DIY Ladybug Costume

What you need

A red top and black bottoms, and a wings-and-antennae set.

• Effort: Easy
• Cost: ~$15
• Time: 10 min

The one thing to buy

How to put it together

1. Start with red on top, black on the bottom. A plain red top and black leggings or pants are the body. A red dress works too. Skip patterns; you want a solid red back for the spots to land on and a clean black for the underside.
2. Clip on the wings and antennae. The wings-and-antennae set does the heavy lifting. The wings give you the rounded shell shape and the antennae sell the bug, so you're not relying on the spots alone. Clip the wings over the red top and the headband on last.
3. Cut and place the black spots. Six to eight black circles is the right number. Cut them from black felt and stick them on with double-sided tape, or use round paper stickers in a pinch. Scatter them, don't grid them, and split a few across the wings so the back and the shell match.
4. Paint the face, or just the cheeks. For a full ladybug face, paint the lower half red and the upper half black with a black line across the nose, then add a few white dots. For the quick version, skip the red and black and dot a few black spots on each cheek. Both finish the look; the cheek dots take two minutes.
5. Round out the rest. Red shoes or black flats, and black or red tights, tie the colors together. A red headband under the antennae helps if the clip-on shows. None of it is required once the wings and spots are on.

Make it your own

For a kid

Same build, smaller. Red shirt, black leggings, the spots cut a little bigger so they show from far off, and the antennae headband fitted to a smaller head. A red tutu over the leggings makes a ladybug skirt and gives them room to run.

Pair it up

Ladybug is one of the easiest costumes to coordinate. The classic match is a bee, same wings-and-antennae formula in yellow and black. A butterfly or a flower works just as well if you want color instead of a second bug. For a partner who'd rather not wear wings, a bee in a striped shirt or a gardener in overalls with a straw hat and a watering can both pair cleanly and don't compete with the ladybug for attention.

To level it up

Swap the felt spots for a red tutu and add polka-dot tights for texture top to bottom. A small red purse or a round backpack echoes the shell. Wire the antennae a little taller so they bob when you move, and the whole thing looks built instead of thrown together.