Carbon Costume

Xena (played by Lucy Lawless on Xena: Warrior Princess) is a reformed villain originally introduced in the TV show Hercules who fights for the greater good in pursuit of redemption.  Xena is a formidable warrior who takes the villager Gabrielle under her wing, eventually training her falling in love.  Replica armor for Xena can be prohibitively expensive, so the easiest way to recreate her look is to find studded leather pieces that evoke the same warrior feel as many of Xena’s outfits from the show.

Greef Karga (played by Carl Weathers) is the head of the bounty hunters in the Hunters’ Guild. He hands out the assignments and ensures that the clients pay the hunters. Unless, that is, one of the hunters runs off with bounty. Then things get a little messy.

Copying Greef Karga’s look takes a little bit of work. Most Star Wars costumes aren’t easy to recreate from your typical closet and Karga’s is no different. You can get close, though. Brown leather pants and a light brown undershirt set up your base layers. Over that you’ll want to add a brown leather vest and a brown leather tunic-style coat. Over the waist of your pants you’ll want to add brown fabric for a belt pad and then a brown leather belt. Brown leather boots and black gloves finish the look while a tracking fob, bounty puck, and official license get you ready to go after your own bounties!

Asriel Dreemurr is the son of Toriel, who passed away before the events of Undertale. Although you won’t recognize him in the beginning, a sadistic, soulless version of Asriel — a mere shadow of his cute, docile younger self — is the first character you meet in the game.

Cara Dune (played by the fantastic Gina Carano) is a former member of the Rebel Alliance. When the Empire fell the Alliance largely disbanded and Dune began wandering the galaxy on her own. She’s savvy and quick with a sharp tongue sharper knife. In short she’s everything a Mandalorian could ask for in a friend!

Cara’s costume requires a little bit of DIY and some patience, specifically when it comes to her armor. You can buy the pre-printed pieces above or, if you know your way around a 3-D printer, you can order the patterns from Etsy and print the pieces yourself. In both cases you’ll have to go through some trial and error to get the paint colors right in order to finish the appearance of the armor.

Once the armor is done, though, the rest of the costume is a bit of a breeze. A black compression shirt provides a foundation for the armor while leggings and boots make up the rest of her outfit. You can style a brunette wig to mimic her hair and apply temporary tattoos to match Cara’s. Just make sure you cover up with an arm band if you’re going near any Imperial holdouts!

Rocky Horror (Peter Hinwood), or simply just Rocky, is the hunky creation of Dr. Frank N Furter in Rocky Horror Picture Show. While known for his muscular and tan appearance, he doesn’t say much. His musical number is “Sword of Damocles.” Conflict ensues when he takes an interest in Janet Weiss, much to Frank N Furter’s dismay.

Most people know Clue as a board game. But in 1985 it became a major motion picture with an ensemble cast led by Tim Curry. And while Tim Curry is best known as Long John Silver and Dr. Frank-N-Furter, he is just as compelling as the much more prim – though possibly no less dangerous – butler known as Wadsworth. Or perhaps he’s Mr. Boddy dressed as his butler Wadsworth. You’ll have to follow the clues and decide for yourself after watching the hilarious movie. And all three of its possible endings.

While the movie is a little topsy-turvy, Wadsworth’s costume certainly is not. He wears a traditional butler’s costume though he skips the gloves. A white dress shirt, black skinny tie, coat with tails, black vest, black pants, and black shoes makes up his entire outfit. The only other thing you need is a handy revolver. Just make sure you count the shots. Was it 1+1+2+1 or 1+2+2+1?

Umaru Doma (voiced by Aimi Tanaka in Japanese and Emily Neves in English) is the main character of the anime Himouto! Umaru-chan.  Umaru has three different “modes,” providing ample opportunity for costuming.  In her “outdoor mode,” she wears a typical school uniform in burgundy.  Umaru’s “indoor mode,” or what is described as her true form, is also a chibi and she wears a cozy hamster hoodie.  As “UMR,” a feared gamer at the local arcade, Umaru wears a hoodie, hat, and mask to keep her identity concealed.

This year marks the 35th anniversary of the first Super Mario Bros. game on the Nintendo Entertainment System. To mark the occasion, Nintendo is releasing a slew of Mario games, including Super Mario 3D All-Stars and a modern version of its original Game & Watch handheld. Although we’ve provided costume guides for Mario and Luigi already, you’ll notice that their sprites are slightly different compared to their original release, where they wore color-coded overalls and a rust brown shirt instead of the more familiar blue overalls and color-coded undershirts.

Hades (voiced by James Woods) is the villain of Disney’s classic take on Hercules. While he doesn’t have that much in common with the actual Hades from mythology he is one of the most entertaining villains in Disney’s gallery.

Hades’ costume is pretty simple but does require some DIY. Most costume tunics don’t come in black or dark grey so you’ll have to dye a white one. The tunic linked above has a belt that you should remove before dying the tunic. Once it’s done, however, you can use the belt to keep the garment snug under the sash you fashion out of a sheet large enough to wrap around your waist and then go up over your shoulder. Although it might seem silly to use a sheet, togas in Ancient Greece were largely made of fabric squares that were belted, pinned, and folded into various designs. In this case you can use safety pins in spots nobody will see and a skull-shaped pin at the shoulder, just like hades.

A little hair gel will spike up a blue wig to look like flames while a purple-grey body paint should give your skin the same pallor Hades’ has. Finally, some sandals keep your feet safe while you put your plans in motion to rule the world!

On September 24, 2018, the world was introduce to the Philadelphia Flyers’ new mascot Gritty, and the Internet has never been the same.  Gritty has become a viral sensation, thanks in large part to his appearance as a slightly off-kilter, oversized muppet.  To really take your Gritty costume to the next level, you will want to exaggerate the size of your body and accessories.  Using slippers that look like shoes, and layering your jersey and shorts over an oversized onesie will help give the appearance that you are larger than life, just like the real Gritty.  And if you don’t want to shell out for the official mascot’s jersey, a simpler replica or a jersey you already own will also suffice.