DIY Jedi and Padowan Halloween Costumes

Tuesday I shared how I made our lightsabers, Wednesday I shared our Star Wars Family at the race, and yesterday I shared River and Mr M's Yoda and Luke Skywalker costumes. Today I'm sharing my Jedi Knight and Sunshine's Padowan costumes.

I made all the parts of Sunshine's costume except her boots :) A lot of the materials were items I had on hand or found at the thrift store, which kept the costs down. So, starting at the top left and working counter-clockwise, here's what makes up her costume:

1. tan tunic

I made the tunic out of part of a drop cloth (same one I used for River's Yoda robe). Before I did that, though, I made a mock-up out of muslin from my stash. This allowed me to alter things and decide where I wanted the seams and such- you can see in the pic below the dark stitching of some of the original seams before I changed things up.

After the making the mock-up I cut a lining out of more muslin and a corresponding piece out of a drop cloth. The drop cloth tunic is fully lined with the muslin. I sewed some twill tape from my stash to the corners of the tunic flaps and made a buttonhole under one armpit for one of the tapes to go through. The tapes then wrap completely around Sunshine's body and before being tied and holding the tunic in place. I'm happy with how the tunic turned out, except it's shorter than I planned. I'm not sure why, since I tried it on her as I went, but perhaps she had a long t-shirt on and I miscalculated where her waist is?

2. utility pouch

I bought about a yard of leather-look pleather to make the fake boot shoe covers that Sunshine and I wore during the race on Saturday, but there was some left over, so I decided to use it to make utility pouches for our belts. The pleather is quite thin, so I sewed one layer of the canvas duck I used for Mr M's gaiters to the pleather after I cut out matching pieces. If you look closely at the diagram I drew, you can {maybe} see how I figured out the measurements to use. I made the small pouch for Sunshine and the large pouch for me. Once the edges were basted together, I sewed lines at each "fold" and then sewed the belt loops to the back panel. I then sewed the flap hem and sewed the velcro pieces to the flap and front panel. The final steps were to sew the side seams and hem the sides of the flap. 

3. sash

This was just a simple belt-shaped rectangle a few inches wide cut to fit Sunshine's waist. I cut two pieces: one of drop cloth and a lining of muslin. I sewed three sides together, then turned it right side out and sewed velcro to the ends.

4. brown shirt

I sewed a simple long sleeve shirt of the same brown knit I used for River's onesie. I gave the neckline a bit of a mock-turtleneck look. Since knit doesn't fray, I didn't bother hemming the bottom edge or sleeves. I actually intended for the bottom edge of the shirt to not show, but since the tunic ended up on the short side, it shows.

5. brown pants

I bought a pair of plus-size brown pants (more fabric in them) at Goodwill and used one of the legs to make a pair of pants for Sunshine. They ended up quite snug, so I should have used both legs, but Sunshine wants me to use the other leg to make her a skirt :) The pants have a simple elastic waistband to keep them up.

6. brown boots

The boots are ones Sunshine's been wearing for the last year.

7. lightsaber loop

I sewed a rectangle of pleather to wrap around the belt. It stays in place with velcro and keeps the tail of the belt in place. I also doubled up a small strip of pleather and sewed a d-ring to it before sewing the ends of the strip to the rectangle.

8. belt

I took a trip to Goodwill and searched through the belts for ones with interesting buckles. I had to cut this one down to fit Sunshine better, and I punched a new hole for the tongue. The lightsaber loop keeps the extra belt length from hanging loose.

9. lightsaber

Go here for the details on how I made the lightsabers.

Overall, I'm pleased with how Sunshine's costume came together. I do wish the tunic was longer, but there's nothing I can do to easily fix it, so I'm leaving it as-is and not worrying about it. I think it still looks good, and Sunshine loves it.

Sunshine had fun posing for these last pictures- she picked the poses :)

I really like this picture, but I'm bummed that Sunshine's face is blurry. Isn't she so cute?

She insisted on doing this "Ahsoka" pose. Apparently Ahsoka does this in the Clone Wars cartoon series?

While I was able to use materials I had or repurpose other materials for Sunshine's costume, that wasn't quite the case for mine, unfortunately. Because of the multiple layers in my costume I opted to buy a linen blend fabric which is thinner than the drop cloth fabric I used for Sunshine's and River's costumes. And I didn't have enough muslin for the lining, so I purchased a flat sheet to use as the lining material. The linen blend fabric and the sheet drove up the cost of my costume. This one was a bit more involved and had less room for error, so I used an actual pattern: Simplicity 5840 (it's out of print, but found on ebay) for the shirt, tunic, and shoulder armor. There's another pattern (Simplicity 4450) that's supposed to be a bit more accurate, but it's also out of print and super hard to find. I've seen it listed on ebay for $100! Too rich for our budget...

1. brown shirt

The brown shirt is based on the dickie pattern included in the pattern. I made the dickie out of a double layer of brown crinkly fabric (crepe, maybe? I can't remember the name right off, but it's thin and crinkly), then sewed it to an old white t-shirt. I did this so it would stay in place better while running, and it used less fabric that had to be purchased. I also sewed some sleeves (basically just tubes) and sewed them to the existing sleeves of the t-shirt. The pattern didn't call for sleeves, but why would you have a shirt underneath without the sleeves to go with it?

2. shoulder armor

I used the same linen blend fabric for the shoulder armor that I used on the tunic. I lined the upper part with pieces cut from the flat sheet. I lined the pieces below the belt with the linen blend because I thought they might flip up as I walked and I like the look of the linen blend better. Honestly, I don't think that was necessary, they don't move that much as far as I can tell. I mostly followed the pattern on the shoulder armor, but I added the pieces that extend below the belt, since that seems to be more of an authentic Jedi knight look. Not all have it, but it's more common to have it than not. If/when I make another version of this costume, I think I'll make them a bit thinner at the shoulders. I just don't have the height to carry off a wider look. I feel like I look like I'm wearing football pads.

One thing I didn't do but should have, was to attach the shoulder armor to the shoulders of the tunic. The first couple steps of the 5k showed me that was a mistake and I hurriedly undid the bottom pins from my race number and used them to pin the armor to the tunic at the shoulders. That kept the armor from sliding down to my elbows and bugging the crap out of me. 

3. lightsaber loop

I followed the same steps as for Sunshine's lightsaber loop. Mine also keeps the belts lined up properly.

4. belt

I layered a thinner Goodwill belt with an interesting buckle over a thicker Goodwill belt to achieve the layered look the Jedis wear. I thought about hot gluing the thinner belt to the thicker belt, but it would have made it difficult to adjust everything, so I didn't. I just relied on the lightsaber loop and the utility pouch to keep everything lined up. They shifted a bit while I was running, but weren't a problem when I was just walking around.

5. lightsaber

Go here for the details on how I made the lightsabers. I was surprised that it didn't bounce around while hanging from my belt. Or at least not that I noticed, and I would have noticed. 

6. brown pants

I made my pants out of another thrifted plus-size pair of pants. There was enough fabric that I could cut out the zipper and make a new center seam. I also narrowed the legs and inserted an elastic waistband that was at a proper height for my waist (i.e., no saggy crotch or barely covering my bum). It's so hard to find pants that fit just right, but this pair is actually quite comfortable now :)

7. brown boots

I wore some Keen boots I've had for a couple years.

8. utility pouch

I followed the same steps as for Sunshine's utility pouch, but made mine a little bigger. It ended up being just the right size for my cellphone. Though I didn't run the race with it in the pouch because I was afraid of it bouncing around too much. I hate things bouncing around when I run.

9. sash

I made the sash out of a rectangle of drop cloth and a corresponding piece of sheet, sewn on three sides and then turned right side out. I inserted a piece of stiff Pellon to help it keep it's shape (I didn't want it getting lots of creases and not laying flat) and sewed velcro on the ends.

10. tunic

Like I mentioned earlier, I did use a pattern for the tunic, and it actually went pretty well, which is not always my experience when sewing with patterns (most patterns- and clothes in general- are not made for short stocky people with a very short torso). I cut each piece from the linen blend and the sheet and sewed everything together so it would be fully lined.

I'm quite pleased with how my costume turned out. I can see myself wearing this costume in future years, making adjustments and adding details. I want to make my own belt (rather than jury-rig some thrifted belts), make food capsules and a communicator to attach to the belt (I've found some tutorials to use), make a metal lightsaber, make 1 or 2 utility pouches out of real leather, make the shoulder armor narrower, and make a cloak. So I've got enough things to do to keep changing things up for a year or two.

I tried a couple poses, but it didn't come as naturally to me as it did to Sunshine. Here it looks like I'm not sure what I'm holding. I was feeling very self-conscious :)

Slightly better, but I should probably not be smiling if I'm about to get in a fight...

How about a couple more pictures of Sunshine? She's much more photogenic :)

This picture cracks me up. She's got such a deceptive expression going on. I managed to catch her looking uncertainly at her lightsaber like she's not sure if she likes it or something. In reality,  she loves it and thinks it's the coolest thing ever.

Though she manages to look slightly bored in this one. Maybe this says something about my photography skills, or definite lack thereof. Though I am making progress with figuring out how to use our fancy-pants camera. Probably she was just ready for me to be done taking pictures.

Materials purchased for the costumes:

Padowan

• pleather- I purchased 1 yard for $8, I think, but used just a small piece for the utility pouch and lightsaber belt. We'll say $1 worth.
• brown knit- I purchased 1 yard and used half for River's onesie, so about $4 for Sunshine's half.
• brown pants- $3 from the thrift store
• belt- $1 from the thrift store
• D-ring- $1 from JoAnn's
• lightsaber- about $8 (though actually less, since I averaged the costs across all three lightsabers and Sunshine's used cheaper parts)   

total: about $18

Jedi Knight

• linen blend fabric- 3 yards, on sale, about $21
• sheet- full size flat sheet, about $10
• pleather- I purchased 1 yard for $8, I think, but used just a small piece for the utility pouch and lightsaber belt. We'll say $1 worth.
• brown crepe (I think that's what it's called)- 1 yard, about $6
• brown pants- $3 from the thrift store
• belt- 3 for $3 from the thrift store
• D-ring- $1 from JoAnn's
• lightsaber - about $8

total: about $53

So our costumes (mine specifically) weren't as cheap as Mr M and River's, but I still did a good job of keeping the costs down as much as possible. I think $73 for four hand-made costumes is a good deal. And I will admit, I do like the comments we get when people see the detail and realize I made them. A little ego-stroking is nice once in awhile, though I won't let it go to my head :)

DIY Luke Skywalker and Yoda Halloween Costumes

so our yard doesn't look much like Dagoba.....

As I mentioned yesterday, we dressed up as Star Wars characters this year. Today I'm posting Mr M and River's costumes, tomorrow I'll do Sunshine and my costumes.

I'll start with Mr M's Luke Skywalker costume, because it was super easy (and cheap!) to pull together. The hardest part was the boot gaiters, which you could easily skip if you're not as OCD as me. So, starting at the top and working counter-clockwise, here's the components of our DIY Luke Skywalker costume:

1. gray or tan t-shirt (in this case, a free shirt Mr M got for donating blood)
2. lightsaber
3. boot gaiters
4. tan boots or shoes (Mr M wore his combat boots- these could easily be worn alone if you don't want to make the gaiters)
5. tan cargo pants (511 pants that Mr M had in the closet)
6. Yoda in a baby carrier (more on that in a bit)

See? Pretty easy. The lightsaber, gaiters and Yoda are the only parts I made. I consulted some Star Wars costuming sites to find pictures of Luke's Dagobah outfit and Yoda's outfit, and then designed things from there. It was a bit of trial and error, with some checking for fit as I went.

we used our Boba carrier, but any carrier that allows you to strap your kiddo to your back will work

The gaiters are made of a double layer of canvas duck that is basically in the shape of a column. There's a zipper (partial length because that's what I had on hand) in the back to help get them on and off, and a strap that goes under the instep of the boot to make sure the gaiter doesn't slide up or shift too much. Three velcro straps wrap around for a custom fit and to make them more like Luke's boots. I used some twill tape I had to bind the edges and give it shape.

I rubbed a little dirt into the canvas, but we have red dirt, so it didn't make things as grubby as I was hoping. Just red dirt-y. Oh well.

We had a cute one-year-old on hand to stand in for Yoda, and I imagine this would work even with a two-year-old. If you don't have a handy child to use or borrow, I've seen some costumes that used a stuffed Yoda doll in a knapsack or a Yoda backpack.

there's writing on the front of the shirt Mr M wore, so we turned it around so River would cover it

Mr M's pants had a handy loop on them already, so we used that to clip his lightsaber to. (click on the link for how I made our lightsabers)

And now it's Yoda's turn! Isn't he just the cutest Yoda ever?  :)

River's Yoda costume was fairly easy, though there were a few parts that were more difficult. Those are mostly optional, though. We had most of the materials on hand, so his costume was also pretty inexpensive. Unlike Mr M's costume, I did make all the parts of this costume.

Again, starting at the top left and working counter-clockwise, here's the components of River's Yoda costume:

1. brown onesie 

I traced one of his footie pjs to make a very basic pattern (i.e., front and back with a velcro close in the back) and then made it out of brown knit fabric. I wanted a one-piece for extra warmth, but a store-bought onesie or t-shirt and pants would work also.

2. Yoda hands 

Optional. I drew a three-fingered hand, sewed it from the same fabric as the hat and booties, and lightly stuffed it. I then sewed them into the seam of the robe sleeve. I had originally intended them to be mitten covers, then realized River wouldn't keep them on. Sewing them to the sleeves means they won't get lost- definitely a win with small kiddos.

3. Yoda feet booties 

Optional. I drew a three-toed foot, sewed it from the same fabric as the hat and hands, and lightly stuffed it. I also sewed a bootie shape out of the same fabric and hand sewed the feet on top. Some elastic in the top of the bootie shape keeps the booties on.

4. tan robe 

I sewed this out of a drop cloth I had sitting around. I just made up the pattern as I went- robes are fairly easy to wing. Before I sewed the placket on I attached the hood, lined with a piece of an old sheet. I used River's measurements to approximate the sleeve length and robe length. They didn't need to be exact so I didn't sweat it too much. I also sewed small strips of drop cloth on the inside and outside of the side seams and robe flaps. The inside robe flap is tied to the inside side seam and the outside robe flap is tied to the outside side seam, keeping everything neatly in place.

5. Yoda ears hat 

You can buy Yoda ear hats online, usually crocheted ones, but I went the cheap way and used what I had. I made this out of some green fabric from a duvet cover I found at the DownEast Outfitters Outlet store a couple years ago. It was super cheap and I intended to use it for bedskirts in Sunshine's room, but never got around to it. This was the trickiest part and I will admit I had to remake it a couple times because it kept ending up too small for River, despite checking his head size and using one of his hats for the original pattern. To try to make it look like Yoda's head, I sewed some forehead ridges on a double layer of fabric, making sure each "ridge" was open on the side or bottom. I then lightly stuffed the ridges before sewing the front to the back. As I sewed the front and back together, I also sewed in the ears. I had made the ears by drawing a Yoda ear shape and sewing it inside out. When I turned it right side out, I checked to see if I liked the shape (I think I made a couple alterations before I got it mostly how I wanted), then tacked the folds in place so they would be in their proper place when I sewed them into the rest of the hat. I should have put some Pellon or stuffing in them to give them a bit more shape since they tend to flop backwards. I also hand tacked a bit of fleece inside for warmth and comfort (covering all the threads and such) and attached some twill tape to tie under River's chin to keep the hat on.

And a couple more shots of the cuteness:

Materials purchased for the costumes:

Luke Skywalker

• canvas duck for gaiters- half a yard, I think? about $4 maybe? I don't remember for sure
• velcro for gaiters- about $3, I think
• lightsaber- about $8

total: about $15

Yoda

• brown knit fabric- I bought 1 yard for this and Sunshine's costume, and I think it was about $8 or $9 for the yard. So about $4 for what I used for the Yoda costume
• stuffing- $3 for the package, but 99% of that is leftover (I was a bit overzealous in my decluttering and got rid of all my stuffing. oops!)

total: about $4.50

Two costumes for less than $20! And I used materials in my {depleted} stash. Even better! They're not perfect (especially River's costume), but I've managed to squash my OCD, and it's ok. I'm actually really happy with how they turned out. It's so nice to see my vision come to life. And the real-life version is close to my mental picture :)

Halloween 5k Recap

Saturday we participated in the Halloween 5k that we've done the last few years (2013, 2012, 2011).

Last year I won best costume with my tree and owl baby carrier costume, and I wanted to defend my title. But how do you do better than a cute newborn baby?

last year's winning costume

You get the whole family involved!

Mr M went as Luke Skywalker carrying Yoda (River) on his back through the swamps of Dagoba; I dressed as a Jedi knight with Sunshine as my Padowan.

This is actually an idea I wanted to do last year, until reality set in. Halloween was just a few weeks after River was due, making a costume to fit post-pregnancy while still pregnant wasn't going to be an easy task, and the biggest problem: Mr M had to be out of town and couldn't do his part. After realizing all that, I decided to do it this year instead. I'd have time (and energy) to sew all the costumes, River would be big enough to ride on Mr M's back, and Mr M would (most likely) be in town.

good picture of Mr M, but River doesn't look too happy

not so good picture of Mr M, but super cute picture of River

We did indeed win the best costume award for the "Star Wars Family", and we received a Soda Stream. (I won a bluetooth speaker last year) Nothing like winning a prize to justify my OCD :)  Not sure how I'll top these costumes next year, though.

On to the run itself: the temperature was in the 40s, which turned out to be nice since I was sweating with all my layers. The kiddos stayed pretty warm, and even Mr M wasn't too cold since River was strapped to his back.

the course was out-and-back, so Mr M was able to take a pic of me running past him and the kiddos

When I made the costumes, I kept in mind that we would be running in them as well as trick-or-treating. In the end, the only thing that was different was the boots. I made fake boots/gaiters out of pleather to wear over our running shoes, but we'll wear actual boots for trick-or-treating.

Aside from being a bit warm, my costume worked pretty well while running, though there was a couple issues. The boot gaiters put a bit too much compression on my calves and made them pretty tight, especially on the hills. I knew that was a possibility (I've worn compression socks  in the past and they affected me the same way), but I hoped it wouldn't be an issue. It was manageable though. The biggest problem was the belt- it was constricting enough to keep me from breathing as freely as I'd like, but as the race went on I was able to compensate and it became less of an issue. I'm just used to loose, stretchy running outfits that don't impair my ability to breathe.

Sunshine walked most of the race, but did run parts of it

Despite the costume issues, which were actually fairly minor and didn't give me too many problems once I got warmed up, I was able to finish in 35:26. This is my second fastest 5k of the year, so I'm pretty pleased. There are a good number of hills on this course, like most races in this area, but I ran as much of the uphills as I could. I even managed to have a good sprint into the finish line and finished stronger than I have in awhile.

Mr M's brother has been visiting for the past week or so, and he ran the race with us. 

well, ahead of us :)

I've been super busy since the trail run two weeks ago, and this was the first time I've been able to run since then. Not optimal, but I felt pretty good. Undertraining seems to work for me, especially when I'm dealing with physical issues. My feet have been bothering me since the 15k trail run in August and really gave me some trouble during the half marathon. It's actually been a minor issue for a while, but didn't come to a head till these longer races. I've been to a podiatrist and we've added some padding to my orthotics to relieve the pressure on the base of my toes, and that's helped a lot. He also thinks I shouldn't be trying to land on my forefoot since that increases the wear and tear and pressure on the base of my toes. Since trying to land on my forefoot was something the PT told me to do, it's hard to know which way to go. However, since my feet have been bothering me for awhile, I am kind of inclined to think I need to listen to the podiatrist on this one.

The Star Wars Family

I'll be posting costume details on Thursday and Friday. Did you catch my lightsaber post yesterday?
Luke and Yoda (baby carrier costume)
Jedi and Padowan
More pictures

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Halloween 5k:                        35:26         ran in costume
October 5k Trail:                  38:05         second trail run

September half:                    2:51:01      first half marathon since getting pregnant

August 8.5 miles:                  2:06:58      first trail run
August 2 mile:                     ~40 min?    Mud Run with Sunshine
2nd July 5k:                         35:27
4th of July 5k:                      34:15
June 5k:                                38:11          Ran with jogger
May 5k:                                39:23          Ran with jogger
April 5k:                               37:40          Color Run
March 5k:                            37:33  
February 4.5 miles:            1:49:55        Mud Run
January:                              ---

Cheap and Easy DIY Lightsabers

This year we are all dressing up as Star Wars characters (more posts to come!), and we had the chance to wear them this past Saturday at the annual Halloween 5k (post on that tomorrow). In the meantime, I thought I'd share how I made our lightsabers quickly and inexpensively.

I originally found the idea here when I was researching ideas for our costumes. I really wanted to do metal ones similar to this, but just didn't have the time or money to mess around with it. The PVC lightsabers are much quicker and cheaper. The tutorial included a PVC pipe "blade", but I skipped that since I knew we'd need them hanging from our belts during the race.

I started by going to Lowe's, where I stood in the plumbing aisle, fitting random PVC connectors together into lightsaber shapes. Sunshine's is shorter than Mr M's and mine, and made up of very common connectors. Mr M's and my lightsabers are longer and include a different piece that was too wide for Sunshine's hands, but just right for ours. I added an extra connector to his, so Mr M's is slightly longer than mine.

I ended up putting off finishing the lightsabers until the night before we needed them. This was not good planning on my part and meant that I didn't take good pictures. Luckily, it's a pretty easy process, so hopefully the lack of photos won't be a problem.

I started spray painting the lightsabers and realized I hadn't taken any pictures, so I grabbed my camera on took a couple rather crappy pictures. It was dark, so this is as good as it gets. You can see the details fairly well though. 

I actually sprayed the lightsabers with plastic spray paint first (it's clear), then did the coat of gray primer. If we'd had regular gray paint, I would have used that, but I didn't, so I used what we had.

Above is Sunshine's shorter lightsaber- I've drilled a hole in the end and attached a clip that I found at JoAnn's in the purse-making section. We weren't able to tighten the connector pieces together all the way, so I filled in the gaps with rope and string. The black lines on the left end are clothesline covered with electrical tape. I then wound some baker's twine around most of the rest of the length to make the grip. If you compare it to the half-painted picture, you can see I was able to cover three gaps with the string. 

Once I had the string how I wanted it, I carefully wrapped the grip with more electrical tape. I finished it off by painting the exposed gray plastic parts with a coat of silver metallic craft paint that I found in the craft paint section of JoAnn's. I should have painted before I added the rope and string, but I didn't have time to let the paint dry and then add the rope and string.

Looking into the "business end" of the lightsaber. The connectors are all hollow, which left space for the blade of the lightsaber to be inserted.

The handle end. I drilled two holes fairly close together and inserted the loop of the clip into the holes. Since I had to cut the loop, I put a piece of electrical tape over the cut to keep it from moving and/or falling out of a hole.

I did the same thing with Mr M's and my lightsabers, with only a few differences. I ended up attaching the clips with wire because the swivel parts objected to being cut and twisted to fit through the holes in the pipe. I should have purchased the more expensive clips I found in the sewing notions aisle. Lesson learned. 

hollow lightsaber handle

wire attaching the clip to the handle

my lightsaber is closest to Sunshine, Mr M's is the longer one

I also only used rope on our lightsabers. Since they're bigger, the larger scale of the rope worked better than the much smaller scale of the string.

closer view

If I'd had time, I planned on sanding/buffing out the writing molded into the PVC. I didn't have time, and I decided to do it after the race, but in the end I decided it didn't actually matter that much. Yay for conquering my OCD! Ok, I'm really just too tired to deal with it right now...

While the paint was drying, I dug through my supplies and found some sticky back foam (one sheet of green was all I had) and cut some circles out to use as power buttons. The foam wasn't very thick so I stacked three circles on top of each other. I then trimmed the circles into a hexagon shape to even out the edges. Then I stuck them on the end of the lightsabers. In retrospect, I think they should have been put on the end where the blade would come out rather than the end with the clip. It would be more convenient to use if it was closer to the blade.

Mr M's pants already had a loop on them and I made loops for Sunshine's and my belts so we could clip them on, ready for use at a moments notice.

Bonus: I was afraid the lightsaber would bounce against my leg during the race and be super annoying, but that wasn't the case. The only time I noticed it was when I was walking and my arms were hanging down and bumping into it.

Time commitment: A couple hours since I was doing three of them. Waiting for spray paint to dry in between coats and winding the string took the longest. Not much actual time working on it if you discount waiting for the paint to dry.

The finishing touch: We didn't do this for the race since it was held in the morning, but I found some straight thick glow wands at the dollar store to act as the blades of our lightsabers. The wands were narrower than the holes in the center of the pipes, but a little electrical tape fixed that. Perfect for some trick-or-treating in a couple days!

I just discarded the star thingy...

a couple layers of tape gave the glow stick a snug fit

the blade is shorter than a "real" lightsaber blade, but hey, it glows!

Costs:
$12 for the pieces for all three lightsabers (though Sunshine's parts were cheaper than the parts for the other two because of the different pieces used)
$6 for 4 swivel clips (they come in packages of 2)
$3 for craft paint (lots left over for other projects)
$3 for 3 glow wands
we had the clothesline, string, electrical tape, and paints on hand already
total: $24 for three, or about $8 a piece

Update:

I did allow my OCD to take over on one thing. As I spent time editing pictures and working on blog posts, I realized the lightsabers just didn't look right. The thicker, bigger ends really needed to be the ends the blades came out of, not the clip ends. And it's much more intuitive to have the power buttons  at the top of the handle, rather than at the bottom.

So I pulled out my drill and drilled some new holes in the other ends and moved the clips. Since there were holes in the blade ends, I added a few more around the ends as "vents". So it looks like the holes are on purpose :) I think it looks a lot better now. OCD appeased.

And here they are in action: