32: Beaker Costume

I made Megan’s Halloween costume.

When I finished it all up, we decided to make a sign and go show it off at the (Seattle location) Rally to Restore Sanity. It was just down the street, so we could walk there — she in costume, and me sort of assisting, because it’s a bit hard to see at times.

Highlights from the rally.

I’ve got plenty more photos where that came from, including some (but not many) build photos. …And here they are.

I got right into this project because I didn’t have any time to waste. It wasn’t until the point pictured below that I remember I was supposed to be taking build photos. Oh well. Here he is, mostly done.

I needed to take a picture of this collar. I have never made actual clothing before, let alone giant menswear, and I just kind of winged it.  I think it turned out awesome.

This is pretty creepy.

Gloves are easy to make. Especially since they only have 4 fingers on each hand.

To open the mouth, you pull the orange loop pictured below. It’s hidden inside the lab coat and can be accessed through a fake pocket. The whole mouth is hinged and built with elastic, so it snaps closed again. And yes, the mouth is where you look out.

Here’s the view from inside with the mouth closed. OK, technically this is the view from a camera that’s held inside. In reality it’s a little easier to see out, but not much.

When the mouth is open though, you can see better. That black sheer mesh covering her face works really well.

Here’s Beaker at the rally.

We met up with our friends Kai and Jami. Kai makes cool cards.

Beaker is a hit with the ladies.

That guy in the background with two cameras is my friend Josh.  He’s a photographer. Here’s his website.

Then it started to rain, so we had to leave. These people were surprised to see a human-scale Muppet in downtown Seattle.

And for now this is where he sits, awaiting the next Halloween party.

After that, who knows? I just might sell him. Interested? Click here to be taken to the listing.

Edit: It’s been sold, and ever since, I’ve had a whole bunch of requests to remake it. I’m flattered, but I’m not going to make it again. I feel like this project is done. My motivation is all about figuring out how to build it the first time, so I’m just not interested in doing the same thing twice.

If you’d like to use this information to build your own, go ahead. It’s fun, pretty easy, and you’ll feel accomplished. The head is made of thick paper, rolled into a cylinder. The eyes are styrofoam, and the nose is stuffed fabric. As for the mechanics, that’s the fun part. Experiment, and figure it out. 🙂

Or, if you have an idea for a different costume, and want to contact me about that, I’d be happy to help.

Thanks for reading.

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