DIY R2-D2 Baby Costume

Are you looking for an easy to make costume for baby? Star Wars fans will love the DIY R2-D2 Baby Costume for Elon’s first Halloween. Freezer paper is my secret weapon to make it super easy. Check out my tutorial and see how adorable he is. This post was sponsored by Toys R’ Us. I get commissions for purchases made through the affiliate links in this post.

DIY R2-D2 Baby Costume

This year big brother asked to be BB-8. I thought it would be fitting for little brother to be R2-D2. (Big sister picked a dinosaur costume but she also wants to wear a Storm Trooper mask, so she is going to be a Storm Trooper riding a dinosaur.)

A baby bodysuit, a hat, and some paint is really it all it takes to create an adorable baby costume. We headed to Babies “R” Us to grab the clothing supplies and some Huggies Natural Care wipes. The wipes are perfect for taking with us on Halloween.

How to Make the R2-D2 Baby Costume

Here’s what you’ll need:

• white bodysuit (they come in packages of 3 or 4 at Babies “R” Us), washed
• white hat (I found a 2 pack at Babies “R” Us), washed
• freezer paper
• fabric paint (navy blue, red, black, and metallic silver)
• iron
• digital cutting machine and/or utility knife

Create a Freezer Paper Stencil

My oldest has several R2-D2 items, so I patterned the baby costume after these as well as looking at pictures of the real R2-D2. I created a freezer paper stencil using my digital cutting machine. You can find freezer paper next to the aluminum foil, plastic wrap, and wax paper at the store. The awesome thing about freezer paper is that you can iron it to your fabric. It is removable and repositionable. This means your stencil will stay in place, and you can easily pull it away.

In planning my design, I measured the length and width of the bodysuit, the arms, and the hat. I drew the stencil using the software that came with my digital cutting machine. Then, I flipped my image horizontally.

Place your freezer paper on your cutting mat shiny side up. It seems to cut better this way. You will need to iron your freezer paper shiny side down. This is why we flip the image.

For my digital cutting machine, I used blade setting 1, speed 3, and thickness 14.

Paint the Costume

You’ll want to protect your work surface. I use an old tablecloth or some newspaper. And then I place a piece of freezer paper on top of that for added protection and to give me a nice clean work space. Wash and dry the bodysuit and hat according to label instructions. Then, iron them to remove any wrinkles. Place a piece of cardboard or freezer paper inside the bodysuit and hat to prevent the paint from seeping through to the back.

Flip the freezer paper over shiny side down and iron to the fabric. Be sure to iron the edges of the stencil really well so the paint will not seep under.

Follow the directions on your fabric paint for dry time and washing instructions. I let my paint dry for a while (until it looked dry) and then pulled away the freezer paper stencil. After the front of the bodysuit was completely (I waited until the next day), I painted the arms.

Wear the Costume

Once the fabric paint is completely dry, you can wear the costume. My paint says to wait 72 hours before washing. I probably won’t wash our costume until after Halloween.

Here’s the finished hat. I thought about painting more of the hat with the metallic silver, but I decided I like it like this.

And here is the rest of the R2-D2 baby costume. I am pleased with how it turned out.

My little Elon makes an adorable R2-D2, don’t you think?

More Halloween Ideas for Kids

• Make a Glow in the Dark Monster Shirt using your child’s own drawing.
• Setting up a Halloween Science Lab is perfect for Trunk or Treat decorations.
• Check out these Classroom Halloween Party Ideas

What will your kids be for Halloween this year?