth parts of glasses.
Skirt. The glasses are collected in tiers and fixed with a stapler. The first tier is the widest. Closer to the waist, the skirt should taper due to the reduction in the number of glasses.
Assembly. Sew the skirt to the bodice using threads. To hide the paper clips on the skirt, you can insert a whole one into each cup and secure it with glue.

If you use glasses of different colors, you can lay out a mosaic (geometric patterns, flowers, rainbows).

From old newspapers

A little imagination and free time will allow you to make a costume even from waste, for example, from unnecessary newspapers. It's easy to make a ballet tutu out of them.

Tools:

newspapers;
scissors;
glue;
stapler;
thread, needle.

Description of work:

Top. Wrap the newspaper around the fabric base, pin it together, and sew it on. Any unnecessary dress with straps can be used as a basis. Fold the newspaper like an accordion, straighten it to form a fan, attach it to the bodice, and secure it with threads as decoration.
Skirt. Roll the newspaper sheet into a cone shape and fasten it with a stapler at the narrow part. The resulting parts need to be laid out in layers, forming a ballerina’s tutu. Attach the skirt to the base using glue and a stapler. If necessary, the edges of the cones can be made more textured - randomly cut out zigzags or pre-fold the newspaper like an accordion.

Making clothes from waste material is a simple and fun process. There are many variations of designing a dress for a girl from newspapers or magazines.

Required materials and tools

Preparing parts for the skirt

The prepared triangles must be carefully connected to each other. We cut out the bodice blank from the biscuits.

A piece of an old T-shirt is attached to the back of the newspaper blank.

From garbage bags

A DIY costume made from garbage bags is the easiest to make. The child will be able to cope with the work even without the help of an adult. To create a Batman superhero costume you need:

black thick garbage bags;
scotch;
scissors.

Description of work.

Cloak. Cut two large bags to create a rectangle. Glue the two resulting parts in the middle with tape (you get a wide, even canvas). Cut semicircles along the edge of the cloak to give the rectangle the shape of a bat wing. Cut 4 ribbons 6-8 cm wide from the bag. Glue two of them with tape in the form of loops so that the raincoat can be worn over the shoulders. The two remaining ribbons are attached to the edge of the cloak, this will allow you to tie it to the child’s wrist.
Decor. The hero's mask is cut from the same material. Then you should print or draw two yellow superhero emblems, one taped to the back of the cape, the other to the chest.

Any boy will be happy with such a heroic costume made from bags.

Materials

The main workpiece is made from a large plastic bag

Preparations for daisies

You need to cut out petals from the strips

From dry leaves

To create a costume from unnecessary waste material in the fall, leaves, branches, and cones are used. You can make a beautiful dress for a girl in autumn style in a few hours.

Materials:

maple leaves of different colors and sizes;
paraffin;
thread, needle.

Description of work:

Treat the collected leaves with paraffin so that they do not dry out (dip each leaf into boiling paraffin and place it on newspaper until completely dry).
Take an old dress for the base, preferably with flounces on the skirt. Sew the leaves to the base so that it does not show through.
You can weave a wreath from the remaining leaves and add bright rowan branches to it.

A children's autumn suit looks very impressive, and the leaves treated with paraffin do not wither or dry out for a long time.

A dress is never just a dress, a dress is always about desires

If you have a desire to make an unusual dress, then first learn how to make small origami dresses, which are ideal for decorating greeting cards for a birthday or for March 8th, such a dress will decorate the wardrobe of your favorite doll, you can make garlands from it, or decorate a gift box , party table.

The material for such a product should be thin paper, then it will not look massive.

Before you start, you need the following things in your arsenal:

colored double-sided paper, preferably with a print;
sharp scissors;
ruler no more than 30 cm long;
a simple pencil;
rhinestones, beads, seed beads, lace for decoration (depending on your imagination);
glue, tape, stationery stapler;
patience and good mood.

A breeze blew from the sea, cheerful and self-satisfied, like a woman who has bought herself a new dress.

Recommendations

Costumes made from scrap materials for girls and boys do not require large financial costs and effort to make. However, you must remember the safety rules:

It is worth making sure that the child is not allergic to the materials of the future suit.
Do not use sharp or dangerous objects that can dig into the skin, scratch or cause discomfort. Avoid small parts that a child could accidentally swallow.
Before putting on the costume, you need to make sure that the glue is completely dry and its smell has completely disappeared.

Do not trust needles, scissors, stationery knives and hot glue to children. Even if a child knows how to handle them, an adult should always be nearby and supervise the work process.

By following these simple rules, a joint activity with your son or daughter will bring a lot of positivity, and a costume made from waste material will teach the child to appreciate nature, fantasize and create.

What will you need for the job?

To make a beautiful outfit, you first need to be patient. After all, a masterpiece is not always achieved the first time. It is advisable that the product be made by one person. After all, everyone has their own thoughts and ideas that are difficult to implement at the same time.

If we make dresses from garbage bags without using other consumables, then we may not need sewing supplies. The individual parts will be connected with glue or double-sided tape. An ordinary wooden clothespin will also come to the rescue. It will need to be used to pre-fasten individual elements. And, of course, you can’t do without scissors. With their help we will cut out the details of the dress.

In order to create a complicated model with darts and gathers, you must have special sewing skills. Here you can no longer do without a needle and thread. But under no circumstances should you sew parts together using a sewing machine. Cellophane is a delicate material. It can simply be torn during operation.

Alien costume

The most flattering outfit is the alien dress. Yes, because no one knows what he really looks like. Come up with whatever you want, cut it with your own hands, glue it, draw everything your imagination allows. To indicate that you are wearing an alien costume, simply attach an antenna to your head and paint your face green.

Cloud

The cloud suit is made of padding polyester. Take a white cloth or an old pillowcase.

Cut a hole in it for the head and sew in lots and lots of white synthetic fluff. White tights will complete the look.

Decorative cardboard inserts

A cardboard sheet will help make the dress truly fluffy. This is an excellent material for a skirt with a frame, a corset.

A disaster - in windy weather, a paper outfit. It will fly away all or parts of it. If cardboard was used, there was a greater chance of attending the celebration in clothes.