How to Make a Monkey Costume

Co-authored by Hannah Madden

Last Updated: June 4, 2021 References

If you or your kid loves the animal kingdom, you may be itching to make a cute and comfy monkey costume. Store-bought costumes are expensive, and making an entire costume from scratch can take a lot of time. Fortunately, there’s a quick and easy way for your or your child to dress up as a monkey using a few simple items that you may already have around the house.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Making the Body and the Tail

1
Dress in a brown outfit with a hood. You can grab a brown sweatsuit, a brown onesie for your kid, or some brown leggings and a brown shirt. Try to use the same shade of brown for each item in your outfit so that it looks cohesive.^{[1]
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- If you’re making this costume for a baby or a toddler, try finding a onesie that has monkeys on it.
Tip: Try looking for brown clothing at a thrift store or online.
2
Cut out a circle of brown felt for the belly of the monkey. Lay your shirt out on a flat surface and place a sheet of brown felt on top of it that’s slightly lighter in color than your outfit. Cut out a long oval that reaches from your chest down to your belly button. Attach the felt piece to the shirt using a glue gun.^{[2]
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- If you want to wear your shirt later on without the felt on it, use safety pins so you can just take the felt off later.
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3
Trim a 5 by 15 in (13 by 38 cm) piece of brown felt for the tail. A monkey isn’t a monkey without its tail! Measure out a long and thin piece of the same brown felt you used for the tummy to create a long and skinny tail.^{[3]
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- If you’re making this costume for a little kid, they might not love a long tail hanging off their back. You can skip this step if you think they won’t like it.
4
Fold the felt in half and glue the sides together, leaving 1 short side open. Crease the felt together lengthwise to match up the 2 longer ends of the felt. Then, use a hot glue gun to connect the long side and 1 of the short sides together. Let the glue dry for about 10 minutes, and make sure you leave 1 short side of the felt open so that you can turn it inside out.^{[4]
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- Use caution with a hot glue gun and try not to get any glue on your fingers.
5
Turn the tail inside out. Carefully grab the tail from the open end of the felt and push the fabric through that opening. Keep going until the tail is fully inside out so that the seam is on the inside and you can’t see it.^{[5]
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- If the glue came apart in any areas while you were turning the tail inside out, just patch it with a dab of hot glue.
6
Stuff the tail with foam or cotton. Use the opening that you turned the tail inside out with to add foam, cotton, or newspaper. Try to stuff the tail as much as you can so that it looks stiff and puffy.^{[6]
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- The more stuffed your monkey tail is, the better it will look.
7
Glue the opening shut. Take your hot glue gun and use it to seal up the open edge of the tail. It’s okay if you can see the seam on this side because you can hide it in the rest of your costume.^{[7]
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Attach the tail to the bottom of your shirt with a safety pin. Hold the edge of the tail up to the back of your shirt and use a safety pin to attach the tail. Try to use a large safety pin that will hold well, because the tail might be kind of heavy.^{[8]
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- If you are attaching the tail to a onesie, just put it on the lower back area.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Attaching the Ears

1
Cut four 3 in (7.6 cm) circles out of brown felt. Use a marker to sketch the circles out onto the felt before you cut them. Use sharp scissors to cut them out, and try to make the circles as even as possible so that your ears match up.^{[9]
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- If you really want to make sure the ears are the same size, cut a stencil out of cardstock and use it as a guide for each circle.
2
Glue each pair of ears together, leaving the bottom seam open. Line up 2 pieces of felt, then use your glue gun to attach them together. Leave the bottom 2 inches (5.1 cm) open, then do the same thing with the other pair of circles.^{[10]
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Turn the ears inside out. Use the opening at the bottom of the ears to pull the felt through and turn them inside out. This will hide the seam that you made by gluing the 2 pieces together so they look seamless.^{[11]
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4
Cut two 2 in (5.1 cm) circle pieces of tan felt. Place a sheet of tan felt over 1 ear, then use it as a guide to make a circle that fits inside of the ear. Cut out another one that matches the other ear.^{[12]
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- The tan felt should be at least a few shades lighter than your brown felt so that it stands out.
5
Attach the tan felt to the brown felt to make the inner ear. Situate the tan circles of felt so that they are in the center of the brown ears. Use your glue gun to attach the tan felt to each ear so they look more 3D.^{[13]
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- If you don’t have tan felt, that’s okay. This step is optional, but it does make the ears look a little more realistic.
6
Glue the ears to a headband or safety pin them to a hood. If your costume already has a hood on it, put the hood up and safety pin the ears to either side of the hood so they rest on top of your head. If it doesn’t, take a metal headband and glue the ears to either side, then wear it on top of your head to complete your costume.^{[14]
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Tip: If you’re making the costume for a girl, make a small pink bow out of ribbon and hot glue it onto 1 of the ears for a cute added detail.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Completing the Outfit

1
Throw on some brown shoes and gloves. Monkeys also have brown feet and hands, and you can mimic this easily by putting on brown shoes and gloves. Try to match the shade of brown in the rest of your outfit, if you can.^{[15]
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- If you don’t have brown shoes or gloves, that’s okay too. They’ll help to complete your outfit, but you’ll still look like a monkey without them.
2
Wear a monkey mask if you can find one. If you’re worried that people still won’t know what your costume is, throw on a plastic monkey mask with your outfit. You can usually find cheap plastic ones online or in a costume store.^{[16]
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- Babies probably won’t like wearing a mask, and they’ll look just fine with the brown outfit and ears.
- Make your own mask by printing out a monkey face and coloring the different shades of brown in the face.
Tip: You can always take your mask off if it gets too hot throughout the night.
3
Use face paint if you don't have a monkey mask. Start by applying a thin layer of tan face paint all over your face, indenting it on your cheeks for a classic monkey shape. Outline the tan paint with a darker brown paint, then outline your mouth, nose, and eyebrows in black to complete the look.^{[17]
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- You can find face paint at most costume supply stores.
- Don't use face paint on a baby, as they might rub it into their mouths and swallow it.
4
Carry around some bananas for a funny prop. Bananas are a monkey’s favorite snack. Grab a couple or even a bunch to carry around with you and eat for a quick bite. You can even hand them out to your friends if you’re at a party!^{[18]
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- Some costume stores sell fake bunches of bananas if you don’t have any real ones to hold onto.

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What if i don't have a child to put the costume on?

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You can make this costume for your kid, yourself, or even for a friend. Ask the person you want to make the costume for first to double check that they'd like to dress as a monkey before you put a lot of time and effort into it.