Ever wanted to know how to make a bumblebee costume? Bees are a popular choice for Halloween costumes, especially for children. Best of all, this DIY bee costume is easy to make and can be customized to fit any age.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make a bee costume, complete with no sew bee wings, for Halloween:
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How to Make a Bee Costume for Halloween
Materials:
- Black leggings
- A pair of long, black socks
- Black long sleeved t-shirt
- Newspaper
- Black Duck Tape
- Yellow Duck Tape
- A length of elastic
- A needle and black thread
- 2 jumbo black pipe cleaners
- Black foam sheets
- Bubble wrap
- Glue
Instructions:
To Make the Bee Costume Body
To make the body of this homemade bee costume, stick lengths of yellow duck tape, horizontally at equal intervals, onto the front of the top; starting from just underneath the arms.
Next, you can tape around the back in the same way so the bands of yellow go all around the top and meet at the sides.
Next, stuff the socks with newspaper, to form the legs.
Make a simple belt out of black elastic, to fit around the waist of the wearer, then stitch the ‘legs’ onto it, on either side. You could skip this bit and stitch the ‘legs’ directly onto the t-shirt if you prefer.
We loved the way the legs bounced when they were on the elastic ‘belt’. We stitched the legs to the t-shirt when we made a grasshopper costume and they tended to pull the sides of the t-shirt down.
To Make the Bee Costume Wings
To create the bee wings, take a couple of lengths of bubble wrap and cut them into two long, oval shapes.
Then, lay your ovals on top of each other, tape around the middle with black Duck Tape, and cut the edges a little more to get a wing shape you’re happy with.
Next, fluff them up so they look like a double pair of wings.
Tape the wings (or stitch them if you want them to be extra secure) to the back of the top.
To Make the Bee Costume Headdress
Attach two oversized, fluffy black pipe-cleaners from Amazon to a band made from a sheet of black foam.
To make the band, cut two identical lengths from a piece of foam (approximately 3 inches/ 7.5cm wide). Then, tape together at one end with the black Duck Tape.
Next, wrap around the head of the person who’s going to be wearing the costume and tape the two ends together.
Make sure the headband is a snug fit.
Remove the foam circle from the wearer’s head, then wrap more tape around the joins of the headdress to ensure that it is nice and secure.
Next, take one of the giant pipe cleaners and roll the end over to resemble an antennae.
Attach it to the headdress with some more Duck Tape.
Repeat the process with the second pipe cleaner.
Next, cut two discs of foam — approximately 5 inches/12.5cm in diameter — and glue them onto the front of the headdress in front of the two ‘antennae’.
As well as making the bees ‘eyes’, these two discs do a very good job of keeping the pipe-cleaners in place and not letting them flop over.
Make a Bumblebee Costume
Ever wondered how to make a bumble bee costume? Here's how!
Materials
- Black leggings
- Black long sleeved t-shirt
- A pair of long, black socks
- Newspaper
- Yellow Duck Tape
- Black Duck Tape
- Bubble wrap
- 2 jumbo black pipe cleaners
- 2 black foam sheets
- A length of 20mm black elastic
- Black thread
- Glue
Tools
- A glue gun — this is optional
- A needle
- Scissors
- A plate/bowl to cut around
Instructions
Step 1: The Body
- To make the body of the bumblebee costume, stick lengths of yellow duck tape, horizontally at equal intervals, on to the front of the top; starting from just underneath the arms.
- Next, you can tape around the back in the same way, so the bands of yellow go all around the top and meet at the sides.
- Next, stuff the socks with newspaper, to form the legs.
- Make a simple belt with 25mm black elastic, to go around the wearer's waist. Then stitch the 'legs' onto it, either side.
You could skip this bit and stitch the 'legs' directly on to the t-shirt if you prefer.
Step 2: The Wings
- Take a couple of lengths of bubble wrap and cut them into two long, oval shapes.
- Then lay one on top of the other and wind tape around the middle with the black Duck Tape. You can cut around the edges of the bubble wrap a little more, at this point, to get a wing shape you're happy with.
- Next, fluff them up, so they look like a double pair of wings.
- Tape the wings (or sew them with a couple of stitches if you want them to be extra secure) to the back of the top.
Step 3: The Headdress
- To make the bumblebee costume headdress, cut two identical lengths of black foam (mine was about 3 inches/ 7.5cm wide). Then tape together at one end with the black Duck Tape.
- Next, wrap around the head of the person who's going to be wearing the costume; and tape the two ends together.
- Remove the foam circle from the wearer's head, then wrap more tape around the joins of the headdress, to ensure that they're nice and secure.
- Next, take one of the giant pipe cleaners and roll the end over to resemble an antennae.
- Attach it to the headdress with some more Duck Tape.
- Repeat the process with the second pipe cleaner.
- Next, cut two discs of foam — approximately 5 inches/12.5cm in diameter — and glue them onto the headdress, in front of the two 'antennae'.
As well as making the bees 'eyes' these two discs make a very good job of keeping the pipe-cleaners in place; and not letting them flop over.
And that's how to make a bumble bee costume! Perfect for Halloween or costume parties.
Notes
TOP TIP!
Really stretch the fabric out and go quite wide with your bands of duck tape, on the sides of the top. Because there's no stretch in the tape, if you make the width of the bands too narrow, it makes it really hard to get the top on to the body!
Some Additional Tips for Making a Bee Costume
You can create this DIY bee costume for adults or children alike! It’s perfect for any age or gender. Why not make a homemade bee costume for the whole family? You could create a whole swarm of bees!
Just remember — whatever age you’re making this easy bee costume for — when you’re sticking the Duck tape to the top, really stretch the fabric out and go quite wide with your bands of tape on the sides of the top.
Because there’s no stretch in the tape, if you make the width of the bands too narrow, it makes it really hard to get the top onto a person!
Alternatively, you can just put the tape across the front and the back — not all the way around the t-shirt — and leave the sides free. This ensures freedom of movement! Particularly important for little ones when they’re trick-or-treating.
Ideas for Accessorizing and Personalizing Your Bee Costume
- Use various colors of Duck Tape to make your bee costume more unique. You don’t have to stick to yellow and black!
- Add some polka dots to the costume for a fun look.
- You can also add a stinger to the costume for a more realistic look.
- Accessorize with a straw hat — or a beehive hat.
- A pair of sunglasses.
- Make a papier-mâché honey pot to collect your trick-or-treating candy.
- Carry a bouquet of flowers
- Take a watering-can for your trick-or-treating haul.
- Accessorize with a ‘bee pollen’ necklace. This can be yellow beads of various sizes.
Finally, Some Facts about Bees
Bee History
- Bees have been around for over 100 million years.
- They are the only insects that can make honey.
- Bees are important pollinators that help to pollinate plants.
- Sadly, bees are declining in numbers due to habitat loss and climate change.
The Importance of Bees
- Bees pollinate one-third of the food we eat.
- They help to produce fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
- Bees also help to pollinate flowers, which are important for the ecosystem.
- The decline of bees is a serious threat to our food supply.
Some Fun Facts About Bees
- Incredibly, bees can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
- Bees have five eyes.
- They communicate with each other using a dance language.
- Bees are very social insects and live in colonies.
- Honey bees can set up home in all kinds of places. We had a honey bee colony in our chimney!
- One bee colony can produce 60 to 100 pounds of honey per year.
Caro Davies is a former art-director turned writer and content-creator, and editor behind UK lifestyle blog The Listed Home. She writes about home-related topics, from interiors and DIY to food and craft. The Listed Home has been featured in various publications, including Ideal Home, Grazia, and Homes & Antiques magazines.
