Instant Period Costumes: How to Make Classic Costumes from Cast-Off Clothing

This is a great book if you want to make fun costumes for Halloween or a school play, but not so great if you want to do something historically accurate. For example, the Egyptian costumes are much more 1950s Hollywood than Ancient Egypt.

Very good resource for fast, cheap costumes. I've been using this method for many years and was pleased to find a few new ideas. Well worth the price, when you consider how expensive costumes can be to build or rent.

Very dated, clothes from the 80’s that you could find if you wanted to. I’m all about thrift store shopping for costumes and outfitted an entire cast of about 60 in a community theatre group this way, but these ideas were so specific to things no longer available. The amount of work to remake or add to the basic pieces... you may as well make them from a pattern. I bought it used so didn’t spend a lot of money on the book. I’m sure it was great in that decade of publication but no longer useful 20-30 years later.

This book is masterful! I have made so many costumes for the theater using ideas, tips and techniques from this book! This is an absolute treasure chest of inspiration and her ideas are so much more cost effective than sewing costumes from scratch! I would highly recommend this book to anyone involved in costuming!

Poor illustrations and instructions. Author's money-saving in ideas are anything but money-saving (suggestions for buying multiple wedding gowns to dye with costs over what buying a costume would be). Gluing clothes together?? Disaster on the stage!You can find much better ideas on the internet.Glad I purchased it used and didn't spend too much money on this. Usually, I donate books to our library when I am done with them. This one went straight to the shredder and recycling center.

Informative

A great addition to your drama department. It helps with making costumes easily and cheaply. Just what a school needs.

Fantastic book!