Halloween Costume Idea: Fruit of the Loom Fruit Guys

When Halloween draws near, the big question for kids and adults alike is, "What are you going to be for Halloween?" There are many cute costumes offered by retailers, but most people want something that is unique, without spending a fortune to rent or create. An easy, affordable costume to put together is one of the Fruit of the Loom "fruit guys". This idea is perfect for a group costume, since there are 4 different fruit guys to choose from! Here's what it takes:

Halloween Costume Components:

This costume is made from items that are readily available.

-Body Suit or Leotard, long sleeved T-shirt, socks and tights or leggings in purple, green, or red, depending on the fruit guy you want to be.

-Safety pins

-Ski cap, fabric, leggings, tights or other stretchy material to make cap for stem.

-For grapes - Balloons

-For leaves - 12 inch squares of Felt

-For Apple: 3 yards of red fabric and thread plus yarn for drawstring

Assembly of the Fruit of the Loom Halloween Costumes

There is a website perfect to reference when putting this costume together: Fruit of the Loom's fruitguyfans.com. Looking at the images of the fuit guys will make assembly much easier.

The core part of this costume is the body suit or leotard. Pick one in either green, purple or red, depending on which Fruit Guy you plan to be. If you can't find all the pieces in the right color, purchase Rit dye and dye white pieces of clothing to the same color.

Directions for Grape Guy and Leaf Guy Halloween Costume:

1. For the grape fruit guy, you'll need 20 - 30 latex balloons, depending on the size of the balloons. They'll need to be blown up fully. For the leaf guy, you'll need felt pieces cut into leaf shapes, approximately 20 squares of felt.
2. To attach the balloons to the bodysuit, it is easiest if someone is wearing it. If that is not possible, use a chair or pillow as a mannequin. Starting at the bottom of the body suit start pinning balloons or leaves to the body suit so that they overlap or push against each other to fully cover the body suit. Keep attaching up to the neck until the look of a grape cluster is achieved or an artichoke-like look for the leaf guy.
3. For the stem hat, a winter or ski cap in the right color would work, but may be hard to find. An easier option would be a pair of leotards or leggings from which the legs can be cut to create a stretchy "hat". The hat could be the same color as the grape clusters or leaves, or brown as a stem would be. (Allow 18 to 20 inches of legging for the hat). Leaves could be cut out from green felt and attached to the stem hat if desired. The real Fruit of the Loom grapes have a hat the same color as the bodysuit and the leaf guy has a cap in the same color with more leaves attached to it.

Note: For Grape Guy, on the seat area, it is wise not to pin balloons or else you can't sit down. To cover this area when standing up, balloons can me attached by yarn to the layer of balloons above the rump which will fall over the rump area when standing up.

Apple Fruit Guy Halloween Costume Directions:

To create the apple guy, you'll need a sewing machine and 3 yards of fabric (make sure the fabric's width is at least as wide as the torso's length measurement plus two inches (measure generously from the shoulders to the top of the thigh) Most fabric meets this requirement:

1. Fold fabric in half lengthwise and make a cut from one end 12 inches long. This will be one armhole.

2. Create a casing on the long sides of the red fabric by folding over 1 inch of fabric and sewing a straight stitch. You will then have one long casing at the bottom and two casings at the top

3. Sew the short ends of the fabric together with a straight stitch, starting above the casing at the bottom (leave both ends of the casing open and quitting 12 inches from the casing at the top. (That extra open space will be where the second armhole is.

4. Cut three pieces of yarn, one 4 feet long, and two 2 feet long. Thread the long piece of yarn at the bottom and the two shorter pieces into the top two casings, which are at the front and back of your neck.

5. Pull on the apple suit, gathering the yarn at the bottom which will gather up the bottom around your legs. Gather the top two sections and tie the yarn at the shoulders

6. Stuff the body with plastic bags until the right fullness is achieved.

7. To keep things simple, the stem can be similar to the grape and leaf stem cap. The actual apple fruit guy's stem is much more complicated, but most people won't even realize that!

Other Ideas and Tips for Fruit Guys Halloween Costume

You can take a different angle on this Halloween costume idea and create a "fruit bowl" instead of the Fruit of the Loom Fruit Guys, adding a peach, pear , pineapple or any other fruits. Instead of "leaf guy", you could make an "artichoke guy"

For clarification on costume directions, see my slideshow "Creating the Fruit of the Loom "Fruit Guys" Halloween Costumes".

Happy Halloween!

Resources:
Fruit of the Loom Fruit Guys Website