How to Make a Wolverine Costume

Guide Note

Dressing up this Halloween like everyone's favorite X-Men character, Wolverine, doesn't mean you have to subject yourself to nefarious government experiments. Instead, find out how, with a few steps and a little bit of ingenuity, you can make the perfect Wolverine costume-- right down to a set of faux-adamantium claws!

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Comic Book Wolverine Costume
• Movie Wolverine Costume
• Wolverine's Claws
• Conclusion
• References

Wolverine Tips

1. Wolverine is best known for his metal claws.
2. Wolverine's costume has varied since he was first introduced.
3. He is often seen wearing a yellow and blue costume in the comic books.
4. In the X-Men movies, he wore a black outfit.
5. It is more practical to make claws that you hold then have them attached to your hand.

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Introduction

• Wolverine is a fictional superhero made popular in Marvel comics. He has been a member of both The Avengers and X-Men teams and is due to star in his own movie in 2009. Like any good comic book character, Wolverine's image has changed over the years. As to which is the preferred costume, that is still being debated.¹

• Rather than try and resolve the debate, this page will go into detail on how to make both the comic book and movie versions of the costumes as well as how to make a set of the infamous claws.

Comic Book Wolverine Costume

• The first costume worn by Wolverine was a yellow blue and black. (FYI: Wolverine first appearance in a comic was in The Incredible Hulk #180 and he was on the cover of #181.)² Since that time, he's had other costumes in the comics, many of them variations of the original.³

• 

  (Creative Commons photo by Daniel Simonson)
  If you want to make your own version of this costume, you will need to find bright yellow t-shirt and leggings (or white versions that can be dyed yellow). You can then add blue or black accents with cardboard or fabric paint. Don't worry about being too elaborate. If you have the claws, almost any yellow shirt will do for this costume.⁴

• However, the cost of making this costume could run you close to what it costs commercially. Two versions of the yellow comic book costume are available online.
  1. The Yellow, blue and black version can be found:⁵
     1. Buy Halloween Costumes: Wolverine Adult Costume | Child Costume
     2. Halloween Express: Wolverine Muscle Costume: Adult and Teen | Child Costume
  2. The Yellow and blue with a red belt is harder to find, but can be found:⁶
     1. Buy Superhero Costumes: Wolverine Costume
     2. Brands on Sale: Wolverine Costume

Movie Wolverine Costume

• In the X-Men movies, Wolverine wore a different, solid black leather with gold trim costume.⁷ Although an official version of this costume came out, they may be hard to find.⁸

The Perfect Hair

• Unlike most costumes, it's not the clothing that makes a Wolverine outfit. Rather, it's the hair and the sideburns:

1. The hairstyle is a variation of one popular in 1950's known as the duck tail or ducktail.⁹
   1. If your hair is long enough, you can recreate it by using gel or mousse.
   2. Blow-dry the sides of your hair upward toward the top, and use a brush to curl it.⁹
2. The sideburns are known as "mutton chop" sideburns.¹⁰
   1. These can either be drawn on or purchased.
   2. For stores that sell them, check out:
      • - Google Product Search: Mutton Chop Sideburns.
   3. You can use many of the facial hair techniques from a traditional werewolf costume:

• Expert Village: How to Make Sideburns for a Werewolf Costume (Time: 1:29)

Wolverine's Claws

• The hallmark of any Wolverine costume are the claws. And, unlike the rest of his outfit, the claws are essentially the same throughout his Wolverine's fictional apperances. In fiction, Wolverine's claws are retractable. But in reality, making retractable claws is time-consuming and expensive.¹¹ It is more practical to make the claws out of another material such as paper mache, craft foam or other similar materials.

Claw Construction

• The simplest way to make somewhat durable claws is to use paper mache. You will need the following supplies:

1. Cardboard
2. Newspaper
3. Grey or metallic paint (or aluminum foil tape)
4. Paper mache paste
   1. See the Mahalo's section on paper mache in How to Make Halloween Props for a simple recipe for making paper mache paste.
   2. Make sure to add a little white glue, since your mixture will need to be stiffer than typical paper mache.¹²

• Now it's time to fashion the claws

1. Draw a single template for the claws, so each of them will be as identical as possible to the others.
   1. You can draw your own claws, but remember to take into account their characteristic shape: the blades should extend upwards and appear like they are coming out of the hand instead of from between the fingers.
   2. Refer to the image below, or simply use it exactly!
      

      (Photo by Mahalo)
2. Remember to prepare three claws for each hand.
   • - One claw will slip between each of your (non-thumb) fingers.
3. Cover each claw with a couple of layers of newspaper dipped in paper mache paste.
4. Let your claws dry before proceeding to the next step.
   1. Drying time will vary depending on how many layers you have applied to your claws.¹³
   2. Finish each claw one by one. Let them dry while you are working on the next one.¹⁴
5. Once your claws are firm and dry, apply metallic paint or foil tape to give them that adamantium sheen!

Can't Retract? Detach!

• Since you probably lack mutant healing abilities, you don't have the option of sheathing your claws when not in use. And while it is possible to make the claws and attach them to gloves, you will then either spend the night poking yourself and anyone near you or having to take of your glove anytime you want to use your hand.

• A better idea is to make your claws easily detachable, or affixed to some some type of handheld grip. These claws can then be easily set down when necessary. Consider the following options for mounting your claws:

1. A wooden peg, with the claws extending through your fingers, held as you would a basic corkscrew.¹⁵
2. A "brass knuckles" approach, with the claws attached on the outer bar over your fingers.¹⁶
3. Look over a few examples of how licensed claw props are created using metal:

• 1. Google Product Search: Wolverine X Claw
  2. Google Product Search: Wolverine Pantera

Conclusion

• Now that you have your Wolverine costume, you might want to brush up on your Wolverine skills by checking out your local comic book store, renting the three X-Men movies or checking out some of the cartoon versions of him.

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References for How to Make a Wolverine Costume

1. ↑ The Superhero Hype! Boards: Which Wolverine Costume Do You Prefer?
2. ↑ Marvel Database: Incredible Hulk Vol 1 181
3. ↑ SuperHeroUniverse.com: Wolverine Suits Superhero Art Gallery  
4. ↑ From the Ashes of the Internet: Drought over! (September 11, 2007)
5. ↑ Marvel Database: Wolverine Image
6. ↑ Marvel Directory: Wolverine
7. ↑ Official Site: X-Men: the Last Stand
8. ↑ Block Buster Costumes: Adult's X-Men Movie Wolverine Costume
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} The Hairstyler.com: Wolverine Hairstyle with Sideburns  
10. ↑ Hudson's FTM Resource Guide: Facial Hair: Growth and Grooming
11. ↑ The Realm of The Dark Blade: How To Make Retractable Wolverine Claws
12. ↑ Deep Creek Times: Mask Making
13. ↑ The Papier Mache Resource: Frequently Asked Questions
14. ↑ HalloweenFear.com: Paper Mache Tips
15. ↑ Metrokane: A short course in wine openers
16. ↑ Wikimedia Commons: mage:Brass knuckles dsc04623.jpg