How to make a Dr. Horrible Costume

Dr. Horrible

We’ve been blogging quite a bit about Dr. Horrible, the supervillain musical that’s taken the Internet by storm.

Today, we’ll take a closer look at making a Dr. Horrible costume.

Lab Coat

Dr. Horrible Dr. Horrible wears a white lab coat. You can find a basic lab coat at any costume shop, but if you want to be picky you’ll need a coat that buttons on the side, not down in front. Look for the “Howie” style coat.

Here are some places that sell this type of lab coat:

EDIT 9/28/09: Irongate Gallery is selling a custom lab coat that is perfect for around $100. Includes the caduceus sewn in. They also have gloves and silver goggles. CLICK HERE

Edit 11/05/08: Shadow Dale Creations now also offers an authentic Dr. Horrible lab coat for $200. Available in white or red. CLICK HERE

A couple other places to try:
http://www.dmdevice.com/A001.html
http://www.jamstore.co.uk

Edit 9/28/10:
dr-horrible-lab-coat-96bellyacres

Helpful commenter Shelley pointed out this seller on Ebay. 96bellyacres is selling custom Dr. Horrible lab coats for approx. $80.00.

Ships from the USA.



Dr. Horrible

Logo on Pocket

The Dr. Horrible logo is a caduceus, which is a winged herald’s staff entwined by two serpents in the form of a double helix.

The serpents are green and the staff is red.



Goggles

Dr. Horrible GogglesUPDATE (10-21-09) – Be sure to check out our latest post that shows the goggles in high detail.
The evil doctor wears a pair of silver welding goggles. The best pair I’ve seen is available from Irongate Gallery.

Similar goggles may be available at the following stores, but you might want to paint them silver:

http://www.discountsafetygear.com
http://www.mortonsafety.com
http://www.toolking.com



White Gloves

Dr. Horrible CostumeDr. Horrible wears a pair of white work gloves. Some people have found that fencing gloves work, too. You can try these stores:

http://store.weldersource.com
http://shop.fencing.net/



White Boots

Dr. Horrible CostumeComplete your outfit with a pair of white boots, and you’re all set. They can be found at the following stores:

http://www.mortonsafety.com
http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com

 

This recent Comic-Con attendee came pretty close:

Dr. Horrible Costume

 

I hope we see a bunch of Dr. Horrible costumes this Halloween. Be sure to practice your evil laugh!

If you haven’t seen Dr. Horrible yet, head on over to drhorrible.com or purchase the show directly from iTunes.





This entry was posted in cosplay, how-to, ideas, movies, music, superheroes, tv, video. Bookmark the permalink.
  • FunkyLady

    Okay, I think I want one of these!

  • Moist

    But what are the tips for the good Doctor’s FINAL costume?

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Hi Moist. I was torn between mentioning it and giving away spoilers. What should I do?

  • Dr. Horrible

    Last costume? Die your lab coat red, that what it looks like they did (look at the stitching and buttons they remained white).

    Ok, so the lab coats suggested up there are close. Anyone have any ideas on what the flap of fabric under the top most front of the coat looks like? It clearly doesn’t come all the way down, but I can’t tell where it stops. Has anyone seen one of these open? Should be an easy make.

    Also, any ideas on making the weapons? Death Ray, or forearm laser from the bank heist?

  • Jack Kerouac

    Sorry, but those lab coats are nothing like Horrible’s, except in the vaguest possible way. The lab coat is more of a 40s style mad scientist coat. The worst thing you could do is get that one wrong. I think you’d have to stitch it together yourself in order to get it right.

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Hi Jack K. – from what I understand, the actual coat worn by Dr. Horrible was leftover from the Firefly episode “Ariel.” I’ve looked and looked for the exact coat, and I think you are right. To be perfect, you’ll have to sew it yourself.

  • Dave DuJour

    His gloves changed from off-white to black for the final scene too. And I doubt his boots stayed white, although we never see them. I’d suggest black boots to match the black gloves and non-khaki pants underneath the red coat. Maybe black. Again, we just don’t see enough of the “Evil League of Evil” costume to know for certain.

  • http://hermenaut.org/2008/07/30/every-possible-way-to-look-horrible-sci-fashion/ Hermenautic Circle blog » Every Possible Way to Look Horrible [Sci Fashion]

    [...] Horrible Tees via J!NX] You can also make a Dr. Horrible costume, explained in a few easy steps at MyDiguises. The result looks a lot like this costume, below, which we saw at Comic-Con. Amber’s Fashion Tips [...]

  • http://thatcostumegirl.com/2008/07/31/horrible That Costume Girl » Blog Archive » Horrible

    [...] out my friend Manny at My Disguises for tips on costume [...]

  • Dave DuJour

    You should probably remove the Pentergast site from the list of places for goggles. Apparently they aren’t shipping things that look even close to what’s pictured and they’re being extremely rude about it.
    http://community.livejournal.com/drhorribledress/16086.html

  • Wulfae

    Out of curiousity, have you ordered the goggles from discount safety.com? Are they actually the exact goggles, or are they the green version that everyone seems to be getting?

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Good point, Wulfae. I bet they are green like the others. I will clarify.

  • Costume Maker

    But a can of silver spray paint and some masking tape fixes that easily. As long as you can find the right model of goggles, color shouldn’t be an issue. As for the lab coat, you may want to, if you’re not really a seamstress, get one of the coats that look some what like Dr. Horrible’s and have some one tweak it for you.

  • http://mydisguises.com/2008/08/01/horrible-service-costumers-told-to-go-away/ Horrible Service – Costumers Told to “Go Away” | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] the release of Dr. Horrible on the Internet, fans immediately began looking for ways to make a Dr. Horrible Costume. A key ingredient? The Goggles. It turns out they are standard welding goggles available at many [...]

  • richard

    yeh, the goggles are different. Its not surprising really, more than likley (like most of the costumes in film and TV) they have been adapted for the film. Those goggles just need a lick of pain and a replacement strap and they’d be fine.

    Also, any idea where/how to get the little logo? Or is that a case of finding someone who can sew?

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Richard, this is pretty close, what do you think?
    http://tinyurl.com/6my9yj

  • http://kompleteclub.com CubeGuy

    Finally got everything ordered for mine. I’ll probably just end up making an iron-on transfer for the Caduceus. ☤

  • http://bitter-girl.com/?p=1641 at bitter-girl :: musings

    [...] now I know what to be for [...]

  • LightPhoenix

    Looking at the costume, it seems it’s slightly oversized – it looks like they might have taken a larger size than NPH and sized it down.

  • http://thatcostumegirl.com/2008/08/15/dr-horrible-is-herealmost That Costume Girl » Blog Archive » Dr. Horrible is here…almost

    [...] Horrible wears the classic mad scientist smock. Some call it a Dentist smock or a Howie coat. Also consider Chef’s coats as a possible match. The reason it is not a Dentist smock, but is [...]

  • Austin

    I’m working on putting one together, thanks for the help!

  • Rick

    Does anyone have a much clearer pic of the logo on lab coat pocket? I went to a embroidering booth and they said the picture would have to be much clearer for them to digitize it. I don’t have the photo software or knowledge to pull it myself. Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Rick, here’s a good link: http://www.cosplay.com/photo/1665420/

  • http://mandyannemurray.wordpress.com/2008/09/05/bits-de-viernes/ Bits de viernes « pants design

    [...] Be the girl who wears both goggles and glasses? Become a mad scientist in my spare time? (Also: This blog has a ton of links to places to buy Dr. Horrible costume-making gear. [...]

  • http://mydisguises.com/2008/09/09/coming-soon-to-a-halloween-near-you/ Coming Soon to a Halloween Near You | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] posted previously about what’s needed in a Dr. Horrible costume, and there is plenty of fan discussion over at [...]

  • http://theirongategallery.com Irongate Gallery

    Hey Guys,

    Wanted to give a heads up that I have a lab coat you might be interested in at my store. I’ve been working with some designs for a while and I’m finally ready to put it up today.

    http://www.theirongategallery.com/costumeitems-dr.horrible

    PS – There are only a few pictures right now, I hope to add more soon.

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Thanks, Irongate. That looks awesome. I’m going to edit this article to include your lab coat.

  • http://mydisguises.com/2008/09/10/dr-horrible-lab-coat-update/ Dr. Horrible Lab Coat Update | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] seems everyone has been searching high and low for the perfect Dr. Horrible Costume. The hardest thing for people to find has been a replica of Dr. Horrible’s Lab Coat. There [...]

  • Rannan

    The style of lab coat that docotor horrible wears is a Howie Lab Coat

  • Rick

    The Fibre Metal VG800H5 goggles mentioned are NOT the ones shown, and they differ by more than just the color of the body. The ones pictured above seem to be an exact match, but the green ones everyone can buy are different. They have different ventilation holes on the sides, and the frames around the eyepieces aren’t knurled like Dr. Horrible’s.

  • holly

    i found the PERFECT goggles! they are EXACT in EVERY WAY but the type of vents (which are easily removed and swapped), and the blue-green color (which is easily painted to match metallic) they have ALL six vents – top, bottom, and side. and the frames around the eyepieces ARE knurled. also, the tabs for the lift-front are the correct shape (not triangular). in summary, after a couple of simple modifications, they are an EXACT MATCH. (believe me, i have been looking high and low for months to find the perfect pair… and this is it!)

    i bought a few extra pairs to sell, and if you already got a pair of those fibre-metal goggles that aren’t exactly right, you can use the vents from those on these – easily removed and re-snapped into place. thought because of the six vents, you may need more than one pair of the other goggle.

  • Tai

    I found great boots and acceptable gloves for cheap through Star Safety.

    Here are the gloves, $2.06:

    http://www.gssstore.com/product/COR7605/Grey_Welder_Work_Gloves_1_Pair.html

    And the boots (scroll down–men and women’s sizes available!), $14.93+:

    http://www.gssstore.com/category/5disposableclothing.boots.bata_ongard/

    Spread the horribleness.

  • Just an MS in Horrible…

    Thanks so much for the tips! As for changing the color of things in existing costumes, there is an amazing spray paint called “florist’s Friend” that is designed to paint just about anything. I’ve used it on everything from fabric to metal and it looks great. I’m going to try to use it on black gloves and the goggles–I’ll let you know how it looks. Love the blog!

  • http://myspace.com/pjotakuormyspace.com/theshakeups PJ Otaku

    This is in regard to fellow US fans of Dr Horrible that might be looking for the costume…

    The members of my rock band, The Shake Ups, are all dressing as Dr Horrible for our Halloween show. I had to do a LOT of research to obtain appropriate garb, so I thought I’d let you know what I found…

    First of all, unless you’re in the UK or Ireland it’s going to be difficult to find the howie labcoat. I found one that was close at Jamstore.co.uk, however they do not ship international orders – and have yet to process my refund… So unless you’re in one of the aforementioned areas, don’t bother with them.

    The closest coat I found was through Pastelli, an Italian company that does actually have a US branch. Look for model T001 Tecnus or A001 Los Angeles, which are the closest to the doctor’s design. It took a while for me to hear back from someone, but the direct e-mail for the person that handles the US & Canada is sltenter@hotmail.com, and the website to find the coats is http://www.sltenterprises.com.

    The goggles are model VG800H5 and are discontinued, and therefore out of stock at many places. I was able to find them at Amazon for even less than I had originally ordered them for when the original order I placed was cancelled due to unavailability.

    For boots, do a search for “boot shrimper white” at http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com, and then find your size.

    Also, for anyone wanting to be Captain Hammer, you can get the perfect gloves (Darth Vader gloves!) at most party supply or Halloween stores. These are far closer than any other recommendations I’ve seen.

    Hope this helps!

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Thanks, PJ. Hey, can you send us pictures of your band all dressed as Dr. Horrible? That sounds AWESOME!

  • http://myspace.com/pjotakuormyspace.com/theshakeups PJ Otaku

    We’re hoping it’ll be awesome. We’re playing the costumed show on Oct. 25th, and planning to do
    a couple of the songs too (“My Freeze Ray,” “My Eyes”). Once we have all of the costume stuff, I’ll send
    some pics :)

    If you want to check out the band or some of my tunes, go to:

    http://myspace.com/theshakeups (the band that’ll be dressing as the good doctor)

    or http://myspace.com/pjotaku (check out my song “Joss Whedon Is My Master Now”)

  • KMarsh

    Does anyone know how they faded the logo on the gloves? You can see in this [1] screenshot that the logo is still there, but greatly faded. I tried sandpaper, acetone, and isopropyl; the solvents didn’t do anything and the sandpaper only worked up to a point — I think I’d sand through the leather entirely if I kept trying that method.

    [1] http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/whynotsaylove/dr%20horrible/horrible-tillmangloves.jpg

  • http://alwaysgoright.com/2008/10/boo/ Boo! — Always Go Right

    [...] it.  Of course, easier said than done – how do you make the thing?  The first guide I found was this one, which provides a nice overview with different options for each aspect of the costume.  And wow, a [...]

  • ABrody

    I went to a Menards and bought a small jar of paint called Glistening Gray by Pittsburgh Paints

  • http://yellowpythonsub.livejournal.com/ Sarah

    I just got my Howie coat from Uniforms By Ray Higgins out of Canada. It fits and is wonderful. They shipped in a little less than two weeks.
    http://www.uniformsbyrayhiggins.com/Results.cfm?category=12

  • Sam

    I have 2 pair of size 11 white boots, I have pics if anyone is interested. They were part of a set of 3 and I don’t need them. I’ll sell for a reasonable price and ship priority mail. :) digitalsaint [at] gmail!

  • http://BrowncoatFashions.com Mary

    I became a huge Joss Whedon fan after my husband got me to watch his Firefly and Serenity DVD.s Since i already was making costumes it was just natural for my daughter and I to start making Firefly costumes, holsters and of coarse the famous leather Browncoats for ourselves and then for other fans. This took off and now we have a website browncoatfashions.com. where we will soon be offering the Dr. Horrible lab coats in white and red in the near future. If interested please check out our site

  • Jeannette Lewis

    if you want a really good Dr. Horrible coat you are probably just going to have to make one. I just made one for my 9 year old and he is OMG cute. The fabric I used was wrongish though, so it drapes funny, but it was easy to draft the pattern – it si a very basic silhouette. I used snaps instead of buttons and ended up drawing the symbol because when I embroidered it the damn thing came out huge. Lol. I got the inexpensive green goggles and painted them, same with the boot, walmart “rain boots” painted white >.> that did not work particularly well /shrug.

    All in all he looks adorable (kinda like a young Dougie Howser come think of it). He knows the songs and it make my mama’s heart go pitter pat in a big way. Daddy will be Capt. Hammer and I get to be a groupie. older brother refused the Hammer role so he is a spartan, can’t win them all…

  • http://mydisguises.com/2008/12/01/dr-horribles-sing-along-blog-now-available-on-dvd/ Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog DVD Now Available | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] news, Dr. Horrible fans! The superhero musical that took the Internet by storm last summer is now on available on [...]

  • http://mydisguises.com/2009/04/02/students-to-perform-dr-horribles-sing-along-blog/ Students to Perform Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] hope they get the costumes right, and someone at the school reads our post about How to Make a Dr. Horrible Costume. That should get them pointed in the right [...]

  • Monopolowa

    Found this post detailing how to sew your own Dr. Horrible lab coat…Looks like they did a good job
    http://community.livejournal.com/drhorribledress/25908.html

  • http://theirongategallery.com Irongate Gallery

    Hey Guys,

    Just wanted to say that I’ve added some new photos to our site as we’ve refined the design since we started way back when. I’ve updated some of the pattern based on the actual lab coat that an amazing fan was able to provide shots of.

    The new pictures are up on the website. http://www.theirongategallery.com/product.asp?itemid=1

  • http://www.allsafetysupplies.com Gina

    Found a great site to purchase goggles, lab coat, boots and gloves ….. See http://www.allsafetysupplies.com/Dr_Horrible.html

  • Felipe 058

    Hey everyone,

    I noticed that the link to tcafencing.com doesn’t work; I don’t think that site exists anymore. Also, I personally am not a fan of those blusih ones at the other linked site (I don’t know if it’s just the picture that’s making them look blue or not…). I did, however, find two pairs that I like very much, and I thought I’d share them with you guys :) The first pair is similar to the bluish pair up top, but they’re all white except for the cuff. The only problem in my opinion with these are the natural cuffs and the cuffs seeming a little short, but both problems are easily remedied with a bit of skill and patience. http://www.gloves-online.com/proddetail.php?prod=WK-W-0119 The second pair I found by taking the advice above about fencing gloves. This was by far the best pair I found, and they are the closest match I’ve been able to find to Dr. Horrible’s gloves (besides of course making them oneself), but the mitt itself is off. http://shop.fencing.net/product_p/afg-31003.htm Ha, if anything, a combination of the mitt on the work gloves and the cuff on the fencing gloves would be almost perfect.

  • Nick

    The gloves can also be found here at amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000GAT7WQ/ref=pd_luc_mri?%5Fencoding=UTF8&m=A1QTD1JR6DNCXK&v=glance

    once you add that to your cart amazon recommends just about everything else you’ll need :)

  • Casey

    Finally found the closest thing without spending $150 at Irongate.

    http://www.shop.grahamegardner.co.uk/osb/itemdetails.cfm/ID/69

    They were very nice and accepted my order from the US. Should have it shortly. Unfortunately it is discontinued and the only sizes they have left are 1 each of medium and XL, but around 30 XSMALL, SMALL, and XXL. Hopefully this will help somebody out.

    E-mail samX@grahamegardner.Xco.uk (remove X’s) and she will help you out. As long as the order is in by the 23rd she can have it there by Halloween.

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Wow, Casey, that’s a great find!

  • Lisa!

    Made my son his costume… I made the smock from scratch using a commercial pattern that I altered as needed- used shell buttons. My husband painted the welding goggles and belt sanded the Tillman logo off the gloves. We bought used Hunter rainboots off eBay and painted them white.

    http://twitpic.com/locrq
    http://twitpic.com/locty

    We’re going to a showing of DHSAB at the Egyptian tomorrow night.

    (Son is 8 years old and the biggest Dr. Horrible fan.)

  • Edison

    Casey – GAH. That’s too bad, that is by far the best find for the $$ and the style! I’m going to attempt ordering from the site anyway… it’s not blocking my attempt to try to get an L. (Not that that means anything from a small company, but why the heck not). Thanks for the post!

  • Josh

    Ok, I am putting together a Dr. Horrible costume for San Diego Comic Con, and I am almost all set, but I was wondering if anyone had any idea where I can get something close to the freeze ray gun?
    Thanks

  • Bryan

    Hey Josh, what are you using for your lab coat? I’m still having trouble looking for a sort of cheap but still quality enough that it looks like the one from Dr. Horrible.

  • Josh

    I had a lab coat custom made, so not cheap.

  • Conor

    Thanks for all the effort. If anyone’s still looking there’s a UK company with a similar, though not exact, “Howie” coat.

    http://www.workwearhouse.co.uk/acatalog/Howie_Coat.html

    Good luck finding what you need.

  • Matthew

    I’m going out tonight in my uni labcoat and a pair of goggles I made myself out of paper cups and swimming goggles… came here for the logo I’m going to pen onto my coat. Have to say with more time I might be more anal… but hey, leave that for America and when the sequel comes out!

  • jesus garcia

    Has anyone tried to order from Pastelli? It seems like the most viable option.

  • Filmore

    Looks like these guys have a Howie Style with “Chinese collar” which is pretty darn good looking for a lab coat
    http://www.speciality-textiles.com/categories/howie_coat__chinese_collar/6/1/

  • Shelley Peters

    Check out the coats by 96bellyacres on e-bay. They are a perfect match to the buttons and design of the Dr. Horrible lab coat. Price range is $51.00 to $60.00 and it comes in white, red and red with white stitching. He has one with a caduceus on the pocket (not quite accurate) and one without where you could embroider a more accurate one youtself. For an extra $18.00 he will sew it from sports weight twill which gives it that “heavy” fabric look of the real coat. Very authenitc, fast respoonse and turn around time for something custom made to your measurements. Sure he’ll be swamped for halloween.

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Wow, Shelley, great find. That’s very cool!

  • http://mydisguises.com/2010/09/28/dr-horribles-lab-coat-on-ebay/ Dr. Horrible’s Lab Coat on Ebay | My Disguises – We Love Costumes

    [...] tip came from MD commenter Shelley, who pointed out these labcoats in our post about How to Make a Dr. Horrible Costume. That post is a couple of years old, but I try to keep it updated as it’s one of the most [...]

  • Shelley Peters

    I think when we bought this coat it actually shipped from South Carolina, USA. Not sure where the Australian link came in.

    Shelley

  • http://mydisguises.com manny

    Thanks again, Shelley. What would I do without you? When I googled 96bellyacres, I got the Australian version of Ebay, ebay.com.au, so I assumed he was in Australia. Oops! I changed the links to Ebay in USA.

  • Shelley Peters

    Another spot to look I’ve found in my searches is gr8stuff88 on ebay has a sew on patch to put on your own lab coat. Again, not a perfect match to the real logo but it is something for only $7 including shipping.

  • http://cuesforhealth.com AnnQ

    Take a look at my home-made labcoat at http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5587515&l=f023b8eb2b&id=712763456 I made many adjustments to the Simplicity pattern often recommended. Ironed on the caduceus after a bit of work in Photoshop. I think this looks authentic!

  • Kim

    Dr. Horrible “EMBROIDERED CADUCEUS PATCH” is available from gr8stuff88 on E-Bay. Current Item Number is 260679050481 as of 10-20-10. The Item number is subject to change BY E-BAY but gr8stuff88 will always have this item available. Check it out! NO DECALS!!!! HIGH QUALITY EMBROIDERED CADUCEUS FOR DR. HORRIBLE COATS!! MACHINE WASHABLE!!

  • Ray

    Photos of the original smock can be seen here:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/waywardbound/sets/72157615811201321/

  • DarkSlime

    I found the perfect goggles on this site. Match exactly just need to be aged.

    http://www.everygenerator.com/Fibre-Metal-VG800SH5-ofr1742.html

    Let me know what you think!

  • mugoi usagi

    If you look closely the gloves are Tillman brand. You can barely see the outline of the logo on them during close up shots.

  • Obs

    I do not recommend Irongate Gallery at all- I would recommend removing them from your list. Ordered a month ago, and no response at all from them. They don’t respond to emails and won’t answer their phone, yet they will take your money and make posts on Facebook, so you know they’re still there.

    See comments on:
    http://blog.theirongategallery.com/2011/08/here-comes-halloween.html

  • mugoi usagi

    @DarkSlime: I actually ordered those goggles. I hoped to get them as pictured but expected I’d be getting the green ones everyone else sells. When they came they were the green 4 vent goggles. I plan to mod and paint them. My complaint about that site is that I wrote a short review noting the difference between picture and product (noting also that they appeared to be good quality, etc) and my review was removed within days of posting. So just be aware that if you order those goggles you won’t *get* those goggles.

  • http://www.therpf.com/f24/looking-howie-lab-coat-128467/#post1929500 Looking for a Howie lab coat

    [...] are a couple good guides to creating a Dr. Horrible style costume around, including this link: Dr. Horrible Costume | My Disguises – We Love Costumes (this links to at least two places still selling the Howie-style coat). This site also has many [...]