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This Halloween, your costume can capture Indiana Jone's unique archaeologist/Nazi-smasher style without raiding your bank account. This page will show you how to assemble the perfect Indiana Jones costume, even on a thrift-store budget!
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Tips for Making an Indiana Jones Costume
- You can buy a licensed costume, although this does have its drawbacks.
- You can put together a costume using props found in thrift stores and elsewhere.
- You can make a whip yourself from a rope from a modified jump rope or a coarse ribbon.
- Be careful with your whip and toy gun. They're not real, but they can be dangerous.
- Many of the companies that made costumes for the films sell reproductions.
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Step 1: Licensed Costumes
- Of course, the simplest way to get an Indiana Jones costume is to just go for a licensed version.
- Every imaginable variation of Indiana Jones' costume is for sale... along with a few variations you couldn't imagine!Rubie's: Indiana Jones Costumes
- There are versions for kids.Rubie's: Dlx. Indiana Jones Child
- There are versions for men.Rubie's: Indiana Jones Adult
- There are versions featuring a "muscle chest shirt".Rubie's: Indiana Jones Adult
- There are lingerie versions for the ladies. (No, really. Click that link and see it for yourself if you don't believe us.)Yandy.com: Women's Indiana Jones Costume
- There are even versions for your dog!Rubie's: Indiana Jones Pet Costume
- These licensed versions are widely available.
- You can find them online and in costume stores, and around Halloween you can probably find them on the shelves at the mall or even the local drug store.Walgreens: Indiana Jones Deluxe Muscle Chest Child Costume
- With just a few clicks of the mouse you could have the costumes for your entire family to go raid a lost ark together!
- Still, for all the convenience of the licensed costumes, they do have undeniable drawbacks.
- Almost all licensed costumes tend to look a bit cheap in person. Instead of leather, you get polyester.Walgreens: Indiana Jones Deluxe Muscle Chest Child Costume Everything looks fresh and clean, it's not worn like you would expect Indy's clothes to be.
- Many licensed costumes feature prominent, distracting logos. (And how is an adventurer supposed to sneak past the Nazis with INDIANA JONES written in large, bright letters on his shirt?)
- Manufacturers try to cover all sizes, but fit can still be an issue.
- Most licensed costumes aren't really built to last. Yes, they're usually flame retardant... But they won't withstand the rough life of an international adventurer.
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Introduction
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Well, with all due respect to Spielberg, if you want to be just like Indy, courage and exercise aren't ''all'' you'll need... You'll also need Jones' iconic costume.New York Times: Indiana Jones's Costume Goes to the Smithsonian
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[[Indiana Jones Films|Indiana Jones]], the classic movie hero portrayed by [[Harrison Ford|Harrison Ford]], has thrilled generations with his globe-trotting adventures. As director [[Steven Spielberg]] once told [[Vanity Fair|''Vanity Fair'']], we love Jo
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Well, with all due respect to Spielberg, if you want to be just like Indy, courage and exercise aren't ''all'' you'll need... You'll also need Jones' iconic costume.New York Times: Indiana Jones's Costume Goes to the Smithsonian
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Step 2: The Low-Budget, Do-It-Yourself Indy Costume
- With a little effort, you can put together an Indiana Jones costume that will look as good or better than the licensed versions, while quite possibly costing less.
- More than anything, you'll need Indy's trademark fedora hat.TheRaider.net: The Fedora
- Indiana Jones is rarely seen without his brown, frayed fedora. Even if you don't get too elaborate with the rest of the outfit, make sure you have the right hat.
- Shop around for a good deal. Hit local thrift stores, shop on eBay and similar websites, browse costume shops and military surplus stores.
- If you can't find a hat that's the right color, you can dye it with coffee. This will have the added benefit of making the hat look a little more worn.About.com Indiana Jones Costume How-To
- If you're feeling particularly handy, you can also try out Mahalo's instructions on making your own brown fedora (part of the page about How to Make a Freddy Krueger Costume)!
- For Jones' jacket, you want dark brown or black leather (or a convincing leather substitute, like vinyl.)TheRaider.net: The Jacket
- Leather jacket prices can vary enormously. It really pays to shop around. Concentrate on thrift stores, since you're most likely to find a bargain there.Romo Shopping Blog: A Guide to Shopping at Thrift Stores
- Sometimes you can get a surprisingly good deal on fake leather coats at large chain stores, especially drug stores.
- If the jacket looks too new, you can age it using the same method as Deborah Nadoolman, the woman who designed the jacket for the films: scuff it with a wire brush and a pocket knife.TheRaider.net: The Fedora
- You'll need a long-sleeved kaki shirt, taupe pants and a brown belt. These should be very easy to find. It's possible you've already got some at the back of your closet.TheRaider.net: The Shirts and Pants
- If you want to look rough, like Indy can get when an adventure isn't going well, you can make little rips in your shirt or tear off an entire sleeve.
- You should leave several of your top shirt buttons undone, to expose some of your chest. (Hmm. That "muscle chest shirt" is starting to sound like a pretty good idea...)
- Indy often carries a faded, greenish-brown satchel.TheRaider.net: The Shoulder Bag
- This is hardly essential, but it will make your look more complete and it will be a useful place to carry various plundered treasures (not to mention your car keys.)
- You're probably most likely to find something like this in a military surplus store.
- Indy's bullwhip is essential. Fortunately, you have many options for how to get one.
- The licensed versions come in different lengths and colors, and they should work perfectly well.Rubie's: 6' Leather Whip
- You can make a cheap version yourself with an old piece of rope covered with brown electrical tape.
- You can also make a fake whip by getting an old jump-rope, removing one of the handles, and spray painting the whole thing brown.About.com Indiana Jones Costume How-To (You can use the remaining handle for the whip's grip.)
- Note that whips (even fake ones) can be very dangerous if you wave them around and try to crack them like Indy does.DallasDogSled.com: Whip Safety Always keep your whip coiled safely at your side, and resist the urge to do any "tricks."
- Indy carries an old pistol in a holster. You can find a suitable toy version at most costume shops.TheRaider.net: The Revolver and Holster
- NOTE: Be extremely cautious with your prop gun while in public. Remember that from a distance, even a toy gun can look just like a real one.
- Indy wears brown, lace-up boots, but any old brown shoes should do it.
- Indiana Jones often has some rather scruffy stubble.
- If you're not old enough to grow facial hair (or you lack a Y chromosome,) you can simulate stubble with makeup by drawing lots of little dots on your chin it with an eyeliner pencil or applying some mascara to a toothbrush and then tapping that on your face.About.com Indiana Jones Costume How-To
- Look at a picture of Indiana Jones to figure out how much stubble to add and how far down your neck and up your cheeks it should extend.
- After applying your fake stubble, powder it so it won't smear.
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Step 3: The Deluxe Indy Costume
- If you've struck it rich plundering ancient tombs, you can afford to be much more lavish and detailed when putting together your Indiana Jones costume.
- Wested Leather of London made Ford's jackets, shirts and pants for the films. They sell very authentic (and rather pricey) jacket replicas today.Wested Leather Co: Special Manufacturers to the Film & TV Industry
- The pants and shirts are also available through the same company, and they offer overseas shipping.Wested Leather Co: Indiana Jones
- The Adventurebilt Hat Company made Ford's hat for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and they now sell exact reproductions.Adventurebilt Hat Company: A FEW WORDS ABOUT OUR FEDORAS
- - These hats are not cheap, but if you're determined to be authentic down to the last detail and you can afford to do so, these are the hats for you.
- David Morgan made the whips for several of the films, and sells similar whips for several hundred dollars each.David Morgan: Welcome to David Morgan
- Ford's boots were made by Alden Shoes.Alden Shoes: Indy Boot
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Conclusion
- Batman is a millionaire with a spandex suit and a Batcave full of crime-fighting gizmos. James Bond has a fancy tuxedo and dozens of expensive, exotic gadgets. But Indiana Jones is a working class action hero, an adventurer who wouldn't look too out of place on the bus or in the supermarket. (Well, OK, maybe his whip would attract a little attention.) It doesn't matter if you have a lot or a little to spend, you can still put together an Indiana Jones outfit to be proud of.
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