DIY Extraterrestrial Outfit Ideas for Your Next Party
You can put together an otherworldly look using items you likely already own, such as sweats, bedsheets, cardboard boxes and a few simple props. A bit of creativity and light effort is all it takes to become the best-dressed alien around.
By Sage Martin
The gray-skin alien is a traditional alien design.
If you're set to roam the cosmos or just want to turn heads when you arrive at a costume gathering, pulling off a current alien look is simpler than you might think. Ordinary household items, plain sweats, sheets and a handful of props can be turned into fashionable extraterrestrial attire. With some creativity and not much work, you can be the most stylish alien in the neighborhood.
Offbeat Costume Materials
Trash cans, lids and boxes can become striking alien bodies. Take a 32-gallon plastic trash can, cut openings for arms and remove the base. You can use the can either as the alien's body or as a planetary platform for its head. Coat the can in black paint, then sponge on glow-in-the-dark stars. Cut a hole in the lid for the head, paint it black and glue on Styrofoam planets. For rock-like aliens, build with used cardboard boxes, chicken wire and expanding spray foam. Keep the top and bottom of the boxes open and attach shoulder straps. Cover the box with chicken wire, spray expanding foam through the wire, then paint the foam.
Sweat Suits
A sweat suit can serve as the basis for multiple costume parts. Pick a solid-colored sweat suit to make a uniform reminiscent of those worn by Star Trek aliens. Add intergalactic symbols in paint to the shirt. For space boots, cut silver fabric pieces with hook-and-loop fasteners to form spats, then wear them over boots or low ankle shoes. To make a Star Trek-inspired uniform shirt, use the yoke and sleeves of a sweatshirt. Cut a sweatshirt below the neckband and arms, then wear that piece over a turtle-neck. The leftover sweatshirt fabric can become a skirt: cut small holes just beneath the banded edge, thread a cord through them and tie it at the waist. Complete the look with black tights and knee boots.
Sheets
For a formal alien dignitary garment, cut a head hole in the center of a sheet in any color. Wear it over a turtle neck and tights, and cinch the waist with a wide belt. A sheet can also become a simple cape: cut a neck hole 4 inches from the edge and let the fabric drape behind you. Tie the center front with a cord and hot glue a large metal button in the middle. Pair it with a leotard and knee boots.
Alien Costume Props
Basic props can help tie an alien costume together, and many are easy to make with paint and a bit of hot glue. Create a ribbon-wrapped head band and attach pipe cleaners with small Styrofoam eyes at the ends. Use metallic paint to transform old foam shooter guns into space guns. Alternatively, paint an old flip phone with metallic paints to make a communicator device.
