How to Make Beetlejuice Costumes

eHow may earn compensation through affiliate links in this story. Learn more about our affiliate and product review process here.

Things You'll Need

  • Suit

  • White dress shirt

  • Black necktie

  • Black socks and shoes

  • Masking tape

  • Paint

  • White, black and green makeup

  • Makeup sponges

  • White wig

  • Yellow and green spray-in hair color

"Beetlejuice" is a 1988 movie directed by Tim Burton, with Michael Keaton playing the title character. Despite the movie being made more than two decades ago, Keaton's performance made Beetlejuice an incredibly popular character that is still recreated in costumes every year. This costume is very easy to make with clothing items found at your local thrift store. With a bit of paint, makeup and a wig, you will be scaring the living in no time.

Advertisement

Step 1

Obtain an inexpensive suit at a thrift store. It doesn't need to fit perfectly; in fact if it's a bit rumpled it will make a better costume. A white suit will be the easiest to modify, but if one isn't available you can use a black suit.

Video of the Day

Step 2

Apply stripes with masking tape along the pants and coat. The stripes on the pants and coat torso should be vertical, while those on the sleeves should be horizontal. You want to evenly alternate between exposed fabric stripes and applied masking tape stripes.

Advertisement

Step 3

Paint the suit. If it is white, use black spray paint. If the suit is black, use white spray paint. If white spray paint is not strong enough, you will have to switch to fabric paint.

Step 4

Allow the paint to completely dry, then carefully peel off the masking tape. You now have a suit with alternating white and black stripes.

Advertisement

Step 5

Rub some dirt onto the suit and shirt to grunge them up.

Step 6

Put on the suit and shirt, along with a black necktie, black socks and black dress shoes.

Step 7

Stuff a small pillow into the shirt to simulate a pot belly.

Advertisement

Step 8

Apply white makeup to your face, then fill in the eye sockets with solid black makeup. Use a sponge to dab some green makeup at the corners of your mouth and along your hairline to create a fungus look.

Step 9

Spray a frizzy white wig with a fine mist of yellow and green hair sprays, then put it on to complete the costume.

Advertisement

Video of the Day

references