See More Homemade, DIY Brooklyn Theme Costumes
3 Ideas on How to Make a Coney Island "Cyclone" Roller Coaster Costume
As with any costume, you can be a minimalist, or make it very elaborate. Just be sure you make a few steep curves, and write "Coney Island" or "Cyclone" on a sign, so you're branded as Brooklyn!
1. Wear a "Cyclone" Roller Coaster Like a Hat
What You'll Need
The elements of this costume are easy to find:- Paint: black, white, red paint (spray paint is convenient)
- cheap helmet find out what to look for when buying an inexpensive helmet as a costume prop)
- hot glue
- cardboard
- matching sweat suit, possibly with a sign resembling the Cyclone sign in red or yellow (see image)
- straight edge, such as a ruler
- sharp scissors or knife
- cheap plastic toy train tracks including a few curved pieces
- a few cheap take-out chopsticks to glue to the train tracks to resemble the supports
- Optional: a few tiny cardboard boxes
- Optional: a few figurines small enough to "sit" inside the cardboard box
- Optional: three flags that sit on top of the highest point of the roller coaster/li>
- Optional: signs that say "Remain seated" and "Astroland"
To make the "Cyclone" roller coaster hat: Use old legos or cheap plastic train tracks to create a roller-coaster looking structure. Spray paint it.
Build the support structure, (visible in the photo of the actual Cyclone, above) with a few chopsticks, spray painted the same color as the tracks, and hot glued together.
If you're feeling inventive, you can also make small a few cars out of small cardboard boxes (the size that earrings might come in) and put Barbie type dolls or little plastic figurines with their hands up, like roller coaster riders, sitting in the "cars."
(The above costume idea was rough-drafted by Rob Kimmel, graphic designer at Rob Kimmel Design and adjunct assistant professor in the Communications Design department at Pratt Institute's Brooklyn campus.)
2. "Terrified": A Couples Costume
Look like two terrified people sitting in a roller coaster seat. 3. An Architectural, Elaborate "Cyclone" Built with Knex or Other Construction Toys
If you happen to have a lot of a great building toys, for instance, from the construction set Knex, you can make a very elaborate roller coaster structure. If you're lucky you can find these building units in the closet. Otherwise, hunt around the local thrift or Salvation Army stores, or yard sales; they are pricey to buy new.
Use the same plain sweat suit top and bottom as above, with signage saying "Cyclone," with a few flags atop the structure. For an example, see one homemade roller coaster costume constructed of over 700 Knex pieces.
Have a rollin' good time! More about Halloween Costumes in Brooklyn?
- Other Ideas, including Where to Shop Costume Swaps & More
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Funny, DIY Brooklyn Theme Costumes, from Brooklyn Flea to Coney's Cyclone Roller Coaster.
