by Arthur Gibson

Created on: February 25, 2009

So you've got a costume party to attend and you want to look like a hippy from the 60s, no problem. Assembling and making the parts of a hippie costume is relatively simple, especially for men. You may already have most of what you need in your closet and dresser drawers. If not, you can probably obtain the missing items at a local thrift store for very little money. So let's start looking around and see what you need and how we can make you look like you stepped out of Haight Asbury in the late 60s, early 70s.

Footwear - you really have 2 options. Go barefoot or wear a pair of beat up leather sandals. While photos and memories of those who lived through the era vary, the most common footwear seemed to be dirty feet with or without sandals. Other alternatives include a scuffed pair of old boots or mocassins.

Bell bottom jeans - find your oldest, rattiest pair of blue jeans, the more faded and worn the material the better. Make sure the jeans are tight around the waist and across your buttocks. Rip the outside seams of each pant leg apart almost to the knee. Next find a large piece of cheap, bright material, cotton seemed the material of choice, probably because it was cheap. You'll need a piece probably a yard square. Fold the material in half and draw a triangle on the top - this can be as large or small as you like. The bigger the triangle the bigger the bell is going to be. With a pair of scissors cut the material, both layers, in the shape of your triangle. Turn the jeans inside out and lay one triangle on each pant leg. Leave approximately a quarter inch overlapping the denim on each side of the leg, this gives you the space you need to sew the pieces together. Next take a needle and thread, and sew the material to the denim, don't worry if you're not a seamstress neatness doesn't count. Be careful and make sure that you're not sewing the material to both sides of the pant leg. Got holes in the jeans, no problem! Depending on the location of the hole(s) you've got 2 options. If the hole is in an area that should be covered, take a scrape of your material, and with the jeans inside out sew a scrap of your material to it as a patch. Otherwise, if you like don't worry about a patch. Turn the jeans right side out and you're ready.

Shirt - again you have options. In pictures from the era, you can see men barechested or in a number of styles of shirts. Probably, the easiest for your costume would be a long sleeved, light colored, tee shirt or mock turtleneck. The

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