Any ideas for a hamster costume for child?
Tracy from Waco, Texas
Start with brown, black or white hooded sweats shirt and sweat pants. Add some spots or patches in desired color either buy painting them on or using iron-on patches or stitching felt to the sweats (which you can remove after Halloweed. Make small ears and attach with a few stitches and a small tail the same way. Felt, lightly stuffed will be good. Don't use a mask, just use an eyeliner pencil to draw some litle spots and whiskers on your child's face.
Ok, so forget what some one said before this. hamsters have short tails. first, find a picture of a hamster, and work off of that. take a brown zip up, and on the hood, sew two brown ears. take a old belt, and glue on a large cotton ball, or sew a little tail (look at a hamster tail in a pic. for a good idea of what it looks like). then, use face paint for whiskers and a pink nose. (look at a hamster pic.)
I've been trying to figure out how to make a realistic hamster costume. My husband and I just bought a Kia and we've been kicking ideas around for Halloween (or just anytime we feel silly). I've come up with one possibility for a hamster head.
Get a cheap beach ball, the kind that can be blown up without a pump. It must be large enough to cut a hole for an adult's head to fit through, needs breathing space, too. You will also need a lot of white glue, thinned with water, and a big pile of shredded newspaper or other shredded paper. A toilet paper spool may come in handy for the snout. To finish the head, water based acrylic paint in tan or brown, some pink modeling compound/ sculpy for the nose. Florist's wire for the whiskers, wire cutters, and a couple of yards of fake fur, hamster colored. Might want a hot glue gun to attach the fur. Sew a pair of ears and attach with hot glue. Round, dark lenses from a pair of cheap sunglasses could be used for eyes, or black screen might work.
Inflate the beach ball, then begin layering ball in glue soaked paper strips, overlapping them to create a solid shell. Leave openings for the eyes and for the wearer's head, work around them as you build the shell. Allow each layer to dry before adding another. After several layers, attach the toilet paper roll near the front, center, under the eye holes. Use strips of masking tape to hold roll in place until shell is firm enough to support it. Build up the front of head until it has a gradual point. Make sure to create a raised bridge between the eyes and taper it toward the end of the nose. Use a photo or live hamster model to get the shape of the chin, mouth, nose bridge. The chin and the neck kind of run together.
Once the shape looks right and it's rigid enough to hold up on its own, deflate the beach ball and pull it out gently through the wearer's hole on the bottom. If it won't come loose, trim away as much as possible on the inside. Use some pink sculpy to shape the end of the nose, making it fit into the end of the toilet paper roll and stick out a half inch or so. Bake the nose. It will shrink slightly during baking.
Cut the bottom, sides, back and top from the fake fur, using a template to avoid wasting fabric. An old sheet or some unbleached muslin can be used to get the pattern to fit right, then cut the fake fur once you have a fit.
Paint the shell brown and finish the edges of the eye holes and the neck opening with masking tape to make it smooth. Slit the shell up the back, a little over halfway up. Cut an arc from the neck hole to the top of the slit. This will allow air circulation but will be covered with a fur flap.
Using the fur, glue on the top piece of the head using the hot glue gun. Make sure the edges are fastened down tightly. Next, glue the round sunglasses lenses to the edges of the eye holes on the shell. Then, attach the fur to the sides and neck, turning under raw edges and trimming away over lap. Sew ears using fake fur for the ear backs and scraps of pale pink or white fabric for the insides of the ears. Use some florist wire to shape the ears so they will stand up and cup slightly. Allow the ends of the wire to stick out the bottoms of the ears. Make small holes in the shell with a large darning needle. Feed the wires into the shell, then fasten on the inside with hot glue, and on the outside, too. Glue the fur part of the ears in place with hot glue, attaching them directly to the shell. The fur on the back of the head will cover the raw edges of the ears. Next, glue the pieces of the back of the head to the shell, allow the two pieces to overlap in the center of the head. Attach a couple of scraps of Velcro to the inside and outside of the flap.
Take the clay nose made earlier and fit it into the end of the toilet paper roll, gluing it into place around the edges, then gluing down the edges of fur around the nose.
Create a template for two 'mitten' like paws, sew them together, make sure they cover the arms at least half way to the elbows.
Using more fur, make a large tube that fits over the hamster head and lays around the base of the neck, creating neck folds and hiding any raw edges.
The head will probably need a few air holes, put these in spots where they won't show, one near the wearer's mouth near the neck opening would be a good idea. A piece or two of foam rubber glued to the inside might make it more comfortable to wear and allows some adjustment to get the eye holes in the right place.
Hopefully, you will be able to find a pair of silly animal feet slippers. Look for a brown pair with 'claws' or toenails. Make short leg warmers with any remaining fake fur to hide the wearer's legs. Now, the wearer needs an over-sized hoodie and an old pair of pants they don't mind messing up. Cut the legs up the inside seams on each leg, stitch the leg fronts together about half way down, then create a new 'crotch' for the pants slightly below the knees.
Of course, this costume would be best for a party, or just riding around. The head isn't suited for Trick or Treating or driving, and the pants would slow walking and dancing, but each user can make adjustments to get the outfit to work for them.
Here would be a cute example....
Make a long nose,ears out of cardboard and paint,
make a long tail and stuff it.
Good Luck,
Show us some pics if you give it a try.
Hamsters have short tails.
Okay. Thank you.
