While waiting in line at the craft store for supplies for this year’s costumes, I spotted a Ring Pop in the checkout candy display and immediately thought: why haven’t we made a DIY Ring Pop costume yet? The idea stuck, and the next day we dropped everything to build it. It’s one of our more involved projects, but the result is totally worth it — bold, fun, and surprisingly wearable if you don’t mind a little measuring and construction.
This tutorial covers how we made the costume shown here. It’s somewhat technical, so be prepared to take your time. You’ll need patience and accurate measurements, and you may need to adjust dimensions to suit your body and preferred final size.
Supplies Needed
- Poster board or a large sheet of paper (for templates)
- Foam core (4–5 sheets or more depending on the costume size)
- Large sheet of cardboard (for the ring base)
- Clear red adhesive vinyl (2 rolls recommended)
- Red adhesive vinyl (optional but useful for interior finish)
- Turquoise adhesive vinyl or turquoise paint (for the ring)
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Painter’s tape or masking tape
- Sharp craft knife or box cutter
- Ruler or straightedge
Step-by-Step Ring Pop Costume Tutorial
This costume relies on accurate templates and careful assembly. I’ll describe the measurements I used; adapt them for your frame as needed.
1. Determine the octagon size. The octagon should be 1–2″ wider than your shoulders. For this build I used 16.75″.
2. Make templates from poster board following the folding method described below, then use those templates to cut your foam core pieces.
- Octagon template: Cut a square with sides equal to the measurement you decided (slightly wider than your shoulders). Fold the square in half both ways, then fold diagonally both ways. From the center along the diagonals, measure out half the square’s side length (for my square the half-length was 8.375″) and mark the points. Connect the marks to form an octagon and cut. Each flat side should be identical. Cut a rectangle near the top for the head opening.
- Top side pieces: Each top side piece should have a top edge matching the octagon’s flat side width (7″ in my build). The lower edge should be wider (I used 10″) and the total height 5″. Use those dimensions to sketch and cut the template.
- Bottom side pieces: These are similar to the top side pieces but taller. The top edge should match the lower width of the top side piece (10″), the bottom edge should be near the octagon side width or slightly smaller (6″), and the height in my build was 14″.
- Arm hole pieces: For the arm openings, shorten two of the bottom pieces. Make a template from the lower third of the bottom piece to create these shorter sections.
3. Using your templates, cut the following from foam core:
1 Octagon
8 Top side pieces
6 Bottom side pieces
2 Arm hole pieces
- Trace each template onto foam core. Use a ruler as a straightedge and cut carefully: slice through the top paper layer first, then re-cut to slice the foam and bottom layer. Cutting in two passes avoids jagged edges.
- Cut the ring pieces from cardboard: make a large circle 4–5″ wider than your octagon, then cut a center circle sized to slip over your shoulders or hips. Cut the remaining cardboard into a large “C” shape to form the ring base.
- Cover the front faces of the foam core pieces with clear red adhesive vinyl, wrapping the vinyl around the edges for a clean finish. Cover the cardboard circle and ring with turquoise vinyl or paint them turquoise if you prefer.
- Assemble the diamond: lay the octagon on the floor and use painter’s tape on the outside to position the top side pieces around it. Trim and adjust pieces until they fit neatly.
- Once taped externally, reinforce all interior seams with hot glue. Allow the glue to cool fully. For extra durability, cover the glue seams with painter’s tape on the inside, then remove the outside tape once the glue is set.
- Attach the bottom side pieces the same way.
- If you want a cleaner interior, cover the inner surfaces visible around arm holes and seams with solid red vinyl.
- Create a brace to secure the ring to the cardboard circle: cut a small rectangle from scrap foam core and score one side so it bends. Glue one half of the brace to the ring and the other half to the circle at the desired attachment point.
- Wearability: the costume works best as two pieces. First slip on the ring base, then the diamond. Have a helper tape the inside seams where pieces meet for added security and comfort.
If you make this costume, I want to see it — bonus points for creativity and accuracy. We’ve seen so many awesome reader versions of our past projects and the Ring Pop would be an amazing addition to that gallery.
p.s. You might also like our DIY Bubblegum Costume.
p.p.s. If you make a Studio DIY costume, share it on Instagram with #studiodiyincostume — every year we collect and share readers’ versions and I’d love to include yours.