Look, out in the yard! It's a boy! It's a girl! No, it's Superkid — faster than a speeding soccer ball, more powerful than a yellow school bus, able to pack her own lunch box in a single bound! You don't need X-ray vision to see that when your kids create these Halloween costumes, they can mix and match their own amazingly awesome attributes.
Mercifully, these outfits do not require any heroics on your part. Even if something as small as a needle and thread cripples you like Kryptonite, you can still fashion unbeatable ensembles with a few store-bought supplies, such as felt, tape and glue. And these don't require a hulking hunk of time — you and your kids can whip them up before you can say, “Kapow! Bam! Zap!" (Time conversion for the Caped Crusader-impaired: a few hours.)
Each of these outfits starts with leggings and a long-sleeve T-shirt (which don't even have to match). Then come the accessories: headbands, eye masks, chest letters and lightning bolts, capes, cuffs and belts. Best of all, as a woman whose children are wearing homemade costumes, you get to be Supermom.
Cape and T-shirt how-to
A cape is truly what separates the supermen from the boy wonders. This one requires just one easy seam — we didn't even hem the edges.
Tools and materials
Felt or sparkly paper
Small sharp scissors
36-by-36-inch piece of polyester satin (or T-shirt)
24 inches of 1⁄2-inch ribbon
Fabric glue, such as Magna- Tac
Safety pin
1. Make letter or symbol: Print a template of your choice at marthastewart.com/quick -costumes. Cut out. Trace onto felt or paper, and cut out.
2. Make cape: Fold over one side of the fabric by 1 inch, and press with a cool iron. Sew down flap, creating a 3⁄4-inch channel. Attach safety pin to one end of ribbon, and thread through. (No-sew option: Snip holes along one edge and run ribbon through.)
3. Attach letter or symbol: Lay cape or T-shirt flat. Squeeze glue all over the back of the letter or symbol, and position on cape or shirt. Let dry.
Mask and headband how-to
Even the small bits of tape we used are highly reflective, so it's great for trick-or- treating after dark. Trim a plain mask into a shape with personality.
Tools and materials
Cardboard eye mask
Small sharp scissors
Fabric glue, such as Magna- Tac
2 10-inch pieces of 1⁄2-inch ribbon
1 length reflective tape, 30 inches
Glitter paper
Cutout or punched stars
1. For mask, use a pen to draw your desired outline, and cut out. (Snip from top and bottom, but leave sides intact.) Remove the mask's elastic, and glue ribbon at sides.
2. Print templates of headband, crest at marthastewart .com/quick-costumes. Cut out, and trace the headband onto reflective tape and the crest onto glitter paper. Glue star to crest, then glue crest to headband. Let dry. Center crest on forehead, and wrap band around head; trim ends to allow a 1-inch overlap. Glue ends.
Belt and cuffs how-to
Thick painters' tape is ideal for belts and cuffs, and it sticks right to paper or muslin.
Tools and materials
2-inch-wide strip of kraft paper, muslin or reflective tape, cut to fit around child's waist with 1-inch overlap
Painters' tape in a variety of colors
Two 2-by-8-inch strips of kraft paper or muslin
Fabric glue, such as Magna-Tac
1. Make belt: Cover long paper or muslin with desired color of painters' tape. (If using reflective tape, skip this step.) Create belt buckle by trimming pieces of painters' tape and sticking them to the center of strip.
2. Make cuffs: print template at marthastewart .com/quick-costumes. Cut out. Trace onto the shorter pieces of paper or muslin, and cut out. Cover cutout with desired color of painters' tape. Wrap around wrist so the ends overlap at slight angle, forming a peak. Tape or glue in place.
