For Mickey’s Halloween Party, my oldest son (now 10), decided to dress like Walt Disney. Because he graduating from fifth grade this year, I was all about this costume because it meant I would be purchasing him “dress-up” clothes that he could wear for his graduation at the end of the school year. Being in uber casual So Cal, my boys rarely dress up and the thought that he would get a bit of use out of a graduation suit a Halloween costume seemed like a win-win to me.
We purchased all of the pieces of the Walt Disney Halloween costume from Target. (They are available online and in store.)
- Suit jacket in black for $29.99
- Suit pants in black for $18.99
- Black clip-on tie (it looks good, I promise. You also need to go with a black tie if you are going to use my tie tack pdf below) for $9.99
- White button-down dress shirt for 14.99
At full price (without any sales or incentives with the Cartwheel app) the total cost of costume: $73.96. Keep an eye on the Target website and Cartwheel app for sales and incentives and you can get this for much less. I bought Aidan’s costume pieces for less with sales discounts.
Now I know what you are thinking: that’s a lot for a costume. I agree, but since my son will get to actually wear everything for graduation, Dapper Day, etc., I feel like it is a better value than spending $20-$100 on a costume on the Disney Store website. In fact, he has already worn the button-down shirt a few times.
Becoming Walt Disney isn’t just the suit, you need a couple more things–a mustache and a Smoke Tree Ranch tie tack.
• We made Aidan’s mustache using a Starlooks Luxe Longwear Eyeliner Pen. We felt like this was a bit more practical than a stick-on bushy mustache when it came to eating and running around. It did not run or smudge and held up great while he ate dinner. We added a bit of “gray” to his hair with baby powder BEFORE he put on his jacked and button-down shirt, but it doesn’t really show up well in the photos.
• I made the tie tack by downloading the Smoke Tree Ranch logo and setting it against a black background to match the black tie. I made it larger than a tie tack would normal be so that people (aka Disney fans) would quickly see that he was Walt, as opposed to just a kid dressed up in a suit with a mustache. To make tie tack, you will need to:
1. Download the Smoke Tree Ranch tie tack by clicking here.
2. Print out the Smoke Tree Ranch tie tack pdf and cut out the black square with the logo on it. For best results, you may want to use white card stock, but that isn’t totally necessary.
3. Use a pin (like the Disney collectible pins, etc.) and tape on the cute Smoke Tree Ranch square onto it with clear/Scotch tape. The tape gives it a bit of a glossy finish. I started by taping across the back first and wrapping it around the front. It is completely covered front and back with the tape.
Adding a Name Tag
After Mickey’s Halloween Party, my son came to me and told me (you are NOT going to believe this!) that a couple of his (fifth grade) friends were checking out my Instagram feed and saw his costume. They gave him a hard time about the costume because they didn’t know who he was dressed up as. (I am trying very hard to refrain from everything I want to say about the entire scenario.) In order to clear up any confusion about the costume, given Aidan wants to wear it to school for Halloween, I have made a Walt Disney name tag. This is NOT Walt’s actual name tag; his had a number 1 on it. However, this is a similar name tag used in the early years of Disneyland and I have photoshopped Walt Disney’s name onto it. These name tags were quite large compared to the name tags worn in the parks today. Although I kept it on the big side, it is smaller than the actual name tag would have been so it doesn’t take up a child’s whole chest.
Here is how to make a Walt Disney name tag:
1. Download the PDF (the downloaded PDF is not watermarked), print it and cut it out. I recommend card stock if you will be affixing it in step 2. I think the best way to go with this is to print it on a sticker (like the big printable Avery stickers – click here for an example). (The big Avery stickers would not work with the tie tack because it just wouldn’t sit right on the tie and would likely fall off quickly.)
Download the Walt Disney Name Tag by clicking here.
2. If you are not using a sticker, affix it to a large pin, small button pin or name tag you already have. I am out of card stock and just used regular paper and double sided tape to affix it to an old name tag I had in a drawer.
If you create a Walt Disney costume for your kiddo, please post a pic on our Facebook page! We would love to see your little Walt!
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