Ohio Mom Crochets Alien vs. Predator Halloween Costumes for Her Sons: 'They Loved It So Much'
An Ohio family has turned crocheted Halloween costumes into a tradition. This year, the devoted mom pulled out all the stops with handcrafted Alien vs. Predator outfits for her little ones.
Stephanie Pokorny, of Mentor, crocheted elaborate Alien and Predator costumes (based on the 2004 thriller) for her sons Jake, 7, and 4-year-old Jack. A Facebook video showed the boys in costume (with Jake as the Alien and Jack as the Predator), pretending to battle each other.
“I have always loved Halloween so I think it is in their DNA to love it,” Pokorny, 43, tells PEOPLE of her young sons. “They get right into the part! [There’s] instant claw swipes and growls.”
Pokorny shared a photo of the Alien costume on Facebook in a post that has been shared at least 12,000 times.
“Jake’s choice and he has been asking, no BEGGING, since Predator, so here it is! Absolutely so excited with the result! Suspended tail ready to strike, coils, spikes, spines, and that DROOL! Alien overload! Icing? HE GLOWS IN THE DARK!” she wrote alongside the photo. “About 45 hours of work, fully freehanded, NO patterns. His face sits inside the neck of the alien so he appears full body, but vision is clear!”
Pokorny says it took her about 50 hours to make each costume over a two-week period. It took her a month to complete the creative outfits.
“Every year the boys tell me what they want to be, so I make whatever they ask for,” she says. “Each year I work to up the ante … just to see how detailed I can get and how realistic I can be. [The costumes] are actually really comfy. The weather is always so cold on Halloween, so their warmth is a total bonus.”
Over the years, Pokorny has crocheted some impressive costumes for her sons, including Pennywise, Papa Smurf, Skeletor and even the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland. With each year, the costumes get more and more detailed and elaborate.
“It started out as a one-time thing but they loved it so much it is a real tradition now,” she tells PEOPLE. “The boys are really part of the process as I make them. We try them on and make sure they are comfy and fit right. My Jake will 100 percent let me know if something is off. He has a great eye for detail!”
Pokorny’s creations made headlines last year when she made Jack a Slimer costume from the hit 1984 film Ghostbusters, complete with a hood featuring the famous green ghost’s visage and the ability to glow in the dark via non-toxic acrylic paint.
This year, she says, Alien vs. Predator was Jake’s idea and “Jack was like, ‘okay, Jake! Let’s do it!’ “
