The Ultimate Gru Costume- Get Despicably Crafty!

Celebrate Halloween by channeling your inner supervillain-turned-hero from the beloved Despicable Me franchise with a Gru costume.

My family decided to do just for our annual church trunk-or-treat since we adore the movies and fun-filled characters.

The movie has many fun characters to choose from, making it a great choice especially if you have a large group.

How do you create the perfect Gru costume from Despicable Me?

Honestly, it’s easy.

We put ours together for my son fairly quickly and on the cheap.

We used some clothing we already had and ordered a few extra things and our Gru costume came together.

Picking Halloween costumes can be tricky, especially if you’re going for a group theme with opinionated people. What’s great about this costume choice, is that there are options for kids and adults. This blog post will show you everything you need you need to know to get going.

So let’s do it!

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Here’s what you need for your DIY Gru costume

1. Black Suit:

   • A black blazer, suit jacket, or even a sweater

   • Black dress pants

2. Knit Striped Scarf:

   • A black and white knit striped scarf (approximately 5-6 feet long)

     I think this and the black sweater or jacket are the key pieces of any Gru costume

3. Bald Cap

   • A bald cap or a swim cap (if you have short hair)

   • Skin-colored face paint or makeup

4. Optional Gru costume Accessories:

   • Black gloves

   • Black Shoes

   • A toy or plastic minion figurine (for added flair)

   • Plastic light up moon

     – clever optional addition to any Gru costume

   • Print a large “G” logo (Gru’s logo) and attach it to your jacket (you can find templates online)

   • Gru’s Voice Changer:

     • Optional: A voice changer app or device to mimic Gru’s iconic voice

   • Supervillain Attitude:

     • Don’t forget Gru’s distinctive personality and expressions!

Gru actually once held the title of the world’s greatest villain so he is one of the most important costumes if you’re going for a Despicable Me theme.

Our 10-year-old son portrayed Gru perfectly, complete with a bald cap and black outfit.

I think we can all agree the best price is the low, low price of “free” when finding costume items. I always try to review and filter through what I already own and reuse costumes.

For Gru’s costume, we ordered a bald cap. We went through a few before finding one that fit him right. A few of them were too big for his head. He wore dark pants and a dark sweater that he already owned. I ordered a grey/black striped scarf for him.

Years ago, we gave our son a light-up moon to hang on his wall.

It came with a remote so you can click through the various stages of the moon and follow along with the lunar transitions happening outside. Along with his Halloween Gru costume, my son carried that moon around with him. Honestly, that was one of my favorite parts of his Gru costume. He looked like he had stolen the moon!

Steps to putting together your perfect Gru Costume

Step 1: The Bald Head

• If you have long hair, secure it under a swim cap or bald cap.

• Use skin-colored face paint or makeup to create a realistic bald look. Blend it well for a seamless finish.

Step 2: The Outfit

• Put on your black blazer or suit jacket and matching dress pants.

• Accessorize your Gru costume with black gloves and shoes.

Step 3: The Scarf

• Wrap the black and white striped scarf around your neck to mimic Gru’s signature look. Adjust the length as needed.

• Step 4: Gru’s Logo

  • Print the “G” logo and attach it to the left breast area of your jacket using double-sided tape or fabric glue.

  Step 5: The Minion Companion

  • Carry a toy or plastic minion figurine with you for extra authenticity and to add a little flair to your Gru costume.

  Step 6: The Voice

  • If you want to take your Gru costume to the next level, consider using a voice changer app or device to sound like Gru himself.

  Step 7: Gru’s Personality

  • Don’t forget to channel Gru’s unique expressions and mannerisms. That includes his trademark phrases for added fun.

Other characters to include in a group Halloween costume

One of the big questions is which other characters to include along with your Gru costume in your Despicable Me group theme. Here are some fun choices. With three movies and two spin-off prequels, there are plenty of characters to select.

Vector

Vector is an eccentric super-villain who loves quirky gadgets.

Vector is my favorite villain in Despicable Me so he was the inspiration for my Vector Halloween costume. However, Balthazar Bratt in Despicable Me 3 is a close second. He’s the former child star turned supervillain. I love all the catchy 80s music in the movie and think Bratt is hilarious, but I had to go with Vector.

I wanted to include the squid launcher referenced in the movie but I wasn’t looking to purchase more items I’m never going to use again.

I considered what I already owned and went to check our toys. We have quite a collection of Nerf guns in our home and I did filter through a few of them until I found one that I thought would work perfectly. I felt it completed my costume. I did buy a plastic squid that I attached to the front of my “squid blaster.”

I ordered my orange jumpsuit. I had some glasses and a short wig from another costume, so it was great to reuse what I already had.

I have freckles naturally, but I used brown eyeliner to add more to my upper cheeks. You just kind of have to play with it to get the results you want. Oh, I also added a small pillow to my lower belly to make it pudgy like Vector’s.

The Minions

Minion are lovable, mischievous yellow creatures known for their hilarious antics and devotion to serving supervillains.

Our 3-year-old was the perfect minion and looked precious in her Halloween costume. It does help that she’s adorable. These minion costumes are particularly cute for kids and usually include the classic minion glasses/goggles. Minions can be boys or girls so there are options here for either gender.

We just ordered her little dress online.

I also think this costume choice would be especially fun for a big group of kids to embrace or maybe even a set of twins. The more the merrier I think when it comes to minions!

Lucy Wilde

Lucy is a talented and witty Anti-Villain League agent who becomes Gru’s love interest.

If you want to be completely charming, now is your chance to embrace the affable Lucy Wilde. Our 7-year-old daughter wore her Lucy Wilde costume perfectly and has the personality to fit the character.

I ordered a blue sundress for her costume that she can wear again. I just love that turquoise color. I also got a red and white scarf and some turquoise I already had a wig from when I dressed as Wilma from The Flintstones many years ago so I didn’t have to purchase anything for that.

I thought making an AVL ID card for her would be cute, but I ran out of time. You could print out a small sign that has the letters on it fairly quickly, and that would be a fun costume addition. My daughter was the perfect Lucy Wilde and she totally nailed it.

Dr. Nefario

Dr. Nefario is the eccentric and inventive mad scientist who serves as Gru’s loyal and quirky assistant.

My husband is not a big fan of dressing up, but he’ll do it once a year for our family Halloween costume. He chose to dress as Dr. Nefario, which was relatively simple as it involved wearing a white lab coat, goggles, and some black gloves. The lab coat came in one size, but I think most white coats like that would work with a variety of body sizes.

This is one of the few Despicable Me costumes that could involve a mask. I’ve seen them online and they pretty much look like an old man. The only other mask I can think of would be if you wanted to add one over your eyes to an El Macho costume.

El Macho

El Macho is the larger-than-life former supervillain turned restaurateur with a wild and humorous personality.

Our 5-year-old son desperately wanted to dress up as the villain El Macho for his Halloween costume. I tried to talk him out of it because I didn’t think anyone would realize who he was dressed as, and it’s no fun having to explain your costume all evening. He insisted, and we were asked 100 times who he was dressed as, but so what? He was happy.

I ordered him a loose red blouse. It was a women’s blouse, and I’ve worn it since to work! We rolled up the sleeves for him and he sported some black pants he already had. I ordered him a thick, fake gold chain necklace. I also got a fake mustache, but he didn’t wear that long as it was itchy.

Margo, Agnes and Edith

“The girls” are Gru’s endearing and adventurous adopted daughters each with their unique personalities and charms.

The “girls” costumes are especially easy since it just involves ordering a few outfit pieces. These accessories are fairly simple to come by and would be fun for a group of kids young friends. Because it’s just a matter of collecting a few items of clothing, this is less like a costume and more about just grabbing coordinating pieces. These “costumes” are perfect for the girl who doesn’t love wearing a mask or dressing up in anything too extravagant.

I think the key pieces here are Margo’s green jacket and glasses, Edith’s pink hat, and Agnes’s jeans and jumper. Mastering Agnes’s high straight-up ponytail is a bonus.

Where to Find Despicable Me Costume Pieces

You can usually find all the pieces you need at a Halloween costume store. If you wait too long though, things sell out fast. I prefer to order my costumes online from places like Amazon. It’s mostly because I’m lazy and don’t want to drive anywhere, and I like being able to easily return costumes that don’t fit or work well. This is especially helpful with the kids because sometimes sizing can be wildly off.

You can always go to a site like Facebook marketplace where moms like to resell previously worn costumes. I’ve gotten some great deals at a fraction of the original price.

You can often pull pieces from the local thrift shop to put together your ideal costumes. I’ve gotten a steal or two just by checking a second-hand store.

Trunk or treat ideas for your Despicable Me Halloween theme

Our church trunk or treat got rained out, so instead of decorating our car trunks, we each had tables inside. There were a variety of Halloween costumes from a whole bunch of families but people especially got a kick out of ours. There were teenage mutant ninja turtle costumes that were cute as well as the characters from Toy Story in their classic costumes.

I didn’t want to spend a lot on decorations, so I collected a bunch of toilet paper rolls and spray-painted them yellow for the minions. The kids wanted to help so I let them glue the googly eyes on the toilet paper rollers to make the minions come to life. The key is incorporating the bright yellow color. They were going to be hanging all over our car but since the event got moved indoors, we just put them on our table.

I also made a large minion out of yellow and blue balloons. I covered a couple of floral rings I got at Michaels with aluminum foil for the minion glasses. Glued a paper to the rings with eyeballs I had colored and then strung it all together using some string.

I know at my church, many trunk-or-treaters enjoy playing games at each car. It takes a little longer for each stop but that may be a good thing since getting candy from like 15 cars can happen fast.

You could play “pin the eye on the minion” with a big poster board and some large googly eyes. I’ve also since minion ring toss. You paint a couple of soda liters to look like minions and people have to toss the ring at them to win.

You could also use those same soda liters and offer “minion bowling” as your game where kids have to knock down the minions with a ball.

Conclusion

Remember when it comes to putting together family costumes, planning ahead and buying early is key.

You want to make sure the size is right and that you’ve achieved the look you want. This allows you time to read the costume review and make sure you’ve got the right size and color. Also, the price can go up the closer you get to Halloween. If you want more tips on maximizing your mom life, and planning ahead be sure to read my other blog post on just that.

With these simple steps and a dash of creativity, you can assemble an impressive DIY Gru costume that will turn heads at any Halloween party or event. It’s a fun, easy, and memorable Halloween costume.

Remember to enjoy it and embrace your inner supervillain turned hero as you step into the shoes (or rather, suit) of Gru from Despicable Me. Enjoy your Halloween and embrace the mischievous spirit of the season!

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Erica Fox

Hi I’m Erica! TV news anchor and mom to 4 littles. I’m obsessed with creating those “wow” moments in life through crafting at home, cool travel adventures and special celebrations with loved ones. Thanks for joining me on this adventure!