Authentic Scarecrow Halloween Costume

Once upon a time, many (many!) years ago when I was young, I won a Halloween costume contest with my homemade scarecrow costume. This scarecrow Halloween costume is simple and very inexpensive to create. Use your imagination when making your scarecrow Halloween costume. Scarecrows are a form of folk art and no two are ever alike. You might run into other scarecrows on Halloween night but none will look exactly like you!

Old clothes out of the rag bag, or a visit to the local thrift shop, will provide the clothing you need. Your scarecrow wardrobe will require a pair of jeans, a flannel shirt or work shirt, work gloves, a straw hat (or other type of hat a farmer might wear) and a piece of rope to tie around your waist as a belt. The older and more worn out the garments are, the more authentic your costume will appear, since scarecrows were often made of raggedy, cast-off clothing.

Making Faces
The scarecrow face is basically the same as a rag doll face. I had painted my face white, with blue triangles around my eyes and a wide black stripe down my nose. I covered my lips with black makeup, then extended the line beyond the corners of my mouth. Next, I added short vertical lines across the mouth to resemble stitch marks. Red cheek circles completed the effect. You can be a happy, sad, angry, or evil Halloween scarecrow depending upon how you draw the features.

Stuffing Yourself
Now we need to discuss whether you want to go with a truly authentic look for your scarecrow costume or save yourself lots of mess and discomfort. The real straw I stuffed in my garments got me some raves for authenticity, but I hadn't considered the amount of straw I would scatter with my all-too-realistic scarecrow costume. The mother of my friend hosting the party was not thrilled because she had planned to hold the party indoors! Luckily, the family had a shed on their property that held all of us.

Another disadvantage is that when I got home after the Halloween party, Mom made me clean up the straw mess I had left behind in our house. And straw is itchy when you've stuffed it into your shirt, believe me, even with an undershirt between your skin and the straw! Hey, I was young, we don't always think these things through. I consoled myself with the fact that at least I had won the "Best Costume" prize at the Halloween party.

The next time I used this costume idea, I went with construction paper instead. I cut wide strips of pale yellow and light brown construction paper that were long enough to go around my wrist. I put one brown piece between two yellow pieces, sandwich style, and stapled them together along one long edge. Then I snipped narrow strips from the opposite side to within an inch of the staples, so I had a fringy paper sandwich.

I crinkled up the fringe a bit to make it crooked and sticking out different directions like real straw, then fastened the uncut edge underneath the cuffs of my shirt with duct tape, with the straw sticking out. I used the same process to create "straw" to poke out of the holes in my garments, from in between the buttons of my shirt, and out of the bottom of my pant legs. I also fastened straw around the inside of the brim of my hat.

Here are a few more tips that will make your Halloween scarecrow costume appear even more authentic:

Frayed raffia (a craft fiber) looks very similar to straw, and can be glued to the outfit with craft glue.

Some scarecrows have hair, but some don't. Tuck your hair up under your hat, or use an old, clean string mop for a wig.

Most scarecrows I've seen don't have feet. Glue raffia (or real straw) to an old pair of shoes to make your feet look like they are made of straw.

Tie strings (not too tightly) around your shirt sleeve cuffs and the bottom of your pant legs to hold your "stuffing" in.

Fasten a silk sunflower or two to your hat.

Cut some scrap fabric into patch-sized pieces and glue or sew them to your pants and shirt.

Fasten an artificial crow or two to your shoulder, or perch one on top of your hat.

Now we come to the last feature of a scarecrow, which is the post that holds him up. When I wore my scarecrow Halloween costume, I didn't bother tying myself to a post, but if you want to, feel free. Just be prepared to stand up all evening!