As Halloween creeps closer, the interns at U-Haul International participated in the annual Boo-Haul Halloween Costume Contest. Given the task to create a costume using U-Haul moving supplies, interns designed amazing costumes, ranging everywhere from the incredible Box-a-saurus Rex to The Wicked Witch of the East. I think it’s safe to say that the U-Haul interns proved that Halloween doesn’t need to be cliche or expensive so long as you have a little bit of cardboard and a lot of creativity.
Costume Contest Winner: Box-a-saurus Rex
Before the contest even began, interns and judges alike all knew who the winner was going to be. So when it was announced that Preson Wagner, Tech Center intern was going to take home the $50 Visa Gift Card, it was universally agreed to be well deserved.
“I put in a lot of effort and had a ton of inspiration an
d helpful hands along the way. Everyone wanted to see me and the Repair and Research group take home the trophy for the 2nd year in a row,” says Wagner. The Box-a-saurus Rex was special for many reasons. Not only was this costume the most initially visually exciting, but it was a very creative was of incorporating a range of items, all available at a U-Haul Center.
“I was proud of my costume and felt I was able to be as creative as possible, to not only bring a scary Halloween atmosphere through a monster, but also relate it back to U-Haul through the materials and the fun competitors getting gobbled up by the U-Haul Box-a-saurus Rex.”
Because Wagner contributes his win to the hands on skills he has obtained at the Tech Center as well as the help from his co-workers, he thinks of the Box-a-saurus Rex as a team efford and has decided to share his prize. “The winnings will most likely be used for a office gathering such as doughnuts and coffee one morning, or a lunch for me and anyone who had a hand in helping me retrieve my materials, tape me up, and saran wrap me as I spun in circles,” Wagner explains. Congratulations again to Wagner and the rest of his team for taking home 1st place for the 2nd year in a row and showing us how incredible a costume made of moving supplies can be!
How to Make a Box-a-saurus Rex Costume
- Start by taking a wardrobe box and cutting the box flaps off
using a utility knife. (Be sure to save these flaps for later!) - Draw a circle large enough for your arms to fit through on the smaller sides of the box, then cut them out.
- Poke a hole in the four sides of the box so that they
are opposite of each other and in convenient places so that when the rope goes through them it will go across your shoulders and be comfortable to wear. Once the holes are created, use the tie down rope to make straps by tying the rope through the holes. - Take a legal tote box and do not fold into the box shape! Keeping it unfolded, add the long side down the back of the wardrobe box and attach it using packaging tape on the inside and outside of the box so that it is attached sturdily. This will be the head.
- Make your dinosaur green by covering the body completely in mover’s stretch plastic wrap.
Overlap the wrap so that it looks even greener until it reaches the shade you like the most. - Take the extra flaps from the wardrobe box and cut out a spiky tail shape, large triangles for spikes
and small triangles for teeth. Cover the tail and spikes with enviro-
bubble and glue it onto both sides of the cardboard. Use box markers to color teeth black. - Add the tail, spikes, and teeth using packaging tape.
- Add other characteristics to bring your dinosaur to life! Our dinosaur has red marker lights as eyes and a stripe on his back made out of tape.
Runners Up: Popcorn and Pizza
Picking the two runners up had to have been a difficult decision for the judges since there were so many creative costumers this year. Congratulations to the Boo-Haul runners up, Cydney Henderson and Evan Nichols, both members of the Digital Marking and Customer Experience team and both food items.
Henderson turned herself into a Box of Popcorn this year, using cardboard and painted packing tape for the primary structure of her costume and pained packing peanuts as her overflow of popcorn that almost looked edible.”For Boo-Haul Halloween, I got my inspiration and idea from Pinterest. I wanted to use a box because it is our moving staple but I wanted to incorporate another component. When I saw the popcorn idea, I knew packing peanuts could replicate the popcorn look so I decided to go with the idea,” Henderson explains.
Nichols embraced his digital marketing position in his choice as an enormous Pizza Emoji. Literally a costume so big that he couldn’t see over the top of it, Nichols’ costume was a show stopper. “I began researching the historic and social importance of the emoji after being introduced to the nuances of digital communication during my time in the U-Haul Digital Marketing Department,” says Nichols. “In order to represent my department, I decided to bring a piece of digital communication to life.” Up close the intricate layer of his spray paint showed just how much care and effort he put into the costume.
Have you ever made a DIY Halloween costume of our moving supplies? Share your stories in the comments below!
