How to Create the Perfect Captain Jack Sparrow Costume

Ahoy, me Hearties!

Happy Halloweeeeen!

I've always LOVED Halloween. As a kid, it was a regular debate of whether I liked it more than Christmas. (For the record, Christmas usually won.)

For my costume this year I wanted to do something really cool and creative. Something that will make people say WOW. Partly because a friend of mine throws a Halloween party every year with a costume contest, and also planning out and making my costume is really fun for me!

Then it hit me: one of the greatest pirates to ever sail the seven seas...

the iconic... the brilliant... the sometimes mad...
Captain Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean.

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It was definitely a first for me, dressing like a man, with facial hair, and attempting to a deep-voiced British pirate accent. (The accent is an almost impossible task because I have a super squeaky voice people often think I'm ten years old.)

I did a lot of research to figure out the best places to buy the elements of my costume and figured I'd share my tips. Most of these can be found on Amazon, so I created a list you can shop for the exact, or similar, items that I used here.

I'll start with the basics:

-Loose, White, Long Sleeved Shirt 
I found mine at Goodwill. Then brewed a bunch of tea bags in hot water, let it cool, and sprayed the shirt to make it look dirty. He is a pirate after all.
Pirate Blouse

-Blue Vest
This was actually a men's dress shirt from Goodwill that I cut the sleeves off of. If you want to do the same, rather then buying a vest, look for one without pockets on the chest. It doesn't need to be fancy.
Blue Vest

-Brown Pants
My last Goodwill find. These elements should be a bit baggy, he doesn't wear anything form-fitting.
Loose brown pants

-Boots
Technically Jack wears brown boots in most of the movies, but I already had black riding boots. They needed the big cuff on top, so I got black leather from a craft store, cut two wide strips, and folded them over the top of the boots. 
Pirate Boots

-Striped Fabric Sash
What I did is buy one yard of red and white striped fabric and cut it in half. I then folded one piece in half, wrapped it around my waist, then folded the other half and kind of tucked it into the one on my waist. I left the edges frayed and unfinished. It just adds to the look.
Striped Fabric

Now for the accessories:

-Belts
You want to have at least two, usually black or dark brown. One over the shoulder to hold the sword, and the other on top of the sash around the waist. (The exact one I have is linked below!)
Pirate Belt or Fancier Pirate Belt

-Sword and Pistol
(I feel like its pretty obvious, but both these items are made of plastic or rubber.)
The sword goes in the sheath when not in use, and he usually tucks the gun into his sash on his front right side.
Pistol, Sword

 -The Compass that "Doesn't Work"
In the films, Jacks compass doesn't point North, it points to the thing he wants most in the world. Kind of like this one I found on Amazon, only you can turn it to point wherever you want. 
Jack's Compass

-Rings
To be honest, I'm not sure if Jack wears a skull ring, but I wanted to include the Jolly Roger in it somewhere. I inherited all my other rings from my Great Aunt, but any big and clunky vintage rings should work.

-Wrap/Bracelet
To make this, I used scraps of black leather (that I had to make the boot cuffs), a piece of the striped sash, and plain black fabric. I fit the leather into a cuff, then used sandpaper and scissors to fray it up a bit. Then glued the strips of the other 2 fabrics to the inside of the cuff, and used some random rope to tie it on.

Additional things:

-Nails
My natural nails are too "perfect" looking to look like a pirate. So I used 6 different pink, grey, and brown nail polish colors to look old and dirty. I sponged on each color in different layers, focusing the darker colors along the edge cause that is where grime gets stuck. I wanted it to look gross and messy, and I think I succeeded.

-Medallion
The medallion was the main symbol of the first movie, so I had to wear it on my neck in tribute. It's actually a really good replica!
Aztec "Gold" Medallion

-Key to the Dead Man's Chest
Hanging from my belt on my right hip is a toy key I got from McDonald's in 2005. (Yes, it is that old.) I wanted to include elements of a few movies into my costume.

-Wooden Treasure Chest
I brought this out as one of my props for the photoshoot. It's just a regular wooden chest that I had varnished when I was a kid.
Wooden Chest

Now onto makeup and hair:

-Makeup

(All the makeup products I mention can be found here. Any additional costume items will be listed here.)

I applied Benefit Porefessional primer to my face using my fingers. I then grabbed my Beauty Blender and used the Tarte BB Cream and Maybelline Concealer where ever needed. To finish it off I dusted Tarte Airbrush Foundation all over. Then I used my NYX Contour Kit to define my cheekbones and add depth. 

After applying Urban Decay Primer Potion on my eyelids, I patted on black eyeshadow from the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette. To deepen the color around my lashline, I used Urban Decay eyeliner. (The eyes do not have to be perfect. The goal is to get a dark smudged look.)

For my brows, I used NYX Micro-Brow Brunette, and filled them in darker and thicker than usual. (It helps to look at photos of Jack's brows to get the shape right.)

In the later movies, he has scars on the right side of his face. So for the eyebrow, cheek, and jaw, I used a couple of Rimmel Lipliners then set it with brown eyeshadow.

-Hat, Bandana, Wig

So I was able to find a hat with a bandana and some hair attached. But it was only 10 dreads... I ended up buying a separate dreadlock wig that I cut apart. Then added those pieces in buying gluing them into the inside of the hat, (where the other hair was too.) The extra dreads were too long, so I cut them into different lengths, and saved those pieces for the DIY beard later on.
Jack Sparrow Hat, Deadlock Wig

I strung various beads, made small braids, and tied strips of fabric onto a few sections of hair. I painted some of the beads for added color and texture. Then made a "bone" out of zip ties and hot glue and attached it inside as well.
Wooden beads

-Beard, Goatee, Mustache

Since I am a woman and cannot grow facial hair, I had to get creative.

I bought the goatee, but it came with ugly brown beads so I painted them gold, red, and green just like Captain Jack Sparrows. (They tend to come with a sticker on the back, but it doesn't stay on. I highly recommend using spirit gum to attach it to your face.)
Jack's Goatee, Spirit Gum (Glue)

The beard, mustache, and patch under my lip is actually just hair from the wig that I cut. I sniped it into shorter pieces and glued them on with spirit gum in little bits at a time. It was tedious, and took a lot of patience, but came out way better than other beards and mustaches I tried.

For my last tips, I would just say to...

Act like Captain Jack Sparrow!
Watch the movies and look at how he walks, the way he pronounces words, etc. I walked around with my arms kind of floating and swaying to the side, leaning, and taking slower zig-zaggy steps. I also carried an almost empty bottle of rum to use as a prop. 

He also tends to make funny faces. Which is the star of many memes nowadays.

I know there are a TON of elements to this costume. But it's because I chose to DIY certain details. If you would like to shop for any of the items I mentioned, you can visit my Amazon Storefront. (I listed the exact items I used. But also added some extra similar things that could work for the costume. It is up to you how you want to put it together!)

I also want to say a big thanks to @AnaGarciaPhoto for capturing these images for me!

I had a BLAST turning into one of my favorite characters. And I will definitely do it again. I hope you have a safe and Happy Halloween!

xx

-Lala

P.S.- Here's a scan of an actual Polaroid from the Halloween Party! Even though I'm completely sober in this photo, I tried to do a "drunk" face since I'm holding a bottle of rum... but I think I just look angry or something... not sure. I still love how this came out though!