Koshchei the Immortal can certainly be called one of the main characters of children's folk tales. This character is present at every children's party.
It’s not easy to find a Koshchei costume in a store, but it won’t be difficult to make a Koshchei the Immortal costume with your own hands.
Features of the suit
- A dark color that will give gloominess and show the evil character of the hero.
- The need to create a sinister appearance. Make the bones of a human skeleton.
- Cloak with a torn edge.
- Crown. After all, “Koshchey is wasting away over gold.”
- Koschey needs a sword, which you can either buy or make yourself.
Add-ons
Following the instructions given, you will make a skeleton costume, but Koschey the Immortal is not just a skeleton. The image of this fairy-tale villain can and should be complemented with accessories that will contribute to the instant recognition of the character.
In fairy-tale films, Koschey appears armed with a two-handed sword. The length of this weapon should be up to the owner's chin. The easiest way to make it is from wood, for example, from an old ski:
- Using a hacksaw, cut out the hilt of the sword, which should be 3-4 times the width of the owner's palm.
- Reinforce the cross guard with screws or self-tapping screws.
- Paint the weapon with gray or black paint or cover it with foil.
If you don’t have skis, you can use a board of the appropriate size or a piece of cardboard, cut out and painted in the appropriate colors. This option is not particularly desirable because such a sword will be fragile and will bend or break easily.
Crown
Koshchei’s crown is not always golden. She is often depicted as being made of some more “villainous” metal, such as iron, or silver to fit into the overall black and white palette. Therefore, it is better to paint it silver or gray metallic, or even “wet asphalt”. The crown itself is easiest to make from cardboard, but it will be short-lived and may warp under the influence of paint. So it's better to use papier-mâché :
- First, using a centimeter tape, the circumference of the head of the future Koshchei is measured, then a scan of the crown with teeth is drawn on a piece of paper of the appropriate length. Make 10-15 of these paper crown patterns.
- Bend one of them, glue it into the shape of the finished product and coat it with office glue, then begin gluing the next layers. If you want to make a crown with convex angular “Gothic” elements, you can glue them on top when the main shape has dried.
- Then the crown is painted golden (silver) or covered with foil.
What should you pay attention to?
The costume should be comfortable and not restrict the movement of the child, who will move, run, dance, jump, etc.
Choose your fabric carefully. Do not choose synthetics, it will be very hot and uncomfortable. This will ruin the holiday, both for the child and for you.The fabric should not be too shiny. This will spoil the photo of Koshchei’s costume from the matinee, which will be made with his own hands.
The skeleton must be fastened very carefully so that the “bones” do not break off during an active holiday.
Ask and take into account the child’s wishes when creating a costume, involve him in the process.
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Adult costume
Often Koshchei is played by the older generation - parents. In this case, it becomes even more difficult to buy, but you just need to increase the measurements of the children's suit, and you will get the real Koshchei and a lot of pleasant memories.
All of the options listed below are suitable for both children and a Koshchei costume for an adult, and are easy to do with your own hands.
Final image
To complete the image of Koshchei the Immortal, you can use makeup or a mask. Let's consider makeup as easier to perform. You will need water-soluble makeup in two colors: black and white. Black is needed to depict the eye sockets and the depression of the nose. The rest of the face is treated with white to create the impression of a skull.
Apply white makeup first, it will be the base. Black elements should be applied over a white base. Makeup is applied as follows:
- A white base is applied to the entire visible part of the face.
- Then, using black paint, the area of the nose is blackened (the skeleton has no nose, on the bare skull there is a gap in this place), the space on the sides of the face from the cheekbones and further to the lower jaw.
- If desired, use a thin brush to draw the contours of closed jaws and teeth on the cheeks.
The result should give the impression of a naked skull: Koschey in fairy tales, as you know, is either a living skeleton or an extremely withered and half-dead person. However, makeup is not a mandatory element, and a child can do without it at the New Year's party.
animator.artishok
If a mask is used, the easiest way to make it is from papier-mâché, placing a mixture of paper scraps and glue on a base (for example, on the side of a three-liter jar). After this, all that remains is to make holes for the eyes and paint the white mask in the necessary colors, reminiscent of the skull. Then you can pierce two holes with an awl. thread a fishing line or thin elastic band through them and secure the mask on your head.
How to choose fabric?
Give preference to stretchy fabrics, such as knitwear and flannel.
Straight fit, bodice and yoke
The most common and favorite model was the straight-cut sundress. It was made from fabric with one seam or from several rectangular panels. From above, along the circumference of the chest, the outfit was gathered, forming folds. The hem of the skirt was decorated with lace, and the dress itself was held on by shoulder straps. It’s not difficult to tailor such a Russian one.
With changes in fashion, the design of the sundress also changed. It was complemented with a tight-fitting bodice with straight panels sewn to it. Often different fabrics were used for the top and petticoat. Also, to create a more graceful silhouette, a yoke was added to the bodice.
Ready-to-wear suit
This option is suitable for those who are wondering how to make a Koshchei costume with their own hands, but do not know how to sew, do not want to bother, are afraid of ruining the costume, etc.
When making a Koshchei costume from ready-made clothes, you will do everything in a faster time, but you will lose a little in quality. A full suit looks more harmonious
Modern Old Believer sundress
“If you want to destroy the Russian people, corrupt a woman”
The modern Old Believer sundress is a magnificent example of real Russian women's clothing. It is comfortable, functional, beautiful. The sundress, with its bell shape, saves the energy of the Earth, which is so necessary for maintaining women's health (women wearing long dresses and trapezoidal sundresses have practically no female diseases).
The sundress transforms every woman who wears it, making her majestically beautiful, slender, stately and young
Traditional women's attire draws attention not to the figure, but to the face, eyes, and entire appearance, emphasizing high spirituality
Next to a woman in the correct noble Russian sundress, arguments die down, men do not allow themselves to say a “harsh word”...
When, slightly lifting the hem of her sundress with a long-forgotten gesture, such a woman gets off the bus or slowly walks along the steps of the stairs, people’s faces brighten, the bustle of life is forgotten and it becomes clear: Rus' is alive, and it has a great and bright future!
Instructions for a ready-made suit
You will need black clothes, the best option would be a tights and a turtleneck.
The bones of the human skeleton, which can be cut out of paper or white fabric, will be attached to the clothes. It is best to attach the skeleton with threads, pins, or glue.
If you choose the latter option, it is important to consider that after the holiday you will most likely have to throw away the clothes, since it will not be possible to wash them.
If you also want to make a mantle, you can use any black cape or raincoat. The sword can be cut out of paper or bought in a store.
By following these simple recommendations, you can easily make a Koshchei costume for a boy with your own hands.
Adviсe
The first warning from experts concerns the use of the material. Usually holidays are held during the cold period; you should not skimp on materials and buy thin fabric for a suit. After the holidays, a child should only have pleasant memories, and not painful sensations.
Also, all accessories used must be as safe as possible. In the heat of play, sharp objects can easily injure. The sword should be soft and not have a sharp tip.
To complement the look with makeup, it is advisable not to use gouache and watercolor. These paints contain quite a lot of dangerous carcinogens that damage the skin. Baby cream will not save you; it is advisable to use special paints for face painting.
Note!
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Koshchei costume step by step
First, let's determine what our costume will look like. The most important part of the costume is the black base with the skeleton applied.
We begin to develop a template for the costume of Koshchei the immortal. It's best to do this on paper.Draw all the bones of the skeleton in natural size on cardboard. Cut them out and figure out how it will look on your child. Can be applied to any pajamas at the initial stage.
Once you decide on the location, you can start painting the bones if you are making them from paper. Or cut it out of white fabric according to the office, if you chose this option.
For the skeleton, you can use self-adhesive paper.
Next, we make a black suit using any pattern of pajamas/leotards and turtlenecks or T-shirts from the Internet. Be sure to do several fittings while sewing!
Attach the skeleton parts to the costume using thread, pins or glue and your costume is almost ready. All that remains is to make the accessories – the crown, sword and mantle.
The crown is easy to make by cutting it out using a template on thick cardboard. You can paint it or cover it with food foil.
The sword can be made using the same principle as the crown. Find a template on the Internet, print it, and use it to cut out a sword from good thick cardboard. There is no need to paste over the sword; if necessary, it can be painted.
For the mantle, take a piece of black fabric, rectangular. Fold one of the edges and sew so that you can insert a ribbon to attach the robe to the child’s shoulders.
Making a Koshchei costume at home is absolutely not difficult, you can easily do it yourself.
Size
As a result, you can get a suit for a boy 5-7 years old. Height can vary; the only detail that depends on height is the length of the cape, which can be easily changed by changing the radius of the half-sun. A standard piece of fabric has a width of 1.5 m, which allows you to cut a semicircle up to this radius, which corresponds to a height of 170-178 cm.
The bone stencil is easy to scale according to height; this can be done proportionally; the difference in proportions is easily compensated by a more frequent or rarer arrangement of stripes.
An adult Kashchei costume is made in the same way, which can be worn, for example, on Halloween. Of course, the sizes will be different, but the image itself is identical, there is no need to change it.
DIY Koshchei costume photo
Crown
The crown must certainly complement the Immortal, which is not difficult to make with your own hands. You can use a ready-made crown, if available. If not, then we will now tell you how to make it yourself.
Thick cardboard, which is used for packaging goods, is suitable for this. From it we cut a strip with teeth to fit the size of the head. We chose black color in order to sew the costume of Koshchei the Immortal with our own hands. The crown template shown in the picture has no color, so it needs to be painted. It is better to choose gold or silver color. Spray paint is the best choice as it can completely cover the crown. After painting, we connect the strip with the teeth with a stapler.
But you can choose another option for painting the crown, which will complement the costume of Koshchei the Immortal. You can decorate a cardboard crown with your own hands using foil. We have a beautiful shiny crown, which is recommended to be decorated with rhinestones or one voluminous stone.
Source
We complement the image with accessories
A mask will complement the image. It is not necessary to buy stamped versions in theme stores; you can create it yourself.
Algorithm of actions to create an original accessory:
- White paper, string or elastic thread, felt-tip pen, glue, scissors and pencil to draw a sketch.
- Draw yourself or use a stencil the outline of the skull, eye socket, openings for the mouth and nose.
- Cut out the design from cardboard.
- Carefully cut holes so you can see the world around you.
- Outline the eye sockets with a dark marker to make them stand out more.
- Draw the teeth in the mouth and carefully outline them. The darkness of the drawing depends on your desire to create.
- The finishing touch: attach a lace or elastic band to hold the mask tightly.
It is not necessary to create a mask that will cover your entire face. An example in the photo below.
An interesting option for children is an eye accessory, which is designed in the form of a small skeleton.
We complete the image of the skeleton - apply makeup
You will need two colors:
- The base is prepared and the entire face is painted over.
- Using dark cosmetics, apply stains around the eye area, on the tip of the nose, and color the lips. Don't skimp on cosmetics.
- Teeth are drawn on top of the base of the lips.
- You can add outlines to the cheekbones and strokes on the forehead.
- Don't forget to draw the bones on the neck.
For those who do not want to do dark makeup, you can paint over only part of the face. It is not necessary to use the black version - use dark blue or purple.
The hairstyle can be different - depending on your preferences: curly curls and a strict ponytail.
Villain of Russian fairy tales
There is hardly a person who does not know who Koschey the Immortal is. In children's fairy tales, this character plays one of the main roles. Koschey personifies the evil king who has magical powers. In one of the Russian fairy tales, Koschey, after drinking three buckets of water, broke the chains with which he was chained to a tree. But the most amazing thing is how you can kill this villain. Koshchei's death will occur if the needle that is in the egg is broken, and it is in the duck. The duck is in a chest, a chest under an oak tree that grows on an island in the middle of the ocean. As we see, Koschey was a serious enemy, and few people dared to fight him.
