This homemade Abe Lincoln costume was more of an ensemble of purchases as opposed to original creation.
First, I grew out a beard for 3 weeks, shaving the mustache the day I wore the costume. The coat was a cheap, polyester robe from Walmart. The vest was purchased at a local store that sells suits. For the tie, I purchased a nylon strap (like on a kid’s backpack) and fashioned a bird shape to it. This took some experimentation as I could never seem to tie it the same way twice.
The top hats I found at Halloween stores were very weak, but I found a small plastic hat with a good black brim. I then bought black posterboard and wrapped the top part of the hat, cutting off the excess posterboard, creating a cylinder. I used clear tape to adhere the two ends together, which I put in the back. Oddly, I did not fasten the cylinder to the hat. As long as I didn’t lean over much, it stayed on. I believe the height of the cylinder was 14 or 15”—you’ll have to adjust to accommodate your head height.
Pretty simple, but very convincing costume with high recognition.
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