I decided last November that I wanted to dress up as a piñata for Halloween, and have been concepting the costume for weeks now. Bringing my vision to reality turned out to be quite the hilarious feat, as Camille and I got to work on my prototype & I was humbly reminded of the woes of leotard life. After it all, I’m happy to report that I’m super pleased with the way the outfit came together (though the true test will lie in its durability), and that creating it was actually very simple. If you’re still costume-less and have gone into panic mode, recreating this getup is easy as pie, and I’m here to show you how to do it…
- Cut crepe paper into long, 1″ wide strips.
- Use hot glue gun to attach strips to bottom half of leotard in three layers, all the way around, creating the ‘skirt’. Cut skirt strips to desired length in zig zag pattern.
- Cut crepe paper into long 3″ wide strips. Be sure that the length of the strips run perpendicular to the grain of the crepe paper, to allow stretching when worn. Use scissors to cut 2″ long fringe into the strips (as pictured above).
- Glue fringed crepe paper strips in arched pattern on front of the bodice (as pictured below), and wrap around back of bodice to cover.
- Use remaining fringe strips to trim neckline and straps.
- It’s not pictured, but I think I’ll create some fringe cuffs, and maybe even fringe tube socks, to finish off the look.
oh. my. goodness. best costume ever! Chanel you rock.
HOLY GUACAMOLE, CHANEL. I love it! So adorable!
What a great costume. I love this. I want to be a Pinata.
I am impressed. I love this idea. And she looks so cute! This sort of reminds me of the year when I dresses up like a vine of grapes :: leggings and lots of purple balloons attached to my body. It was awkward, but really fun! Again, great job!
you know i love this. byrd? next year?
I’d be HONORED!
this is so adorable!
What a darling costume! So clever and well-executed.
I love it! I still need a costume and I seriously might attempt this! Great idea.
omg!!! how creative! love the idea and she looks so cute!
This is the best costume idea EVER!! Wow! It is so fun and perfect. I’m LOVING it.
Obsessed with this!!! I want to make one!
Oh my goodness! You could not be any more adorable!
Love it!
This is SO cute!! You make it look so easy that I want to try it! One of the best DIY costumes I’ve seen!!
Oh my word, this is adorable. My fave part about this post is the colorful pics. Also, LOVE the crepe paper sheets. Need to get my hands on that stuff!
The crepe paper sheets are genius…can’t wait to try them on all sorts of projects! We picked up ours from PaperMart.
http://www.papermart.com/Product%20Pages/Product.aspx?GroupID=36623&SubGroupID=36547#36547
Papermart is awesome – did you use the Heavy or the Premium crepe paper? And how did this costume hold up over the course of a night?
I lile the dres and the smile of this model. I ad your site to my list
I LOVE it! Is it bad that I would probably wear that as a dress to a party…….?
OMG. The best custom!!! What a great idea, so proud of you!!!
Thanks, mom!
Very cool! You are so crafty
. Is it bad that I kind of want one for a cocktail party, and I’m not talking halloween 
Jamie, you would be SO adorable in this costume! I mean seriously, you can pull anything off…
How fun! Such a cute, creative outfit!!!
I’m seriously regretting my costume choice now! Alas, the three hours making my dinosaur tail have already been spent… pinning this for next year, though!
Oh my gosh, a dinosaur costume sounds adorable! Send us links to pics next week!
I LOVE IT!!!!! So bright and fun! I might have to try this.
This is AMAZING! I am actually supposed to go to a Dia de los Muertos themed party tonight and was debating over my costume (not into the dead look) – you may just have a costume copier
I made it! http://ooola-la.tumblr.com/post/12160457349/my-halloween-costume
I think it turned out great. Thanks for the great idea!!
omg this turned out incredible Laura!! You look absolutely darling. Happy Halloween!
I used this post as my halloween inspiration
The costume came out amazing and was an absolute hit at the party I went to! Thanks for the idea!
Oooh we love love love hearing this! Did you take any pics?
I will do this on this year’s halloween!
my first halloween on college ..it will be great:D
this is such a clever idea! I’ll have to keep it in mind for future Halloweens.
Love this it’s adorable but what I’m wondering is the durability of it owe night? Like for example when u sat down and got back up did it wreck any of the costume?
Hi Karly. It was actually REALLY durable! A few strips came unglued here in there, but no major damage and no tears in the crepe paper, and nothing fell off. I even touched it up and re-wore it on Cinco de Mayo
When you glued it onto the leotard, then put it on, did it stretch to fit your body? I am worried when the leotard stretches as I wear it they will break
Hi Paulina! Because the crepe paper material has ridges it was able to stretch quite a bit. Even if one glue piece becomes detached here & there, the whole strip should still stay put, and you can just touch it up as you go. Overall, it was very durable! Good luck!
Hi there, I just got my crepe paper order in the mail today and am excited to make this costume. Do you by chance have any photos of the back of the bodice? If you do, that would be amazing, thanks!
My friends and I were thinking of doing this costume for our senior dress up day. Very creative costume! We love it! any pointers? How long in advance should we make it? Did it stay together well?
Where can you find crepe paper? I live in Albuquerque where there are not alot of sources. Could you use streamers? I don’t think that there’s enough time between now and Halloween to order it online.
That’s what I used when my daughter made this costume for herself and it turned out super cute.
Thanks Avery! I ended up ordering the original crepe paper from Paper Mart online, and it turned out great! For those who are thinking of making this, it only lasted the night, because it tore every time I put it on and took it off (and I’m a small girl).
Hi Chanel! I loved your idea and could not figure out how to show you my costume. I made a WordPress and posted my photo there. Thanks!