DIY Kids Tin Man Costume

DIY Tin Man Costume for kids – how to make a tin man costume out of a cardboard box.

 

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Amazon
Halloween is right around the corner and today I’m partnering with Amazon to share an easy costume idea made out of a cardboard box. This is a great last-minute Halloween costume idea that you can make with a handful of supplies.

My daughter loves theater and has dreamed of seeing Wicked for years. We took her to watch the Broadway show while in NYC this summer and it was an amazing experience for all of us. She’s talked about being Elphaba (the wicked witch) for Halloween ever since. So we decided that our entire family would dress up as Wizard of Oz characters for Halloween this year. Today I’m going to share how easy it is to make a Tin Man costume out of a box!

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Supplies:
cardboard box (save those Amazon Smiles boxes!)
silver duct tape (regular size and 1 inch)
spray paint
buttons
silver fabric
hot glue
scissors
Accessories: oil funnel, toy ax, grey long sleeve shirt and pants
Silver face paint
Wicked Witch Costume <– this costume is perfect! The price & quality are great!
Green face paint (this brand is amazing quality! The makeup applied smoothly and was easy to blend)

Step one: open one end of a cardboard box so that it lays flat. Start on one end and begin rolling to the opposite end (sort of like a dessert pumpkin roll). This helps loosen up the cardboard and makes it easier to shape the circular body of the costume. Loosely wrap it around your child and trim off any excess. Use a few layers of duct tape to make it sturdy.

Step two: cut a circle slightly bigger than the diameter of your costume. Cut a circle inside to fit your child’s head through comfortably. I reinforced every exposed cardboard edge with duct tape. This includes the top, bottom, arm and neck holes. Add your top piece to the body of the costume using hot glue. Once the glue is hard, carefully trim off the excess to make the body and top of the costume the same diameter. Tip: reinforce the top with duct tape inside. My son has a couple of Halloween parties to wear his costume to before trick or treating so I wanted to make sure the costume was sturdy.

Step three: cut arm holes from the costume a couple inches down from the top. I made mine a little bigger so that it’s easier to slip the costume on and off my son.

Step four: hot glue buttons down the center of the costume. Then spray paint a couple of coats, allowing each coat to dry in between.

Step five: I added a collar by folding shiny silver fabric in half and sealing the edges with duct tape. I then glued it inside the collar of the costume. I really think this helped give the costume a finished look and it took less than 5 minutes to make. You can also add a red heart using vinyl or by gluing on a paper heart.

I spray painted the accessories to match the costume. The oil funnel has elastic glued to the inside on each side.

In case you need a matching Wicked Witch costume, my daughter loves this one we ordered from Amazon! The details are so pretty and the material isn’t sheer, which is sometimes hard to find in costumes.

I’m so excited with the way our tin man boxtume turned out! I can’t wait to take a family photo of everyone dressed up.

For more Boxtume ideas visit Amazon on Facebook and Instagram.