A few years ago, I posted a roundup of Halloween costumes from my past, but it’s been awhile since I last talked about costumes. As we head into the 2018 Halloween season, here’s a mini-roundup of some Disney-inspired costumes that I’ve crafted in recent years for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom Park!

2015: Wilderness Explorer (from the Disney-Pixar film Up)

I’d been wanting to run with this costume idea for some years when I finally decided to go for it. It seemed fairly simple to pull off and I loved all of the small crafty details that went along with it.

• Khaki Shorts: I already owned these!
• Shoes: I didn’t have hiking books, but I already owned these brown Sketchers. I added orange laces.
• Hat: The cheapest solid-yellow version I could find in an eBay store.
• T-shirt: Plain, solid-yellow from a craft store.
• Wilderness explorer logos and flag: Crafted from felt and glue, using an image I found on the internet as a template. Flag also required a wooden dowel and bead.
• Sash: Sewn from solid brown broadcloth. I freehanded a pattern on paper using my real-life Brownie Girl Scouts sash as a guide (LOL).
• Neckerchief: Solid orange broadcloth, I sewed the edges just to finish it off, and then used a wooden napkin ring (craft store) to secure it.
• Badges: I printed images from the internet, cut them out and decoupaged them to small wooden discs. I used hot glue to secure the badges to the sash.
• Weird Wilderness Explorer pin with beads: I don’t really know what this thing is, but I crafted it using a small square mirror painted brown, and some wooden craft beads, then taped a safety pin to the back.
• Grape Soda pin: A Disney Parks merchandise purchase.

I had a lot of fun crafting this one, and it was a really comfortable costume, which is important when you’re wearing it to a theme park! The sash with badges did tend to sag a bit from the weight of the badges, so I had to keep adjusting it throughout the night, and the sewing badge fell off within five minutes of me arriving at the party (it HAD to be the sewing badge, right!?) – but other than those small challenges, I’d consider this costume a win!

2016: Fix-It Felix (from the Disney film Wreck It Ralph) 

This is another costume I’d had in mind for a few years, but I held back, thinking that it was better served as a group costume, and I didn’t know anyone who was willing to be my Ralph or Vanellope. But I finally decided I didn’t want to wait around for someone to be part of my group, and I moved full speed ahead with my dreams of being Fix-It Felix.

• Navy Shorts: I already owned these! I would have worn jeans if it had been cold outside.
• Shirt: Purchased from the boys section at Walmart. I ordered an iron-on patch with my name from Etsy.
• Hat: I already owned this hat, but created a “Fix-It Felix” logo from felt and lightly basted it over the existing logo on the hat.
• Belt: A stretchy fashion belt from Walmart. I folded it and sewed a straight line from top to bottom to form a “loop” on one hip to store my gold hammer.
• Hammer: I found a plain wooden hammer toy on Etsy, then spray painted it gold.
• Shoes: I struggled with the shoes for this costume because I knew they were a distinctive part of Felix’s overall look, but real work boots are expensive. I really didn’t want to get expensive shoes just for a Halloween costume. I ended up finding these shoes in the boys department at Walmart, which give the appearance of work boots without being so expensive (since they’re squishy and don’t actually have steel in the toe). And although wearing kids’ shoes would normally be a stretch, they were super roomy inside and fit me just fine because of the style. Yay!

I’m so glad I decided to move forward with my Fix-It Felix dreams, even without anyone to be my Wreck It Ralph sidekick(s). One unexpected highlight of the night was running into other Ralph/Felix/Vanellopes throughout the park. They were more than willing to take a photo with me to complete my look!

2017: Mary Poppins 

My Mary Poppins inspiration started with a black skirt that I already own and regularly wear to work. A good black skirt seemed like one of the more important staples for a Mary Poppins costume, based on some Pinterest ideas I’d seen, so I decided to run with it.

• Blouse: Purchased from Amazon after searching for various options like “victorian blouse” and “lacy blouse.” I chose this one because it was sleeveless, which is perfect for a Florida Halloween party.
• Belt: Not actually a belt, but just a red ribbon from my craft room that gives the appearance of a belt.
• Hat: A black straw hat from Amazon. I accessorized it by using hot glue to attach some flowers I already had in my craft room, leftover from a wreath project.
• Bow tie: I sewed this using solid red broadcloth I already had in my fabric collection.
• Carpet bag: A super lucky find at Goodwill for just $2!
• Parrot head umbrella: The craftiest part of my costume! I really wasn’t sure how I would approach the making of this umbrella, but I love the way it turned out. I molded a parrot out of Crayola Model Magic clay (that stuff is SO fun and SO amazing!) onto the handle of a cheap, black umbrella from Walmart. I used some of my craft paints to paint the parrot, and sealed it with a clear sealing spray. The Crayola Model Magic was the GREATEST decision since it was so versatile and most importantly, lightweight. I can see why the Cosplay community loves it so much.

So there you have it – the last three year’s worth of Halloween costumes. You’re probably wondering what I have up my sleeve for 2018. Keep an eye on my Instagram account for a reveal in just a few weeks!

Happy (almost) Halloween!