When I was notified that my friend’s birthday was 80’s themed, I immediately started plotting and planning costumes for it. I have always wanted to pull off a Ghostbuster themed couples costume and now I had the perfect opportunity. My husband as Venken, and me as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. My poor husband. He just wanted me to be a sexy aerobics instructor or Madonna dressed like a virgin, but I was having none of it!
I began the marshmallow head by shaping chicken wire for the head and hat. I figured out that I needed gloves while doing this only after I had suffered several chicken-like scratches. Ugh.
I used wire to bind and shape the structure before paper machéing the entire thing. Two layers of paper gave it enough strength for the final form.
I used felt to create the bib as well as the band around the hat, the ball on the top and the ribbon hanging down. For the STAY PUFT writing I simply used acrylic paint on the felt which worked well. I hot glued a headband on the roof of the structure so it would stay stable on my head. Lastly, I added detail to the face.
For the Ghosterbusters costume I created the logo out of felt and sewed it onto a khaki shirt and paired that with khaki pants and hiking boots. I did make one more and added it to my bathing suit to give a teaser to our costume during the day at the pool.
For the backpack I used just that, a backpack as a frame and then constructed a box that fitted over it. To create the shape of the box, I taped a few together, paper machéd it and then painted on details. I then used a vacuum hose as the busting gun.
The googles were the easiest. I glued two toilet paper tubes to a pair of science googles, paper mashed around the area where they joined and then painted them.
It was an amazing weekend and I have extreme satisfaction in accomplishing a costume I have always wanted to do. Thankfully the marshmallow head survived and will live to see another day because bustin’ makes me feel good!
Was it hard to breathe. In the stay puft head?
Hi Cassandra!
No, it wasn’t hard to breathe but it was hot and heavy. Because the height was mainly anchored to a headband to keep it in place, I could easily take it on and off which made all the difference.
Thanks for asking and best of luck if you are planning on making one!
Ms. Kit Lang