Have your kids asked you to make a pennywise outfit for them? Do you even know how to make a Pennywise costume? Maybe you haven’t even heard of Pennywise?

Well, pennywise is one of the nasty evil disguises of “It”, a monstrous and malevolent shape-shifting entity that haunts the small town of Derry in Maine. Pennywise the evil clown is the starring character in Stephen Kings 1986 horror novel “It”. Apparently, Stephen King decided on the character because it was the one thing that would scare the most out of children!

The first “It” movie was released in 2017, followed by a recent release of “It Chapter Two”, and with Halloween not far away - a Pennywise costume seems to be a popular choice with everyone! So if you want to know how to make a clown costume for adults, read on (it might not be the best idea to make one for your kids, but different strokes for different folks!).

Tips on how to make a Pennywise costume

This isn’t just any clown costume, it’s a killer clown costume with scary clown makeup! You might think that it’s not worth making a Pennywise outfit, because every man and his dog will be doing the same thing, but there are so many different variations, that no-one is going to look the same. Anyway, it’s so scary that you just can’t NOT want to dress up as Pennywise this Halloween!

How to put your scary Pennywise makeup together

Your basic supplies are going to be white face makeup with brilliant red highlights because you need to get the creepy smile and scary mouth just right. Of course, you can simply buy a Pennywise scary face mask, but that’s too simple and not very creative is it?

So let’s look at the steps to creating your very own “It” clown costume.

1. You need a bald head: Yes, you can shave your head if you want to be really authentic, but a bald cap will do the job nicely. This is because Pennywise has a very high forehead, so a bald cap allows you to get your makeup correct right from the get-go.
2. You need an orange wig: You really you need a short curly orange wig, but a long orange wig will give you the same effect. If you prefer a short wig, but can only find a long version, then just cut it down to size.
3. You need white face paint: This is essential to recreate the scary clown makeup and it’s fairly easy to find online. You need to cover your entire face, neck and forehead, even your eyebrows, and take it right back to the edge of the wig.
4. You need red lipstick: Liquid lipstick is the best because it allows you to curl the lines from the edges of your smile up towards your eyes and above your eyebrows. It’s also easier to paint your wide red nose and lips with a liquid lipstick.
5. You need black eye shadow: To make your face even scarier, you need to cover your eyelids in black eyeshadow and paint on black eyebrows just above your eyes. You can use a glue stick to matte down your eyebrows and once it’s dry, cover your eyebrows in your white makeup, then paint on the crazy curly eyebrows with your eyeshadow brush.

Now you have your makeup organised, it’s time to work out how to create a killer clown costume, so just follow the easy steps below.

How to put your scary “It” clown costume together

Once you have a good idea of your makeup, you need to top it off with the best scary clown costume you can create. So the easiest way is to start with a pair of white trousers or leggings, a white long-sleeved shirt or blouse and a pair of white gloves; girls can wear a small white tutu if they prefer. All these clothes need to be big enough so that you don’t show any skin at all, and it’s a good idea to rummage through a second-hand store for these items because it’s doubtful you will wear them again until next year!

Don’t forget to add the ruff around the neck, which you can put together by buying a meter of thin white fabric, cutting it so that you have a 30cm wide piece. Loop large stitches along one length of the material, about an inch inside the outer edge, pull these stitches together so the material gathers into a ruff, lay thin elastic along these threads, roll the inch of material over the elastic and run your sewing machine over it, then join the two ends of the ruff together.

You should end up with an elasticated ruff that fits over your head and sits comfortably around your neck. You could always use a couple of coffee filters glued or stapled together, adding a few white ribbons to dress it up if you don’t have the time to dig the sewing machine out of the cupboard (maybe you don’t even have one!).

Next, you need three red pom-poms that act as the buttons down the front of the clown costume (use hot glue or just a few stitches to attach the pom poms) and of course, you need then iconic red balloon that follows the poor victims of Pennywise around.

If you want to go all the way and really frighten the life out of everyone, you could add a pair of yellow or orange contact lenses to your costume, so everyone can see your creepy, crazy side! Now you know exactly how to make a clown costume for adults – you are ready to have a fabulous scary time at your Halloween party!

You might think that there are a lot of steps involved in making your own scary Pennywise costume, but it’s fairly simple and you might have most of the elements around your house anyway. However, if you don’t have the time or enthusiasm to come up with your own scary costume ideas, why not check out the guys at Costume Box, because they are full of really crazy costume ideas!