Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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How To Make A Jellyfish Costume With Lights

Happy Friday, guys! As is the annual tradition, we thought we’d share what Clara and Burger are going to be for Halloween this year, especially since I DIYed Clara’s costume for the second year in a row (without crying or cursing!) and I love how it came out. At first when we asked her what she wanted to be for Halloween she said “a lawyer!” True story. And we laughed and pictured her walking down the street with a little briefcase. Then a few days later she said “I want to be a jellyfish!” So asked her a few questions like “what color jellyfish do you want to be?” and that’s when she came out with her full request: “I want to be a pink jellyfish… and I don’t want to be a regular jellyfish, I want to be A FAIRY QUEEN OF THE JELLYFISH!” So here’s where we ended up.

Jellyfish Blowing

I just decked out a clear umbrella with some pink tissue paper, fabric ribbon, and that thinner plastic ribbon that you can curl with a scissors. And then John added some battery powered cold-to-the-touch LEDs to make it glow (tech nerd hubby FTW). Clara could not be more smitten (this is her attempting to hug her costume). Burger, by contrast, abhors his, but we’ll get there in a second.

Jellyfish Hugging

As for how I made it, first I hit up Sir Google to check out other jellyfish costumes (guys, there wasn’t a single Slutty Jellyfish costume, which was both comforting and surprising). As for the costumes that I did find, some were of the stuffed hat variety (like this) and others were made from umbrellas (like this), which I thought was a good choice for Clara because she could hold it and swing it around if she wanted, but not have to worry about balancing it on her head like a giant hat. So we grabbed a clear umbrella at Target.

The first step in my umbrella-to-jellyfish conversion was sticking some pink tissue paper into each of the umbrella’s panels (those metal arms held each triangle of it in place) so the entire thing wasn’t see-through. I did this because I wanted the bottom to be clear so Clara could walk and see, but thought the top would look more jellyfish-ish if it were more solid. Next I tied some long strands of thick fabric ribbon around each of the spines inside the umbrella that holds it open so those could hang down around Clara. I saw all sorts of fun tentacle ideas when I Googled (using bubble wrap, ribbon, fabric strips, etc) and loved them all, so I decided to just work with the things we already had around the house (like ribbon leftover from this tree) and see how things went.

Jellyfish 1 Umbrella N Ribbon

Lastly I just cut a whole bunch of long pink lengths of curl-able plastic ribbon (the one umbrella-decorating item that I ran out and bought for $1.50 at Michaels) and tied them to each of the metal spines (I did six lengths of them hanging down on each of the eight spines). Then I dragged the edge of a scissors down them after tying each one in place to make them curly.

Jellyfish 2 Curled Ribbon

When Clara came home from school and saw it, oh man, I wish I had it on video. There were lots of wows and even a coveted “it’s AMAZING!” Then John added his little battery powered LEDs (fairy lights he found on amazon for $6.99) and Clara really went wild. Since it gets dark so much earlier these days we actually think they’ll come in handy. Just look at them glow in the darkest spot we could find in our house: our closet.

Jellyfish In Darkness

It’s a bit ambitious to think that Clara will hold the umbrella the whole time, but she gets to wear a little costume of her own (just a fun tulle skirt that she got for her birthday and other general fairy-slash-queen-ness) so in the event that she’s over the umbrella she’ll still have her fairy costume to go door to door in – and heck, I might just tuck a wand and a crown in my purse for added bling. Yes, I still use that word.

Jellyfish Blowing

As for Burger, well, he’s never a fan of anything on him. Ever. This goes for all sweaters, boots, hats, and costumes. So he was not amused when he magically became a seal thanks to this costume that we found at Target. We just couldn’t resist – especially since it’s a tradition to dress him up with Clara every year (heck, we’ve been dressing him up since way before she was born). We joked that he just needed a crown and a scepter so he could be a King Seal to match Clara’s royal sea-creature status. Still kinda bummed Target didn’t carry the lobster or shark costumes they had in previous years, but he does make a pretty cute seal.

Burger Seal

And maybe we have it all wrong. Maybe Burger loves costumes. Because he certainly seems to take immense joy in shimmying around to wriggle out of them. Wish we caught that on video too.

Burger Suspicious

And this year John and I actually have a costume party to attend, so after a little “uh… what should we be?” pondering, we came up with a theme of our own. Some people say that I look like Kahleesi from Game of Thrones (and who am I to argue with the idea of dressing up like a chick who HAS DRAGONS?). So a cheap blonde wig from Target and a green dress that I already had (you might remember it from Clara’s party a few years back) became my somewhat completely ridiculous costume…

Khaleesi Full Shot1

Oh and I used a strategically placed ten cent placemat from a yard sale to make a gold belt and some little shoulder things. You know. For flair.

Khaleesi Placemat

I just snipped it in half and cut off the curved part at the bottom and used the green rope belt that came with my dress to hold that in place in the front like a big ol’ gold front plate or something. As for the shoulder things, I just cut the remaining part of the placemat in half to create little triangles that I could tuck under the straps of my dress and pin them to keep them there (forgot to get a detail shot of those for ya, but you can sort of see them peeking out from behind my wig in the full shot above). Overall, it was really easy and only ran me $9 for the wig and ten cents for the placemat.

Khaleesi Belt 2

But I might like John’s “costume” most of all (ok, it’s tied with The Fairy Queen Of All The Jellyfish) because it’s so him. Keeping with the Game of Thrones theme, I actually proposed that he be Khal Drogo (to which he responded “have you seen me?”) so then I suggested Littlefinger (hello, he’d get to sport a mustache). He went silent for a second and then said “I have a better idea.” Any guesses?

Snow Straight

Yup, that’s his pun-tastic interpretation of Jon Snow. Since he looks nothing like the character, he figured “well, I’m already John, so I’ll just wear a wooly hat and add a big ironic snowflake to my shirt or something and poof: I’m John Snow.” Not sure if it would pass muster at Comic Con, but it cracks me up. And if nothing else, at least the background of his photo brought of touch of Winterfell to it. Yes, that’s a deer just grazing about ten yards behind him.

Snow Deer

As for how he made his shirt, it’s just white duct tape on a blue t-shirt (so he can peel it off and still wear the shirt the rest of the year when he’s being John Petersik).

Snow Snowflake Detail

It was pretty funny watching him place each strip of tape in the mirror… whilst wearing the shirt. I think he’s nothing if not dedicated (my version of a snowflake would have a lot fewer line segments).

Snow Making In Mirror

We’re pretty low key about this stuff, so admittedly nothing that we made is super intricate, but we think it’ll do the trick nicely for the costume party. Now to figure out what dish we’ll bring. Ahh!

Khaleesi Snow Together1

Also, if you watch Game of Thrones, this ridiculously inappropriate dubbed video of other things that match up with their lips has us walking around saying “Are you a fan of the pikachu?” and “I’m working on a gravity belt.”

Oh and the buggy pumpkins! Here they are. No, they didn’t get infested or anything, I just love unusual pumpkins and Clara loves bugs, so she helped me turn one into a spider and the other one into a caterpillar. Here’s how they started out (we got them here because they looked so bug-like, which spawned this paint-job idea).

Pumpkins On Porch

I loved them as-is (yes, I truly adore oddly shaped pumpkins just as they are) but I couldn’t resist having some fun with Clara and some paint. So here they are after a laugh-filled little painting sesh with the bean:

Pumpkins Close Up

She painted the spider with some craft paint (I just told her to go to town on the top and we left the bottom orange since we thought that would make it look more leggy and creepy – just like Clara likes ’em). Meanwhile I added a little dot for an eye on the caterpillar and swiped my paint brush around it to quickly make some rough little wrinkles, like the sections of a caterpillar. When they dried, we added some little painted on eyes to Clara’s spider (she loved the idea of four of them since I showed her a picture online of a real spider with four eyes) and we called them good.

Pumpkins Far

We still have to grab some pumpkins to carve (there’s a field trip to a pumpkin patch with Clara early next week so we’ve been holding out for that) but one thing’s for sure. There will be some last minute pumpkin seeds baking at our house (mmm, my favorite). What are you guys doing with pumpkins and costumes? Let’s hear it.

*******************************

Psst- For anyone who wants to walk down memory lane and check out C & B’s costumes for the last few years, here’s the post about Jesse & Slinky Dog (my first attempt at homemade costumes).

Halloween 1 Greeting

And here’s the dynamic duo as a monkey & banana.

Costumes Petting Burger

And here’s their very first Halloween together as a hot dog & hamburger.

Halloween Costumes

Comments

  2. Liz B. says

    This year my youngest asked to be a pill bug/roly-poly bug. We couldn’t persuade her to anything else, so My amazing Mom made her a pill bug costume. Next year she’s asked to be a peapod, and my son wants to be a Flying Purple People Eater.

    Reply

  3. Kim P. says

    I can’t get over the awesomeness that is the Jellyfish!! Very inventive and super cool. She will look awesome walking down the street when it gets darker. Maybe next year I will be brave enough to DIY our daughter’s costume :)

    Reply

  5. jessica Paulsen says

    I love that there is another three year old out there with wild Halloween costume ideas. My 3 year old is stuck on the idea of being a green spider for Halloween. Not sure how crafty this is going to have to get at this point, but i am sure hangers and felt are in my weekend plans…

    Reply

  7. Lesley says

    I was soooooclose to having my son be a jellyfish this year with the clear umbrella. It seemed like the perfect low cost. use what you have DIY costume that could be used after. But then I realized I don’t think he would have held the umbrella for more than 1 minute never mind walk around with it for 30+ minutes

    Reply

  10. alli says

    I love that you dressed your dog and kid to match! It gets harder with more dogs…we have one kid and three dogs, and its too complicated now to coordinate…

    Reply

  12. Susan Turley says

    What is going on with your posts “WE’RE DIGGING” it’s unreadable. It’s written all over the page a million times and you can’t read through it.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I bet you’re on a smart phone. It’s a weird glitch but if you clear your cache/cookies/data it should fix itself. Wish we could do something on our end!

      xo
      s

  14. Tiffini S. says

    Very cute. We let our son pick the costumes each year, then we plan around that. Plus I have to make sure my husbands costume is a ‘non-costume’ (ie: Not very elaborate). My favorite was last year, he picked Cat in the Hat, so the twins were Thing 1 and Thing 2, and hubs and I were green eggs and ham (just felt stuck on tshirts). This year, Jamer wants to be a Ghostbuster, so the twins are Slimer and Staypuft, and we’re going as the Gatekeeper and the Keymaster. You’d be amazed at how many things at Goodwill can pass for a proton pack.

    BTW: Allow me to say I HATE YOU GUYS! You HAD to mention how awesome Home Goods is, right? So I finally moved somewhere with several of them around, and I visited one yesterday. HOLY SCHMOLEY! It’s good thing I couldn’t stay long. LOVE THAT PLACE!!

    Reply

  16. Erica says

    That jellyfish costume is SO COOL! I love it!

    I swear, I saw a shark costume at my Target a few weeks ago. Maybe I’m imagining things. But the seal is hilarious. My dog is a Lego this year. :-) She isn’t thrilled about her costume, either!

    Reply

  17. Cristin says

    1. The fairy queen of all the jellyfish is adorable!!

    2. I didn’t read all of the comments, but I’m pretty sure no one has mentioned it yet…as probably the only public health/infectious disease nerd who reads your blog (who also doesn’t watch/read Game of Thrones), John isn’t the *first* John Snow! He could also double as the father of epidemiology, the story of which gets retold MANY times over in every public health course I’ve taken: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Snow_(physician). So his costume is pun-tastic on many levels. :)

    Reply

  19. Anna says

    I have to say, Clara wanting to dress up as a jellyfish made me laugh out loud!
    She looks adorable but it just reminded me of the ONE time my mum tried to make a Halloween costume for me (I love her but she is NOT good with crafts). For some reason, she decided I should dress up as a jellyfish.
    The costume consisted of: me (I was about 6 or 7) in a orange t-short and tight orange shorts (like leggings but shorts). My mum got some red yarn and sewed it on in strings from my shirt and then she rubbed orange/red paint all over me. It looked AWFUL and so grotesque!! And, might I add, nothing like a jellyfish.
    My only memory from that day (apart from that awful costume) was falling down a hill whilst playing and scratching up my whole body, making me look even more like a victim of a very brutal murder.
    In conclusion, I wish my mum had your DIY skills (and maybe even knew what a jellyfish looked like).

    Reply

  20. JoDi says

    That jellyfish costume is AMAZING! So easy and it looks SO good! Love your costumes too. I’ve never watched Game of Thrones but after seeing pix of Khal Drogo I NEED to start. OMG so hot!

    Reply

  21. jillian (Her Split Ends) says

    I love everything about this post…the costumes…adorable and hilarious!! The pumpkins are awesome… I too love a good odd shaped pumpkin. Me and my boy are also obsessed with Game of Thrones so your costumes this year at the JAM!!! that video…KILLED me!!!!??!?!?! So freaking funny! THank you for a good saturday morning laugh!! ;)

    XO
    ~ J

    Reply

  23. Neree says

    I have an unrelated question… now that google reader is no longer, what is the best blog reader? I have been using flipboard, which is great for blogs I don’t care about as much (love the magazine style), but doesn’t always update in “real time.” And your blog only comes up as photos lately; none of the writing…

    Just curious if you format for a specific reader, and if you have personal preferences (phone apps, mainly).

    Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Man, flipboard is giving us so many problems (no idea why our feed doesn’t work on there since it’s great on Bloglovin and Feedly). We actually prefer Feedly but have also heard great things about Bloglovin. I’ve been using Feedly since the day google reader shut down and it was easy to transfer every blog I read over there and I just keep that tab open and refresh it everyday to see what’s going on – I actually keep up with things better now than I did with GR!

      xo
      s

  24. Pam the Goatherd says

    Love the Fairy Queen of Jellyfish! Clara has such a great imagination, and you are a fantastic mom to be able to make it come to life!

    I have to say that I just could NOT picture how you were going to turn that gourd into a caterpillar. When I saw the finished bug I went “AHA!”. You definitely have an eye for possibilities that most of the rest of us don’t have, Sherry. Thanks for sharing your vision with us.

    Reply

  25. Liz F says

    My mom DIY’d our costumes for years and years when I was a little kid! I was a burrito one year. No joke. One of my brothers requested to be a jelly fish and my mom did something similar with the umbrella, except she used bubble tape on it! I remember it being THE COOLEST costume. This, of course, was a year that I got in trouble for something and wasn’t permitted to go trick-or-treating with my brothers :/ Other costumes she DIY’d included a mummy, Christmas tree (also not joking!), and a caterpillar.
    My mom is bombtastic at costume making…hahaha!!

    Reply

  26. Jenny says

    I’m almost done my first trimester and am really wanting to paint everything in sight these days, but am worried about chemical fumes, etc. I was wondering what painting and spray painting precautions you take while being preggos. Thanks!

    Reply

  29. Evin says

    I really enjoy your creative and low-key approach to Clara’s costumes. It keeps it real for other moms, like me. Must remember the jellyfish since it rains a lot here in Ireland.

    I laughed out loud when I read this because you and John dressed up as the same Game of Throne characters as my friends did for their costume party last night. Since I don’t watch Game of Thrones, this seems like a huge coincidence when really it is probably super popular so I shouldn’t be surprised. But here’s pics of their costumes: http://evinok.net/?p=5689

    Reply

  35. Jennifer says

    When I saw the picture of Sherry’s costume the first thing that ran through my mind was Mermaid. The colour and hair works and even the placemat turned belt looks a bit like golden seaweed. Perfect for accompanying Clara while trick or treating!

    Reply

  37. Rebecca says

    Found last year’s Target Halloween costumes at Ashland Goodwill, brand new and still on the hangers at $5. Included sharks, bumblebee and astronaut. I’ll have a shark and bumblebee this year.

    Reply

  38. DNC says

    Ummm why is no one mentioning the AMAZINGNESS of John’s costume? (I’ll admit, i haven’t read all the comments but there wasn’t much mention in the ones I did read…) I love it so so so much! It is hilarious and goes great with the Khaleesi costume. I also love that Clara and Burger dress up together. I have two chihuahuas and this year one will dress as a cop and the other a prisoner.

    Reply

  39. K. says

    Oh, you guys – I LOVE Clara’s costume! It’s adorable and beautiful, whimsical and elegant. I’m so excited to see it in person when you trick-or-treat! (and if it rains… she’s covered!)

    Her costume reminds me of one I made for a party in college. I went as ‘rain at midnight’. The costume involved a black sheet with 100s of safety pins attached from the inside so just the silvery flash of their thin metal strips appeared. I covered the dome my head with cotton. It was awesome, perhaps my favorite costume ever. :)

    But I’ve got to say I love Clara’s ‘pinkness’ in this! (remember the “Lanceness”, “throwing 7 different kinds of smoke”… or maybe it’s just me? :-) ha ha #randommovierefence)
    I can’t wait to see her all excited!

    :) K.

    (ps I Love the pink-on-pinks shot of the ribbons inside the umbrella! So cheerful!)

    Reply

  41. Jillie says

    I LOVE the jellyfish costume! It is so fun & creative, she’s going to be so popular walking around all lit up! Hope you guys have fun carving pumpkins this week! I made salty, sweet & spicy seeds this year & I have to say, if you like sweet you should totally look up pumpkin pie seeds, they are awesome!

    Reply

  43. Holly says

    I have been reading your blog from the start. I love you guys! I read your blog first thing every morning. This post inspired my first comment.
    THOSE COSTUMES!! You are adorable and I love it, but JON SNOW!? Yes! I haven’t watched the show, but I read all of the books. You. Nailed. It.

    Clara and Burger are as adorable as ever. I love that she requested a jellyfish costume.

    My hubby and I dressed as pirates and our son (19 months) was our parrot. (we dressed up yesterday for a local event)
    I guess my first ever comment got a bit “ramble-ly”. Sorry!
    Happy Halloween Petersiks!

    Reply

  46. Christy Niebaum says

    Love it! Actually, more like LURV it!

    Our little bear is almost 21 months and is sporting a handmade Dalmatian puppy costume. My mom made it and it’s pretty presh. She sewed some red ribbon around the neck for a collar and had a custom tag made at Pet Smart that says SPOT on the front side and Natalie’s name on the back. She also added a red ribbon to the head piece in between the ears so you can tell it’s a girl Dalmatian puppy. I’m going to put a little nose and whiskers on her face with black eyeliner for trick or treating. I’ll tweet a pic and tag you guys if you’re interested in seeing it :)

    As for our pumpkins, I puff painted a big scripty “N” on our biggest pumpkin for our last name and stuck it on the porch with some mums and a scarecrow. I also gathered a lot of tiny pumpkins and put them in a fancy footed bowl as a table centerpiece. I placed the bowl on top of a flat circular wood serving dish and put a couple of random deer antlers around the base. Very autumnal!

    Reply

  50. Michelle says

    So cute! I’m making a fox costume for my little guy (inspired by his favorite video of all time – thanks for sharing!) and he insisted that I make it blue. He might not be the only fox out there this year, but I doubt we’ll see many blue ones!

    Reply

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