A couple of years ago was my first foray into the whole DIY Haloween costume realm. I saw that great DIY post a few years ago about how to make a working Operation costume that gave me enough courage to actually try it. It wound up being the big hit of the costume party I went to, so I decided I was going to try and make my own costume. A trip to the Home Depot a few days before Haloween this year provided enough inspiration for a new costume: a Crayon. I tried to take enough pics during the construction process to try and give you all a good guide on creating your own.

Step 1: The Materials

Here's what you'll need to make your own Crayon Costume:
- Scissors and/or Box cutters
- Pencil
- Ruler
- Compact Disc (not pictured)
- Large diameter cardboard tube (I used a 16" form tube)
- Wrapping paper
- Tape (duct or masking)
- electrical tape
- Plastic/rubber cone (not pictured)
- Extra cardboard box (not pictured)
- Paper letters
- Glue stick

Choose your colors using the following guide:
- Duct/masking Tape - this will be the color of the "wax" portion of your crayon costume
- Wrapping paper - this will be the color of the crayon "wrapper"
- Electical tape - this will be used to add an extra stripe detail to the costume

Step 2: Cut Yerself Some Arm-holes

I did a quick check to make sure I actually fit in the cardboard form tube (quick tip: do this with a friend - you do NOT want to get stuck in one of those things). I used a CD to measure out a set of good-sized holes in the sides for my arms. I started out at about 1.5 CD's wide and 2 CD's long, though I wound up making the final holes a little larger.

Once the arm holes were cut, I trimmed the tube down to about the length of a tube of wrapping paper.

Step 3: Build Shoulder Supports

I quickly discovered that trying to wear a cardboard tube is REALLY uncomfortable. What helps? A set of awesome shoulder supports so that the weight of the tube is distributed over a wider distance on your shoulders. I cut a strip of cardboard from a cardboard box and folded it into a triangle then mounted it above the arm holes so that they lined up with where my shoulders would wind up.

Step 4: Wrap and Decorate

Start by wrapping the top, bottom and arm hole edges using your Duct/masking tape. You may need a couple widths of tape at the top and bottom in order to give yourself enough space for your "wax" color to be visible. Once you are done, wrap the form in your wrapping paper. I wound up wrapping the tube first, then cutting out space for my arm holes. I used some duct/masking tape to tape up the lose wrapping paper around the arm holes.

I found some great paper letters at the drug store, which I stuck on with a little help from a glue stick. I used the electrical tape to create a detail stripe around the top and bottom of the wrapper.

Step 5: Get to the Point

The crayon tip hats were made from a set of rubber cones I picked up at the home depot. If I were to make this costume again, I probably would have picked a new material since the rubber hats were a little heavy. But they wound up looking awesome. I cut off the base of the cones using a box cutter and wrapped the cones in the duct/masking tape. I created straps out of more tape and attached them to the inside of the cones using (you guessed it) more tape. I'm sure there is a much more elegant method of making the hats, but this is what I wound up with.

Step 6: A Couple of Crayons

All in all, the costumes came out great. They were a big hit and really easy to put together. My only complaint about the design was that you couldn't easily sit down in the things. Version 2 will probably include a cut out in the back to allow for sitting (or perhaps a shorter tube).

Anyways, I hope some of you find this guide helpful. Have a wonderful (and colorful) Halloween!