Halloween Costume Ideas for Totoro
- A pair of grey sweatpants and a grey hooded sweatshirt easily become a Totoro outfit with a little sewing. Use white material or felt to sew the white stomach on the front of the sweatshirt. Sew ears using grey material the same color as the sweatshirt and attach them to the hood of the sweatshirt. By sewing the material around cardboard, the ears will stand up straight when the hood is worn. Make sure the sweatshirt is too big for the wearer so that the sleeves are extra long. Sew the fingers from black gloves to the end of each sleeve to make the claws. The wearer will slip their fingers into the "claws." Doing this will also keep hands warm while trick-or-treating in the cold. Whiskers and a black nose is drawn on the face using Halloween make-up.
- There are three different-sized Totoros in "My Neighbor Totoro." The biggest, and most loved, is the grey Totoro. The medium one is blue and the smallest is white. Three people, of different heights, can dress up as the three Totoros. Wear sweatpants and hooded sweatshirts of the correct color. Sew the white stomachs on the grey and blue Totoro using felt or material. The grey and blue Totoros have claws which can be made by sewing the fingers of black gloves to the sleeves of the sweatshirts. The white Totoro can wear white gloves. Make the ears out of the correct color material and sew them onto the hoods of the sweatshirts. Use Halloween make-up for the nose and whiskers.
- The two main characters in "My Neighbor Totoro" are sisters. Setsuki is around 10 and Mei is around 4. Two sisters can dress up as Setsuki and Mei for Halloween. They each have two main outfits in the movie. Setsuki wears a yellow shirt, orange skirt and Mary Janes, or rainboots. Her second outfit is a yellow dress with straps. Mei wears a white shirt, pink dress and yellow Mary Janes. Her second outfit is a pink dress with sandals. With both outfits, Mei's hair is up in two ponytails. These outfits could be made by hand or search local thrift stores for clothing that would work for the costume.
- A group of people can ride the catbus on Halloween. The catbus is exactly as it sounds: a cat that is also a bus. The catbus can be made from a thin board or cardboard. It should be long enough for each group member to fit behind it and tall enough that it goes above their heads. Paint the board so that it looks like the catbus. Cut out squares for the windows of the bus. On the back of the board, attach wooden dowels as handles. The group members hold the dowels and lift the catbus. Each member stands behind a window so that it looks like they are riding the catbus.
- Soot Sprites have a short role in "My Neighbor Totoro," but they are still a cute idea for a Halloween costume. Make Soot Sprites by making pom-poms out of yarn. This is done by taking two rings made from cardboard and wrapping yarn around them. The yarn is cut along the outside of the circles and the finished product is a fuzzy pom-pom. Glue wiggly eyes to the pom-poms to make Soot Sprites. Attach the Soot Sprites to any Totoro costume, such as Totoro, Setsuki or Mei for an added touch.
