Category: General

6 Easy Halloween Costume Ideas for Men

Post author By Christine
Post date October 18, 2014
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13 Days until Halloween and guys, you still have time to pull together a pretty snazzy Halloween costume.
These next 6 ideas for Easy Halloween Costumes for Men range from classic to comic and are easy to pull together with a few pieces from your closet and a purchase or two online.

6 Easy Costumes Halloween Costumes for Men:

1. James Bond. Classy, elegant, and he always gets the girl. Black suit or black tux, black bow tie, collared white shirt, well-polished shoes, and don’t forget the cuff links. Even better if you drive a fast car.

2. Indiana Jones. Natural and easy for the rugged or adventurous man. Khaki pants, collared shirt, leather jacket, and a few key accessories including the hat. You must have the hat! A leather or canvas messenger bag is a fitting accessory too and be sure to allow time for some scruff for this costume.

3. Napoleon Dynamite. Comfy, goofy, and you even get a t shirt you might wear again. “Vote for Pedro” tshirt, jeans, and moon boots, which are really hard to find, so the moon boot boot covers may have to suffice. Dig out an old pair of glasses and if you are lucky enough to have some curl in your locks, pick them out for a slight frizzy mess. Oh and keep your mouth hanging open the entire night.

4. Sherlock Holmes. Smart, timeless, and even better with a British accent. Dark trousers, tweed coat, blue scarf, and hat.

5. Jay Gatsby. So smooth and debonair. Oozing style down to his spectator wingtips. Click here for my earlier post on this charming, passionate man.

6. Captain America. Heroic, powerful, and good for those who don’t mind the skinny pants. You can pull off a DIY version in skinny bright blue jeans or sweats, red, white, and blue t shirt, red Converse All-Stars, mask, gloves, and you must have the shield. Or you can just order the really cool but expensive version shown here. Don’t bother with the cheap versions of this costume. You’ll be disappointed in the quality. The fabric on the cheap super hero costumes is so thin you’ll be left feeling a little exposed…

Any extra layer you put under these cheap costumes does not look super heroic. Either do the DIY from real fabric and clothes or go for the pricey one.

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10 Easy DIY Halloween Costumes for Teen Girls

Post author By Christine
Post date September 29, 2014
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Teenagers can be hard. I have a teen, a tween, and one waiting in the wings.

When it comes to Halloween costumes, teens can be especially challenging. Direct quote from my teenage daughter: “Well it’s hard to decide on a Halloween costume. You want to dress up, but not look like you tried too hard, and you want to be cute still. And comfy. It has to be comfy.”

So there you go. Cute and comfy is the key to a teen girl Halloween costume.

Here are 10 easy DIY teen Halloween costume ideas that fit “cute and comfy”:

1. 80s Chick: crimped hair or high side ponytail, leggings, leather jacket, neon anything, leg warmers, oversized sweatshirt, high tops, bangle bracelets.

2. Nerd: Center part with ponytails or braids, glasses with tape around the center (3D glasses are cheap and easy just pop the lenses out if you want), button up shirt with top button buttoned, cardigan mis-buttoned, high waisted pants with shirt tucked in or a pleated skirt, penny loafers with knee high socks.

3. Audrey Hepburn: Get out that LBD (Little. Black. Dress.), a strand of pearls, 60s style coif.

4. Minion from “Despicable Me“: Denim mini-jumper, yellow shirt, yellow tights, black boots, yellow beanie, homemade goggles.

5. Rosie the Riveter: Bandana to tie around your hair, falsies (false eyelashes), red lipstick, denim shirt with leggings.

6. Hippie: Floral maxi dress, long wavy hair, floral headband, John Lennon glasses, peace sign earrings.

7. Beauty Queen: Short formal dress, heels, glamour hair and make up, dangling rhinestone earrings, a tiara. Don’t forget the sash and give yourself a title.

8. Rodeo Queen: Colored Jeans, a western style shirt, dangling rhinestone earrings, huge Texas style curly-frizzy hair, a cowboy hat with large tiara, a big belt buckle, cowboy boots, a sash that proclaims yourself “Rodeo Queen.”

9. Olympia/Greek Goddess: long white, cream, or gold dress or formal, gold cord belt from Christmas decorations or curtains, a braided or ivy hair wreath, gold jewelry, long wavy hair or loose braid.

10. Wednesday Addams: Black dress or black sweater with black skirt, must have the white collar on the outside, black opaque or striped tights, funky fun black shoes, center part with two hair braids, pale face, black lips.

Many of these items can be found in your closets, at a thrift store, or online if you want it shipped to your door. For more tips on how to create and design a Halloween costume, buy my Amazon ebook here. Follow me on Facebook for tons more ideas!

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Wednesday Addams Halloween Costume Idea

Post author By Christine
Post date September 29, 2014
1 Comment on Wednesday Addams Halloween Costume Idea

We have tickets to an upcoming production of “The Addams Family: The Broadway Musical” and we can’t wait to see it! We are musical theater fans and enjoy the soundtrack, so I am excited to see how the songs all fit in. The Addams Family is a fun and festive group Halloween costume idea. Wednesday Addams would also be easy to put together and looks great even going solo. If people aren’t familiar with the Addams Family characters, you’ll still look like a creepy doll just perfect for Halloween.

Her costume is super easy: a short black dress or black sweater and skirt combo, and the must have is the white collar showing. You probably have something in your closet that will work. If not, take a quick trip to the thrift store or a click on the image below. And because it’s a real dress and not a cheap costume made from thin fabric, you would probably wear it again! So much better than buying a costume sold in a bag. Pair the outfit with black opaque or striped tights and funky black shoes.

Here’s a helpful tutorial for the hair and makeup:

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Tags Addams Family

General Halloween Costumes for Women Refashioning Tutorials

DIY Queen of Hearts Costume

Post author By Christine
Post date September 3, 2014
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You don’t need to know how to sew to make a fun costume. In this tutorial on a DIY Queen of Hearts Costume from Bethany Mota, she shows how a glue gun and craft glue can refashion a corset, add a layer of lace to a skirt, and even create a new skirt. Who needs thread when you have hot glue? This opens a whole new world of costume possibilities…

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Top 5 Reasons Why I Don’t Like Costumes From Mass Retailers

Post author By Christine
Post date August 28, 2014
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I am not generally a food snob, but I am kind of a costume snob. I do not like costumes that come in a bag.

Every year as my family plans for Halloween, we do not shop the costume aisles of the local discount store. Maybe for a few years when my kids were little, but the costume bug bit me bad about 6 years ago and I’ve never looked back. Sure I would hit the after-Halloween sales looking for some bargains for the dress- up bin, but even then I realized I didn’t like those cheap costumes in a bag.

Disclaimer:

I provide plenty of costume ideas on my blog that are from mass retailers. They can be used for inspiration or for those who need it NOW. For sure we all go through crazy times in our lives when costumes need to be quick and we don’t have time to go all out. And occasionally you might even find some decent costumes in a bag. I won’t judge.

Here are the top 5 reasons I don’t like costumes from mass retailers:

1. They are cheaply made. The fabric is cheap and doesn’t last long before you have shredding and tears in the seams. They don’t have finished hems. They are typically wrinkled and impossible to iron without damaging the paper thin fabric. They don’t often last longer than Halloween night after being worn for a party or two and then all day at school, and then finally the big kahuna of trick-or-treating. You may be able to get some wear out of these costumes for pretend play, but they usually turn limp and wilty.

2. It is likely that someone else will show up in the exact same costume. Costume manufactures often sell the same costume to multiple different retailers including online costume suppliers. I don’t mind showing up as the same character as someone else, but it’s not so fun to find an exact twin.

3. They can be relatively expensive for what they are: Something that your child or you may not wear again. See reason #1. They don’t typically come with a wig, accessories, or shoes. So after you’ve spent $20-$30 on the costume only, you still have some more items to purchase, including a trick-or-treat bag.

4. If you wait until the last minute, the pickins’ are slim. You are limited to what the store has in stock and that’s no fun to be disappointed when you finally get your kids to the store with you and they can’t find a costume in the right size.

5. It’s boring. Unoriginal. You don’t get to experience the creative process! I believe that everyone has creativity inside of them waiting to be unlocked. It is so fun to hit the thrift store to find that perfect denim jumper which could be the beginning of a minion costume. That black and white striped skirt that would be perfect for a pirate, or that donated dance costume that glitters like a fairy costume. Put the magic 5 ingredients together, and you have an amazing, original costume that you created yourself!

My ebook, “How to Design and Create a Halloween Costume” describes the magic 5 ingredients in greater detail and will inspire you to put together your own costume this year. If you get stuck in the creative process, contact me on The Costume Resource Facebook page and I can send you some resources and ideas–I’d love to help you create your own costume!

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How to Create a Steampunk Costume for Women

Post author By Christine
Post date August 27, 2014
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10144713295_2c9fc5bb05_b — Photo Credit LuftFlotte Steampunk…

Steampunk costumes fascinate me.

Maybe it’s because steampunk reminds me of those old fashioned photo booths in theme parks where you are instantly transformed a hundred years back… The photo is printed in sepia on tin type. I loved pausing to watch the transformations, but didn’t want to shell out the cash for that experience.

My lucky day came at Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri years ago when my parents footed the bill for the extended family to get all dressed up. Maybe if I get enough requests in the comments, I’d be brave enough to post that picture…:)

Maybe it’s also because of all the cool hats from that time period for both men and women. Hats look so proper. A hat is the finishing touch on a costume from this time period.

I think I also like steampunk for the multitude of textures including the mix up of leather, metal, lace, net, velvet, and taffeta. Often there are some unexpected twists in the costume. The goggles, a little French Moulin Rouge mixed in, uneven hems, the funky revolvers…Tons of room for creativity.

Steampunk even mixes time periods. While steampunk is heavily influenced by the Victorian Era (mid 1840s-1900s), it is often mixed in with modern or militaristic styles.

Key elements in steampunk costumes for women may include:

-Bustles

-Corsets

-Gowns

-Petticoats

-Hats

-Belts

-Ruffles,

-Lace up boots

Steampunk costumes are often accessorized with technological and period pieces including parasols, flying/driving goggles, ray guns, canes, and time pieces. “Modern accessories like cell phones or music players can be found in steampunk outfits, after being modified to give them the appearance of Victorian-made objects.” (Wikipedia)

The color palette in steampunk is predominantly dark rich tones of deep reds, burgundy, navy, dark teal, deep purple, gold, mustard, hunter green, olive green, copper, brown, gunmetal grey, silver, bronze, and PLENTY of black.

If you do not want to make a costume, there are plenty of interesting steampunk costumes for women available. Click on the pictures below for more information. When I costume, I like to purchase one or two important aspects of the costume like the hat or an accessory that seems like a beast to make (like those corsets or petticoat), but then I source the rest from thrift stores finds that I refashion or simple sewing and crafty projects. Just depends on what’s already in my costume closet and how much time/money I have.

If I happen to already have a dress that would work with a little draping and some ruffles and lace added, then I would find an inexpensive hat, deck it out with fabric or trim, and then splurge on the boots that I know I can’t make. Watch for more posts on steampunk accessory ideas and other ideas for making your own steampunk costume.

Here’s a few ideas to get your steampunk costume started…

Tags Comic Con, Steampunk, Victorian

General Movies

Harry Potter Costumes at Warner Brothers Studio Museum in Burbank

Post author By Christine
Post date July 2, 2014
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We recently visited Warner Brothers Studio in Burbank, California. My brother-in-law’s brother works as a curator for the museum exhibits and in the archives. We got a behind-the-scenes sneak peak of the museum’s new “75 Years of Batman” exhibit (no photos allowed at that moment! ). We also spent a bunch of time upstairs in the museum ogling over the many costumes worn in the Harry Potter films. You can visit the museum as part of the Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Any Harry Potter fans out there can you please help me label these photos by commenting below! The costumes were P-R-E-T-T-Y C-O-O-L. Sorry for the blurries. I wish I had lugged around my nice Canon SLR camera instead of only my iPhone camera. I had no idea the treat we were in for when we stopped by to visit a relative at his “office”…

Tags Harry Potter, Harry Potter Costumes, Warner Brothers Studio Tour

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Disney’s Frozen Elsa Costume and Elsa Makeup

Post author By Christine
Post date February 28, 2014
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My girls ran across this Elsa makeup tutorial a few days ago and I wanted to share it with all you Frozen fans! Makeup is one of the 6 magic ingredients in a creating a custom costume, so you want to be sure you have thought about the makeup design to go with your costume. She does a great job of explaining how to do Elsa Makeup including a helpful tip on how to make your eyes pop with false eyelashes. Who knew you could use 2 pair on each eye? Slip on an Elsa wig and a beautiful sparkling blue gown and your Elsa Halloween costume will be the big hit this year!

To learn about the other 5 magic ingredients in creating a costume, purchase my ebook, “How to Design and Create a Halloween Costume” . Available for viewing on nearly all electronic devices with this Kindle App.

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Costume Design Process: Bullets Over Broadway

Post author By Christine
Post date January 29, 2014
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A Facebook friend from my college days at Brigham Young University is the associate producer of a new Broadway musical opening in March called “Bullets Over Broadway.” He shared this clip of Bullets’ costume designer William Ivey Long who designed costumes for more than 60 Broadway shows over the last 30+ years including The Producers, Hairspray, Nine, Crazy for You, Guys and Dolls, Cinderella, and Young Frankenstein.

Mr. Long shares a glimpse of the theater costume design process in under 3 minutes:

Here’s a summary of his words and some basic steps for the costume designer:

1. Get a copy of the script

2. Meet with the director and ask lots of questions:

Continue reading “Costume Design Process: Bullets Over Broadway”

Tags Bullets Over Broadway, Costume Designers, Costume Designs, William Ivey Long

General Period Costume Theater

Costume ideas for Oklahoma! the Musical

Post author By Christine
Post date January 24, 2014
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My daughters are in their school play which is the shortened and adapted version of Oklahoma! by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The costume design along with hair and makeup ideas are getting underway. In my research on this Edwardian time period, I ran across a fascinating retail catalog from 1906. This 432 page peek into history is for the T. Eaton Company Spring and Summer 1906 Catalogue. The Fall and Winter 1906 Catalogue begins at page 221.

Not only is this a superb resource for Edwardian period costumes but it also shows hairstyles for men, women, and children of the time. The first 100+ pages of each season’s catalog are filled with apparel and accessories for men, women, and children including dresses, walking suits, petticoats and other underclothing, shoes, hats, & night clothing. It is unbelievable to me to see the hundreds of items available.

I can’t fathom a retailer from 100 years ago having such a huge selection of goods because the catalogue also offers fabric, notions, watches, linens, hair goods, silverware, knives… Looks like it was the Amazon.com of the Edwardian Period!

I picked out just a small handful of images to wet your appetite, but if you love this time period or need additional costume ideas for the 1900s, be sure to click through to the full catalog.

Click here for the full screen version of the catalog.

Take a look at these fabulous items for sale…Could we ever go back to these days of such fine fashion?