Let me start off by saying that building a space shuttle with cardboard is not easy! Some days I felt like this space shuttle was not going to happen, but I got so motivated once I started seeing the space shuttle take shape as I continued to work on it.
I’m not into scary costumes, so I chose something that has meaning behind it. My husband is from Huntsville and we met there while attending college. Since the U.S. Space and Rocket Center is located in Huntsville, I chose to do family costumes that made the connection’.
This was definitely a team effort. My co-worker allowed us to borrow their red wagon, my husband built the wooden frame for the wagon, and the exterior (cardboard placement, painting, design) was completed by me.
I love that the space shuttle doesn’t have to just be used for Halloween. It can be used for a parade, talent show, birthday, which is why I wanted to share with you how we built this space shuttle. Here are the items that you will need.
- 2 Seater Radio Flyer Deluxe Wagon
- Wood
- Screws
- Electric Drill
- Wood Glue
- Wood Saw
- Cardboard (various sizes)
- White Spray Paint (gloss)
- Black Duct Tape
- Self-Adhesive Sticker Letters
- Red, Yellow, and Orange Tissue Paper
- Small and Large Black Planters
- Hot Glue Gun
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Staple Gun
- Astronaut Suit*
*We found EJ’s astronaut suit on Amazon. We purchased the toddler size, which was too long, but we just rolled the pants legs to make it work.
We used this Pinterest Pin as a reference for the frame and exterior, but our shuttle differed slightly because the back of the wagon was made differently. Overall, it was built exactly like this reference. I jazzed up our space shuttle by adding the tissue paper flames in the back, which made it look even more cool. Again, always use Pinterest as a reference and then you can do other things to make it your own–just like we added Massey (our last name) to the left side of the wing.
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