Thrifted & Upcycled Dr. Facilier and Mama Odie Costumes for the Oogie Boogie Bash

When my kid asked me “Mama, can you make me a Dr. Facilier costume for Halloween?”, how could I refuse? Since I wanted it to be a group costume, that left me with the options of dressing up (1) in a princess gown, (2) as a frog, (3) as an alligator, (4) as a mosquito, or (5) as Mama Odie. I chose to channel Mama Odie.

Here’s our finished costumes which we wore at the Oogie Boogie Bash at Disney California Adventure. 

We received so many compliments from other guests and cast members. Random strangers asked to take photos with us. One cast member even told me “I love your costume! We never see Mama Odie around here!”  It was especially fun to interact with the Dr. Facilier character at his interactive treat trail. 

To make Dr. Facilier’s hat, I upcycled a ribbon from a box of chocolates, paper cut into a skull and crossbones, a feather from my stash, and a hat from my stash.

To make Dr. Facilier’s cane, I upcycled a thrifted foam stress ball from Savers, hollowed it out, shoved it onto a $5 cane from Party City, and painted it with purple & glow-in-the-dark fabric paint.

To make Dr. Facilier’s necklace, I sculpted paper maché teeth out of paper that was originally destined for the recycling bin, painted them white, and strung them onto cord from my stash.

To make Dr. Facilier’s tail coat tuxedo jacket, I thrifted an adult blazer from Goodwill, seam ripped off the sleeves, took in the sides, shortened the front half but left the back intact to make the coattails, shortened the sleeves at the shoulder seam, and reattached the sleeves.

Dr. Facilier’s pants were thrifted a school uniform pants. The shoes were originally brown but I painted them black with fabric paint.

Mama Odie’s dress was made from 3 thrifted T-shirts (1 to make the bodice of the dress, 1 to make the skirt of the dress, and 1 to make the cape of the dress). The outer part of the turban is a thrifted pashmina from Savers, and the tichel shaper underneath the turban is some fabric from my stash. The bib necklace and earrings are thrifted. The sunglasses are prescription. The bangle bracelet & sapphire crystal ring are from my collection. The snake is from Party City.