There are mothers who wear their fingers to the bone making needlepoint pegasus costumes that actually take flight while their kids trick-or-treat. We, on the other hand, advocate a full slacker approach to costuming kids that combines resourcefulness, creativity, and humor. Pictured below are a real life “swimming bear” and “cold weather bandit,” obviously the offspring of genius parents!

If you have spent months crafting a paper mache dinosaur costume for your two year old, more power to you! If you are scrambling around the house for a costume in the few hours before the big event, fear not! We at Green Baby Guide have loads of ideas. Here are some brilliant DIY costume ideas contributed from Rebecca in a past post:

  • Hobo. This is a DIY classic, and easy to pull off using Dad’s beloved pilled sweaters and garish ties from 7th grade. With a little ingenuity, “hobo baby” could also be accomplished with the contents of his or her own wardrobe.
  • Ragamuffin. Variation of hobo, above.
  • Hippie. Another classic. “Hippie baby” would be especially funny if you could find some miniature John Lennon glasses to complete the look. Try tie-dying some baby’s old white onesies using grape juice. (Note: I have not actually tried this, but I am only partially kidding.)
  • Swimming bear. All you need for this ensemble is a bear hat and swimming suit, which can be pulled over several layers of warm clothing. My cousin thought this one up herself in her younger years.
  • Cold-weather bandit. As you can see from the photo, you will need a parka, some patterned pants, a Zorro mask, and a cape.
  • Robot. Dress your child in gray clothes and affix a metal colander or sieve on his head. Voila!
  • Glad bag. This same ingenious cousin who invented the “swimming bear” decided to masquerade as a garbage bag one year. In this day and age, it may be better to go as a canvas bag instead.

    • We also have family costume ideas, Last minute DIY costume ideas for babies and kids, and last minute maternity costume ideas.

    But perhaps our favorite green, diaper-less costume of all time is utterly simple, utterly adorable, and utterly impractical. Just toss your naked baby into a carved pumpkin! It’s a compostable diaper that’s really quite festive… Happy Halloween!