Costume Craziness – Tetris

If you’re looking for an easy-to-make, thematically flexible and fun costume, you can’t get much better than Tetris. Whether it’s halloween or a party with an 80’s or computer-game based theme, the Tetris costume is easily recognisable. What makes this costume really great – in addition to its simplicity; is that it works even better as a group costume.

Materials needed for this costume are readily available and require no complex mechanics. Depending on your timeframe and budget, it’s easy to have an effective Tetris costume quickly and quite cheaply. This post outlines only one method of creating the outfit using the following materials:

1. Four cardboard boxes with square sides (bought from Officeworks – just over AUD $7 a piece but if you have the time, you can check your local supermarket/retailer for their old stock boxes; they will usually give you them for free);
2. A number of rolls of plain wrapping paper (how many will vary depending on the size of your boxes – I bought 5 in the end from Bargain City – AUD $2 per roll);
3. Packing Tape/Masking Tape/Cloth Tape (colour can vary – up to about AUD $7.50 a roll from KMart or similar); and
4. Box Cutter/Stanley Knife/Scissors.

I also bought some spray adhesive, but only used it to join two boxes together before deciding that it wasn’t necessary. If you prefer you can also substitute paint for the wrapping paper. There’s a lot of flexibility in this one.

The process of making the Tetris costume is very simple once you’ve decided which shape you’re going to make (there are 7 shapes to choose from, here’s a link to the Wikipedia entry for Tetris if you want it):

1. Construct your boxes;
2. Ensure that you have cut sufficient holes for the wearer to be able to wear the costume (i.e. holes for arms and the face, along with holes in the required boxes to allow the costume to comfortably fit over their body);
3. Cover the boxes with wrapping paper/Paint them the desired colour;
4. Using tape, attach all four boxes to each other to form the desired Tetris block shape.

And there you have it – a Tetris costume! Naturally, more fun can be had if you can convince a few friends to join in. You can all create different blocks and have fun playing some real-life Tetris together!

I’ve intentionally been a little vague on the details of the costume, but obviously this isn’t a complicated design. Personal preference will dictate whether you decide to use black tape to really distinguish your cubes or not. In the end I went with the black tape and I think it came out alright.

The party was great, there were plenty of great costumes – there were even a couple of other Tetris blocks there! I was expecting a few Marios but in the end it was Pac Man that was the most common theme amongst partiers. It’s probably a good time for me to learn how to sew though – so I can sit down at the next costume party I’m invited to!