Elvis costumes celebrate an American rock and roll icon and give everyone a chance to be a star. Whether you're a fan of Early Elvis, or you know him best from his Vegas days, you'll find plenty of costumes to turn you into a Hunka Hunka Burnin' Love.
Elvis Through The Years
Those wearing Elvis costumes must first decide which era of Elvis they want to emulate.
The Early Years
This was Elvis in his hip-shaking, heart-breaking glory. Elvis often wore a casual suit with a button-up shirt underneath. Leave the collar of the shirt unbuttoned to show your carefree attitude.
A popular look from Elvis's early years is the outfit he wore in Jailhouse Rock. This modified prison uniform consisted of a shirt with large black-and-white stripes, black pants, and a black button-up jacket with a prisoner number on the front. The jacket and pants featured prominent white stitching, giving it a low-budget look. You can add white stitches to black fabric by drawing dashes with a white sewing pencil or chalk. Just be careful not to rub your hands across the lines.
You can also purchase an early years Elvis costume such as:
The Gold Lame Suit that Elvis wore on the cover of 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong, released in 1959. Found at Amazon and ShopElvis.com, the costume is made of gold lame cloth and consists of a jacket and separate pair of pants. It comes in sizes Small through Extra Large and retails for $60.
The '68 Comeback Special
After several years of dwindling popularity, Elvis returned to the public consciousness with a highly successful television special. This version of Elvis was all about black leather. Wear black leather pants and a black motorcycle jacket to become mid-career Elvis.
If you're truly interested in dressing like the King, consider getting a custom made Elvis Presley Leather Suit from Leather Cult. The suit is made to your measurements in the Elvis style and can be done in 50 colors. It retails for about $200.
Vegas Elvis
Bring on the flashy jump suits and gold jewelry. Dark sunglasses? Rhinestones? Fringe? Flared legs? A cape? When it comes to putting together a costume worthy of a Vegas performance, the tackier, the better. With a little ingenuity, you could piece together a jumpsuit by modifying the legs, neckline, and collar of a pair of coveralls and adding decorative elements. Unless you're adept at sewing, this is probably a costume you should purchase.
Consider options such as:
The Shake, Rattle & Roll costume found at CostumeSuperCenter.com and Amazon features a white jumpsuit with gold trim, and a stuffed chest and belly piece to help fill it out. The costume also includes the cape and microphone. It retails for about $50.
The Deluxe Adult Elvis Costume at CostumeCraze.com, which features the iconic white jumpsuit studded with rhinestones and featuring elaborate red and blue trim. It retails for about $70.
The Rhinestone Rock Star Costume at Amazon, which features a black jumpsuit studded with rhinestones, a black belt and a red cape. It retails for about $100.
The Kids Elvis Costume at HalloweenCostumes.com, which features the white jumpsuit with rhinestones, a red scarf and belt. It retails for about $30.
The Elvis Woman's Secret Wish Jumpsuit Costume in white at Amazon, which features a rhinestone-studded body suit with a turned up collar and scarf. It retails for about $65.
This Infant Rock Star Costume at CostumeCraze.com, which features a blue jumpsuit and cape with a gold belt for about $40.
The Hair
Early Elvis sported a slick pompadour with sideburns. To recreate the look, you'll need hair gel and a comb to shape your hair. In later years, he maintained the basic pompadour shape, but added volume; the sideburns also became more prominent. Try teasing your hair to reach the appropriate volume, and use large amounts of hair spray to hold it in place.
For those who don't have natural Elvis-worthy hair, consider this wig from Costumes4Less, which retails for about $13.
If a wig isn't what you're after, consider sunglasses with attached sideburns from Amazon to complete your look.
If you're looking for an unusual accessory, you can even try knitting your own Elvis wig, with the pattern found at The Shed.
Channel The King
With so many different Elvis costumes to choose from, you'll have no trouble finding the incarnation of the King that suits you best. Try on any of these Elvis costumes for size and help his legend live on.
