Making Stage Costumes on a Budget

While we all enjoy the splendor that is Hollywood, extravagant costumes are not something most community theaters or elementary schools can afford. In fact, many mothers have stretched their imaginations to new limits making goats and shepherds out of third graders!

When I first began making costumes, I bought the material and made each one from scratch, not realizing there were fortunes in time, effort, and money to be saved with just a little ingenuity. The experienced eye looks at a black princess-style coat and sees it trimmed to reflect a style popular in the early 1800s. Children's costumes need not be constructed from collar to hem when an old dress could be transformed with only a primitive bit of sewing, or a lady's blouse might very nicely antique a young boy. Even those who sew constantly don't naturally think in these metaphoric terms, because it isn't relevant to everyday sewing. Knowing how to sew gives you an advantage, but you don't have to be an expert to assemble a costume that begins with a fitted bodice from a discarded dress or that is built on an old coat.

When a tree must walk across a stage, it must have someone inside or behind it. If your task is to create a moveable, wearable tree or some other large costume to represent an inanimate object, you must learn about wire construction. Stage supply stores sell wire designed for this purpose, but at a cost that may be out of reach for your limited budget. Don't despair! Coat hangers abound in most everyone's closets, and they're malleable yet sturdy. Baling wire or fence wire is also fairly inexpensive. With a pair of pliers, you can make a frame out of coat hangers. Stabilize it by sewing fabric over it. Don't worry about what color of pattern your fabric is, since the only way to produce those final realistic touches is by painting the fabric anyway. Wire construction requires some real planning and a lot of trial and error. It isn't my favorite task as a costumer, and after agonizing over a clock and a tree for a couple of Ravel operas, I thought I'd get to deposit the experience deep in my memory bank and move on. Not long afterwards, I was asked to make a tooth big enough to wear! A costumer's life is one of constant challenge, but then that's the joy of it.

From Elegantly Frugal Costumes by Shirley Dearing