In keeping with the theme of a “green” Halloween discussed in this earlier post, here are some fun ideas for do-it-yourself costumes. (This is presuming you’re like me and haven’t already got your child’s costume prepared down to the last detail. Actually, we’d planned to dress my older son in the lion costume my mother got him, but he has other designs: a monster truck. I’m all ears if anyone has any ideas on how to do that one.)

Here’s some suggestions from Treehugger:

Skunk: Wear a black turtleneck and tights and paste a white strip down the back.

Spider: Wear a black leotard and tights and attach four extra sets of “legs” — tights stuffed with paper.

Ragdoll: Wear a sleeper with patches, a stocking cap, rosy cheeks and freckles.

Jack in the Box: Wear bright tights and shirt. Attach a brightly painted box with a crank.

Here’s some more from Parents magazine:

Pac-Man: Use a black pillowcase and paint pen to draw the maze. Cut out felt ghosts as the obstacles and wear a yellow hat.

Zombie: Tear strips from an old white sheet and sewed them onto a t-shirt and pants.

Scuba Diver: Make flippers out of foam or paper to hide your shoes and add two empty soda bottles for your air canisters.

Robot: Cut head and arm holes in a cardboard box. Paint the box silver and adorn with random electrical items. Use dryer venting for arms. Cover a construction worker hat with aluminum foil. Wear a gray turtleneck, sweatpants, shoes, etc.

Chocolate Chip Cookie: Make a circle out of felt, leaving leg and arm holes. Cut out smaller circles from the dark brown to make the “chips” and attach with fabric glue.

Crayon: Use a colored pillowcase and draw the logo on with black fabric paint. Wear pants and shirt of same color.

Golfer: Wear an argyle sweater vest, cap, knickers. Carry a real or fake club.

Thomas the Tank Engine: Use cardboard boxes, paper towel rolls and other containers to create the body. Wear overalls underneath and add an engineer cap. (see picture)

Little Bo Peep: Wear an Easter dress with a bonnet and cane.

Curious George & The Man in the Yellow Hat: One sibling is George, the other is The Man in the Yellow Hat.

Mad Scientist: Wear a lab-coat with colored, spiked hair, oversize black glasses and a loosely knotted tie.

Rock Star: Channel your inner Hannah Montana.

Zookeeper: Combine khakis and stuffed animals.

Construction Worker: Wear a hard-hat, tool belt, etc.

Care to share some other ideas?

Last year was the first Halloween for my 3-year-old. We, along with the rest of Durango, hit East Second Avenue as the sun was falling. The whole trick-or-treat thing being new, we had to walk him through it. “Say, ‘Trick or treat,’” we instructed and he dutifully complied. His eyes turned to saucers when the phase scored him a small chocolate bar. It was like manna from heaven. We hit a couple more houses then just walked around. Though he could hold all his booty in two hands, he thought he was the luckiest kid in the world. I don’t expect we’ll get off so light this year.

In the vein of reining in the Halloween binge, I recently stumbled on a suggestion list of healthier/greener treats for the famously hedonistic holiday. The list, by nonprofit Green Halloween, is extensive but a few that intrigued me were organic kid tea bags, crayon rocks, beads, polished rocks and mini cookie cutters. The list was included in an email from the EcoMom Alliance, a great group that seeks to harness moms’ natural inclination toward sustainability.

Naturally Halloween should still be fun. But having it be a little more natural doesn’t hurt.