DIY Tiger Lily Flower Costume
INTERMEDIATE
1 hour
Turn everyday items into something magical this Halloween. We upcycled a pair of old tights and wire hangers to craft this oversized flower collar, then brought it to life with Rit Orange dye and hand-painted spots for that signature tiger lily look. The result? A costume that’s bold, eco-friendly, and totally blooming with creativity.
Supplies
- Rit All-Purpose Dye in Sunshine Orange and Dark Brown
- Rit DyeMore for Synthetics in Peacock Green
- Rit ColorStay Dye Fixative
- 2 Pairs of Nylon Tights
- 6 Wire Hangers
- White Polyester Gloves
- White Polyester Jumpsuit
- Thick Orange and Green Craft Felt
- Velcro
- Hot Glue Gun and Sticks
- Small container for dyeing
- Stainless Steel Pot for Dyeing
- Measuring Cup and Spoon
- Paper Towels
- Tongs
- Rubber Gloves
- Dish Detergent
- Salt
Instructions
- Before dyeing, remove any visible stains on the fabric. This will help achieve uniform color results when dyeing. Prewash item in warm, soapy water without any fabric softener. This helps to remove any finishes that may interfere with dye absorption.
- Wet nylon tights and squeeze out any excess water.
- Add a few tablespoons of Tangerine All-Purpose dye into a small container with hot water and stir to mix.
- Place tights into dyebath and stir until color is uniform.
- Once desired color is achieved, remove from dyebath and rinse in cool water. Hang to air dry.
- Pull wire hangers to shape them into diamond petal shapes.
- Cut sections of dyed tights and stretch over the wire petal shapes. Secure the ends with hot glue gun if needed.
- Create a small dyebath in a mason jar with a tablespoon of Dark Brown All-Purpose Dye and hot water.
- Use sponge brush to apply spots onto each petal and set aside to fully dry.
- Cut felt pieces to roughly 8”x20”, this will act as the collar so make sure it fits around your neck a 4” overlap for the Velcro.
- Using hot glue gun, adhere the handles of the wire hanger petals to the top 4” section of the felt. Fold the remaining 4” of the felt over the handles to hide the wires. Make sure to use thick craft felt for structure.
- Cut green felt to size and adhere to the outer collar.
- Adhere Velcro the ends of the collar.
- For the polyester gloves and jumpsuit, heat 3 gallons of water on the stovetop to roughly 200F. When water begins to simmer, add 1/2 cup /125 mL of well-shaken DyeMore for Synthetics in desired color and stir well.
- Wearing rubber gloves, carefully place gloves and jumpsuit into the dyebath. Keep stirring for uniform color coverage.
- Once desired color is achieved, remove from dyebath and rinse in warm water then gradually cool.
- Wash with mild detergent and air dry.
