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Blast Off to a DIY Halloween Adventure on a Budget!

Use code SPOOKYMACKID at checkout to save 10% at Clothing Shop Online (closeouts excluded)

By Kari Treat | Publisher | Macaroni KID Schaumburg-Hoffman Estates September 15, 2024

Who’s ready for the spooky season? Halloween is just around the corner, and this year Macaroni KID Schaumburg has teamed up with Clothing Shop Online to help you craft unforgettable, budget-friendly DIY costumes for the whole family!

As soon as the pumpkins and skeletons started popping up in the stores this month, my 2- and 5-year-olds started talking about their costumes (and the candy...). I don't anticipate many more years where I can get away with a themed family costume, so with all the celestial events recently, from the solar eclipse earlier this year, crews taking off on space flights, and trying to find the northern lights and meteor showers in the Midwest, all eyes are looking up, up, UP and AWAY! So prepare yourselves for: TREATS IN SPACE!  


The author received compensation for this article. All thoughts and opinions expressed are the author's own.




Photo by Kari Treat



Our household is gearing up for a space-tacular Halloween with Clothing Shop Online! Get inspired by our family costume ideas and learn how we made these ideas come to life:

Mommy the Martian: Grab a bright shirt and leggings, add a hat and/or headband with googly eyes, and you're ready to explore! Spaceship optional!
Stellar Dad: A black shirt becomes a cosmic canvas! Have the kids paint colorful foam balls and rings and decorate the shirt to represent the solar system.
Awesome Astronaut: Clothing Shop Online has adorable children's clothing staples in a variety of sizes. Grab a white shirt and sweatpants, add some colorful tape, paper mâché, or cardboard helmet accents, plus a jet pack, and your little one is prepped for their next mission.
Rolling Robot: Transform a plain gray shirt and pants into a robot costume with cardboard cut-out details and metallic duct tape accents and get ready for them to *BEEP*BOOP* throughout the neighborhood.

These are just a few ideas to spark your creativity! With Clothing Shop Online's vast selection and affordable prices, the possibilities are endless.


Exclusive offer for Macaroni KID readers! SPOOKYMACKID for 10% off sitewide (excluding closeouts and Richardson brand).


Photo by Kari Treat

Now, I'm not the most artistic person, but I like to think I'm pretty creative, I love to let the kids get involved, and I figure if they get messy, it's a laundry problem, not a kid problem, so we were ready to go all in with what we could create. 

Searching for what we needed as the base gear on the ClothingShopOnline.com website was easy peasy! I was able to use the Filters to search by style, size, and color to narrow it down to exactly what we were looking for!  

My little guys love when there's a delivery and when I told them what the box was for, they couldn't wait to blast off. 


Photo by Kari Treat

When we first started looking at costumes at the big box stores, the prices were outrageous and you can bet there's probably going to be 3 more kids in class with the same look. Having this option that wasn't going to break the bank, along with the experience of creating something together was so much fun!

Here's a breakdown of what we we picked:

  • Black Sweatshirt and Blue Pants for Dad's Galaxy
  • Blue Sweatshirt, Black leggings, and Green Hat for Mom's Alien
  • White Sweatshirt, and Blue Sweatpants for Mack's Astronaut
  • Grey Sweatshirt and Sweatpants, Grey Baseball Cap for D's Robot
  • Black Tote Bags, which will be perfect for Trick or Treating!  

Here's what you'll need if you want to make your own:

  • Felt Fabric Sheets 
  • Duct Tape 
  • Ribbon
  • Styrofoam Balls and Rings
  • Headbands
  • Stickers
  • Googly Eyes
  • Wire
  • Acrylic Paint
  • Spray Paint

Not Pictured:

  • Cardboard
  • Balloons, Newspaper, Printer Paper - For Paper Mâché Helmet 
  • 2 Liter Soda Bottles 

Photo by Kari Treat

Putting It All Together

  • Paper mâché helmet: Mix 1/2 cup water with 1 cup All Purpose flour and dip newspaper in, squeezing excess, and layer all around the balloon for 2 layers, allow 4 hours or overnight to dry completely. Add 2 more layers with the printer paper. Allow to dry. Cut to helmet shape, paint, and decorate.
  • Astronaut: Line duct tape along sweatshirt. Add decorations
  • Jet Pack: Spray paint (2) 2 liter bottles, cut felt fire shapes and glue into the hole of the bottle. Decorate and hot glue ribbon on back of bottles to secure like a backpack.
  • Solar System Shirt: Cut and paint foam balls and ring, allow to dry, and hot glue onto shirt.
  • Space Ship: Cut cardboard into 5 trapezoid pieces 14" wide x 12" tall with an 8" top line. Score 4" above the bottom. Spray paint silver. Fold and hot glue at the seams to shape into space ship. Add decoration and ribbon to hold in place on body.
  • Alien Eyes: Hot glue googly eyes on to foam balls. Hot glue together and then onto a headband. Hot glue leaf-shaped ears on to headband.
  • Robot: Cut holes for head and arms in cardboard box. Spray paint silver. Add decoration for buttons. Add silver duct tape on sweatshirt.

Photo by Kari Treat

Why We Love Clothing Shop Online and Will Use It Again:

Affordable Fashion for the Whole Family: Whether you're looking for classic t-shirts, cozy sweatshirts, or playful accessories, Clothing Shop Online offers everyday low prices on quality blank apparel that are a steal.
Perfect Canvas for Creativity: Unleash your inner artist! Their wide range of colors and styles makes Clothing Shop Online the perfect place to find blank clothing for your personalized Halloween costume creations. It almost makes me want to buy in bulk and finally pick up a vinyl cutter to DIY for every event!
Trusted Brands, Free Returns: Rest assured, Clothing Shop Online carries a variety of well-known and trusted brands. Plus, with their hassle-free 100-day return policy, you can shop with confidence.

Send me your DIY Halloween costume creations that are out of this world! Tag us at #MacKIDDIYCostume for a chance to be featured on our socials!


Don't miss out on savings for your DIY costume creations! Use the exclusive code SPOOKYMACKID at checkout for 10% off your entire purchase at Clothing Shop Online (closeouts excluded).