Croc Shoe Costume

M.E., the 13-year old costume-wearer, LOVES croc shoes. She has been wearing them since age 5 and owns them in every color and size, always to match the color of her current karate belt. Every year she selects some inanimate object to be for Halloween - one that cannot be bought, is often super difficult to make, and that no one else is likely to be wearing. I am a close friend of M.E.'s parents, and since she was 5 years old, M.E. and I have kept this annual tradition of making her costume together. This year she came up with the idea to be a CROC. I immediately knew I would need foam to make it, but had never worked with foam before and knew nothing about what kind of foam to use. After a lot of research and a trip to a large foam warehouse in Burbank, I selected a foam (closed cell, L200) that felt and seemed like it might work. I learned later that the foam I selected is often used for costume making in the entertainment industry.

We then drew on paper a life-sized version of the croc (both top and bottom), and used that as a pattern to cut the foam. We joined the top and bottom with a long strip of foam that was wide enough to allow space for a person to fit inside the costume. We used gaffer's tape (also new material for me) to secure all the pieces together. We made the strap out of foam, and printed the CROC logo from the web for the circular parts that connect the strap to the shoe. The owl, skull, and spider that you see at the foot of the croc are our version of Halloween jibbitz (jibbitz are decorations you can buy to adorn your CROC shoes).