DIY Halloween Costumes for Babies, Toddlers & Kids

Halloween is right around the corner! For a kid, Halloween is a magical opportunity to transform into someone or something else for a day, and one of the best parts is coming up with the perfect costume.

Making costumes at home can get kids in the creative spirit, and it’s also a great chance to spend quality time together. Homemade costumes don’t need to be complicated or expensive, either—a few easy-to-find materials and basic craft skills are all it takes. 

Since we at Nurture Life love food and ship our baby, toddler and kids meals out in boxes, it only makes sense for us to focus on adorable food costumes and recycled cardboard box costumes! Below you’ll find our favorite DIY Halloween costumes for kids of all ages, along with quick and easy instructions on how to make them.

Cute Food Costumes for Babies and Toddlers

There’s nothing cuter than dressing your baby or toddler in a little food costume! You can whip up a homemade food costume for your baby with the help of a colorful onesie and just a little bit of sewing, gluing and drawing.

Corn on the Cob

Here’s the cutest ear of corn you’ll ever see! It takes just a few steps to turn a regular green long-sleeved onesie (or green sweatshirt) into a piece of corn you’ll want to hold all night:

1. Spray paint a sheet of bubble wrap bright yellow. (If you don’t have bubble wrap lying around, you can also use cardboard egg cartons.)
2. When dry, glue the bubble wrap onto the front of the onesie or sweatshirt.  
3. Cut one yard of green felt in half. Fold each half of the felt along the outer edges of the bubble wrap to create the cornhusk. Sew or glue the husk into place. 
4. Finish the look with a pair of green or yellow pants and a green beanie that’s either store-bought or made from leftover felt. 

Inspired by She Always Loved Larking.

Strawberry

The sweetest strawberry on the block starts with a red onesie and some red pants. Follow these steps to complete the bright look:

1. Use a black marker or paint to draw strawberry seeds on the onesie. 
2. Stuff the onesie with socks or small towels to create a plump strawberry shape.
3. For the hat, cut a few leaf shapes from green felt and then glue them to a green beanie. 

Carrot

Freshly picked and ready to win “best costume on the block,” this cute carrot can be made by layering orange fleece or felt over a onesie or t-shirt of any color. Here’s how:

1. Fold the orange fabric in half and cut an elongated triangle shape from both sides. 
2. Cut a circular opening at the top for your baby’s or toddler’s head. 
3. With black or brown thread, stitch a few horizontal lines on both sides to mimic the texture of a carrot—or, to skip the sewing, use a black marker for the same effect. 
4. For the carrot top, glue or sew some green tulle to the top of an orange beanie.

Pineapple

Everyone will want to say aloha to this sweet little getup! Starting with a golden yellow onesie, it takes just three steps to make: 

1. Cut a piece of white felt into several one-inch strips. 
2. Glue the strips onto the onesie in a criss-cross pattern, including both the front and the back. 
3. Create the top of the pineapple by cutting leaf shapes out of green felt and glueing them onto a green beanie or headband. 

Inspired by Lines Across.

Avocado

Everyone’s favorite toast topping is also one of the most creative baby Halloween costume ideas. Start with a dark green onesie and pants and make these quick additions:

1. Cut an oval from lighter green felt and glue it onto the front center of the onesie. 
2. Cut a smaller concentric oval from brown felt for the avocado pit.
3. Glue the brown oval inside the green oval.  

Easy Cardboard Box Costumes for Toddlers and Kids  

While the best baby costumes are generally made from soft onesies, toddlers and kids can use cardboard boxes instead to really let their creative spirit run wild. Each of the Halloween costumes below starts with a simple cardboard box and will only be limited by your kid’s imagination!

Family Breakfast

If your baby is dressing up as an avocado, why not turn the entire family into a healthy breakfast platter? Simply take large cardboard boxes, cut and paint them to create your favorite breakfast food and then attach ribbons for shoulder straps.

Depending on how many family members will be joining in on the fun, you could make:

• Toast: Cut cardboard into the shape of a piece of bread, paint the edges dark for crust and add a pat of butter in the middle with pale yellow paint.
• Eggs: Cut out an uneven oval-ish shape, paint it white and add the egg’s yolk with sunshine-yellow paint or marker.
• Coffee: Cut out the shape of a coffee mug or to-go cup and paint it to mimic your favorite coffee brand.

Taco

This DIY taco is one of our favorite Halloween costume ideas for kids. Using just a single cardboard box, yellow paint and some multi-colored felt, you’ll create the world’s most adorable little taco costume. Get full instructions for this DIY taco costume here!

Another reason why we love this costume? It’s because Nurture Life boxes are the perfect size for toddler tacos, making it easy to reuse our kids meal delivery boxes in a fun and creative way.

Milk Carton

Like many of the best cardboard box crafts for kids, the key to this homemade Halloween costume is to have fun with the details! Have a real milk carton handy to use as a model, and then go to town with markers or paint to create the design. 

As you and your little one make this costume, you can also take the opportunity to talk about nutrition together! Look at the food label on your milk carton and highlight how healthy foods like  milk keep us active and feeling good. 

Inspired by MerMagBlog.

Robot

Not all of our favorite Halloween costumes are food-themed! With this cardboard box robot costume, you and your child can really get creative. In fact, anything goes—from aluminum foil and paper plates to pipe cleaners and foam blocks. 

First have your little one design their robot on a piece of paper to identify which materials they’ll need. Then cut out holes for your child’s arms, legs and head or affix nylon straps so that the box can freely hang from their shoulders.

Once you’re sure that the fit is right, work together to bring the design to life! Jazz up your kid’s futuristic robot with:

• Shiny surfaces of aluminum foil or metallic paint
• Switches and toggles made out of colorful paper or felt
• Buttons made out of painted bottle caps or styrofoam spheres
• Gauges and meters made out of old CDs 
• Pipe cleaners or popsicle sticks for gauges and meter sticks
• Patterned washi tape for cute edges and detailing

With a little time, innovation and craft skills, you’ll be amazed by the show-stopping DIY costumes you and your kids will come up with this Halloween. It’s the season to get creative—happy haunting!