This post contains affiliate links. See the end of this post and/or my disclaimer for more. This post was published in January 2017 and last updated in April 2022.
It was going to be the BEST costume ever.
I thought long and hard about what I wanted to be. Finally, I decided.
A black bat.
I worked hard pulling together my all-black outfit, making a bat ear headband, and creating wings out of a black cape.
On Halloween night that year, I proudly donned the costume I had made myself, grabbed my pumpkin pail, and headed off for a night of trick-or-treating.
(That's my little brother as the devil.)
At the first house, a neighbor opened the door and oohed and aahed over our costumes. "What a cute black cat!" she said when she looked at me.
I frowned. Clearly, she hadn't seen my stellar wings. So at the next house when someone started to proclaim what an adorable black cat I was, I quickly stuck out my arms to show off my wings.
"I'm a bat!" I cried.
"Oh. Um, okay..." the neighbor said.
And, my friends, it was all downhill from there. House after house, when someone acknowledged my costume and called me a cat, I became more and more annoyed.
By the last street, I was angrily sticking out my arms, muttering, "I'm a bat," then taking my candy and stomping off to the next house. And by the time I got home? I was totally deflated. This costume I had worked on all October had totally fallen flat.
The next year, I vowed to make sure my costume was awesome. (Pretty sure that ended up being a group costume of roller skating waitresses with my besties. Not sure it was awesome, but at least everyone knew what I was...)
The initial execution of my bat costume may not have worked, but my recreation of it for my niece's Halloween-themed third birthday party last year was pretty great.
And I pulled the entire thing from my closet in the days before the party after it was moved to the morning after Halloweenie Roast.
Butterflies and bats are besties, didn't you know?
Me with the birthday girl, who was dressed as Elsa...with Anna braids.
Costume in my Closet: Black Bat
For my blog post, I did a little remix of my base outfit, but my accessories remained the same for both looks. Here's my remixed bat costume:
Haha, sorry! I couldn't help myself from flipping this photo so I'd be hanging upside down like a true bat.
My black bat! Okay, so I know I'm not totally black...but I couldn't help throwing on those vampire and bat Halloween leggings. (Sources with links listed at the end of the post.)
To build my costume, I pulled some basics from my closet: a black tunic and a pair of Halloween leggings. I did add to it with a cape and black bat ears I found at Spirit Halloween last year, but I scored both for less than $15 after using 20% off coupons.
And look at how perfectly those bat ears match the purple bats on my leggings! I love it.
Much like my childhood costume, I wanted to make sure my bat wings were on point. Using fabric scissors (I love these), I cut the bottom of my cape to create points like bat wings. I also cut small slits at the ends so I could slip a finger through and hold up my bat wings for all to see!
The wings took me less than 10 minutes to cut up, and the results were perfect.
A view from the back.
And, of course, my ears! I have a pretty large head, so headbands are always tricky for me...but this one fit perfectly and didn't become uncomfortable. Plus...they look a heck of a lot MORE like bat ears than my childhood costume did. I even love the little tilt in my left ear that happened naturally.
I had to include some killer jewelry in my costume, so I added my favorite bat necklace and earrings from Murderous Jewels.
The perfect addition to a quick costume!
Costume sources:
Leggings - Chloe Palethrope LuLaRoe
Black tunic - Ross
Black cape - Spirit Halloween (get it here)
Bat ear headband - Spirit Halloween (no longer available, but these are similar)
Black bat necklace and earrings - Murderous Jewels (get the necklace here and earrings here)
What Halloween costume could you make using items in your closet?
Or better yet, what costumes have you made in the past? Share your stories in the comments and photos with me on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook!
You can also check out my other costumes from my closet: Rita Skeeter from Harry Potter and Zoe Benson from American Horror Story: Coven.
Thank you to Sheila from redshoesredwine.com for being my photographer!
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