How to Make a Cassette Tape Costume

If you are a child of the 80’s, this DIY cassette tape costume is perfect for you! I teamed up with Amazon Prime to participate in their second annual “boxtume” contest where I was given the challenge to make a Halloween costume out of an Amazon Prime smile box and craft supplies I have at home. The only thing I love more than my purchases showing up at my house with free, 2 day shipping is crafting with the cardboard from said packages that magically appear at my doorstep!

Are you ready for the ultimate DIY 80s costume idea?!

Here’s What You Need to Make a Cassette Tape Costume

Amazon Prime smile box
White spray paint
Various acrylic paint colors (pink, orange, yellow, black)
Cardboard cutting utensil
Permanent marker
Yard stick
Hot glue gun
Straps from a reusable bag (or ribbon)

How to Make a Cassette Tape Costume

Get your 80’s play list ready so when you’re waiting for that paint to dry you can “dance with somebody”! I’d recommend a little Don’t Stop Believing, Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean, and one of my all time faves, Madonna’s, Like A Prayer.

Step 1- Cut the cardboard box

Use your cardboard cutting utensil to cut the box to size. I made my cassette tape 27 inches wide and 19 inches tall. I used one box to cut two pieces of cardboard the exact same size. See the dotted lines below to see exactly what part of the box I used for the cassette tape costume. Don’t forget to round the corners of your rectangle.

Step 2- Spray paint white

I knew a large part of the cassette tape would be white, so I gave both pieces of cardboard 2 coats of white spray paint. This gave me a great base coat and covered up the writing and symbols on the cardboard box perfectly. If you’re fancy, you will complete steps 3-5 with both pieces of cardboard so that your cassette tape can be seen on the front and back of you.

Step 3- Hand paint

Next, I used a yardstick and a pencil to draw a border around the outside of my rectangular cardboard box piece. I made the bottom of the rectangle thicker and painted it all black. I used a bowl to trace two circles in the center of the cardboard box. Then I hand drew an oval around both circles and painted the inside black. Be patient and try to wait for the black paint to dry! Once the black paint is dry, paint your stripes. I used the width of my yardstick to measure the thickness of my stripes. I painted one stripe pink, one stripe orange, and one stripe yellow. Again, patience is key.

Step 4- Paint grey details

Once the stripes are dry, it’s time to add the finishing touches with grey paint. I just added a little white to my black paint to create the dark grey trapezoid at the bottom of my cassette tape. Wait for that to completely dry and then paint two small circles and two small squares inside the trapezoid. Again, I just added a little more white to the black paint. Use the same grey to paint six small rectangles in inside of each circle.

Step 5- Label your cassette tape

Use a permanent marker and a yardstick to draw a straight line at the top of your cassette tape. This your mix tapes personalized label! Then use the Sharpie marker to hand write the title of your cassette. So many fun ideas for this part!

Step 6- Straps

You’re almost done! I love to use straps from the reusable shopping bags, but if you are not reusable bag hoarder like me, ribbon, yarn, twine, or even strips of cloth will work perfectly. Cut each strap to be 15 inches long, and hot glue each strap to the top, back of the cassette tape. You are making a sandwich board cassette tape to wear over your chest. So fancy! Do a quick test to make sure the length works for you, and if so, hot glue the end of the straps to the other side of the board you cut out in step 1.

Do you love the DIY cassette tape costume as much as I do?! I sure hope so! Oh and what would you name your mix tape? I’d love to hear…

If you’re looking more easy DIY cardboard costumes, don’t miss:

Here’s What You Need to Make a Cassette Tape Costume