Halloween Costume-A-Long? (2009)

[goldfishpollywog]

Finally found my camera cable and can show the fabric I bought



a is the black vinyl
b is the jersey
c is something dry clean only but black and fairly sturdy
d is shiny plaid that I'm thinking would be a good skirt.
The trims I found are there too, along with a Joann's coupon. 
I have much more in my stash, but this is the fabric I bought with a costume in mind.

I thought a vest/corset out of c, a skirt from d, a top with separated sleeves from b and accents from A.
Is the purple just too   I have purple net also if I need a petticoat....

[N30Nb100d]

I started working on my costume today. I've narrowed it down to ghost (if I end up around children) or zombie nurse. The costume is the same either way, just with a nurse hat and bloody/dirty if I go with option two. I already have some torn up white skirts I made a year or so ago. Today I started on a blouse, also white, with a rounded collar and puff sleeves. I have all the pieces cut, the body sewn together, and the collar sewn together but the collar looks pretty terrible (it came out much too thick I think) so I may take it apart. Once I have the blouse, I'll just have to make a nurse hat, then dirty it all up if necessary the week of Halloween.

[Kalanit]

Hi all! I too am jumping on board. I need some serious motivation to get started on this Halloween's costumes. First some background: I am a senior at uni with a major in Costume Design. Needless to say, Halloween is my favorite holiday. A downside/upside is that the boy and I are always expected to have top notch awesome costumes every year. This is, of course, a blessing and a curse. While I love being able to fulfill the expectations, it is a bit nerve racking getting there. I am a senior this year, so I feel like I should go out with some sort of bang. The boy has already declared that he will be Oogie Boogie from Nightmare Before Christmas, because he always wanted to be him when he was a kid, but his mom doesn't sew. Of course seeing the awesome Oogie Boogie costume here on Craftster made him want it even more. We will be going for the same concept, though the boy wants me to sponge paint some glow in the dark paint onto the burlap so he can have the eerie Oogie Boogie glow. It shouldn't be too huge of a project, nor too expensive, so I am totally down for it.

 Now the hard part, my costume. We were thinking of going with the Tim Burton theme, and if we did that I wanted to go as Emily from the Corpse Bride. It would enough of a challenge to be fun for me, though a part of me wants to be something a little more original and something that is less likely to get trodden on.  A plus side is that I am pretty sure that I will be the only Emily at my school's Halloween party and it would be a rockin costume. My other thoughts were going as either Clara Bow (silent film star) or Ophelia from Hamlet. For Clara Bow, I would do an all black, white, grey getup, including makeup and if I can find them cheap, contacts and I would carry around a board with the dialogue from one of her films. Plus side, I get to wear an awesome black bob wig, a cloche that I would wear throughout the year, and awesome flapperish attire that I could wear as normal clothes later. Downside, not sure anyone would get it. For Ophelia, I would wear a tattered, stained, flowing nightgown or perhaps create something like Waterhouse's depiction of Ophelia, gel my hair for the sopping wet look, maybe throw in some flowers and leaves, carry some rosemary, rue, etc, white powder my face with a touch of blue on the lips and some icy blue nail polish. Again, fun, but I don't know if anyone would get it.

Anyway, that is where I am in my costume process. Any help would be most welcome. I am loving the ideas that you all have put out here! It sounds like it will be an awesome Halloween!

[N30Nb100d]

I love the idea of going as Ophelia but I do agree people wouldn't get it. I think they would just see it as a ghost/zombie/etc. Clara Bow sounds cool too. People would probably get that you're a "silent movie star" with that one so I think it may work out pretty well. The Corpse Bride doesn't seem as original because I remember lots of people going as the characters after the movie came out.

As for me, I finished my blouse. Ripped apart and redid the collar and am much happier with it now. That means skirts and blouse are done, just need to make the hat and put it all together. I feel like my costume is pretty boring, but I may not be going anywhere this Halloween so I didn't feel like putting in too much money/creativity.

[Kalanit]

Thanks for the advice N30Nb100d. It sounds like you have made real progress on your costume!

[Dragonflower]

I'm hopping in too!
I'm pretty sure I'm going as a Sylvia Ji sugar skull lady, I just have to figure out what to wear. I have plenty makeup colors and paintbrushes and since I'm dead pale anyway I can use regular foundation. I also have a ton of unruly red hair so figuring out some sort of updo should be easy. But I want to put black roses in my hair (Like this - warning: boobies!  ), and I'm having a hard time finding some that aren't really cheap-looking.
I think I want my makeup more like this though:
And I can't decide if I should wear something like this:
or something more like this :
I need to wear my costume both to work and to a very adult party Halloween night.
I've also thought of just doing something like this:

with just a black evening gown, but I'm not dying my hair or wearing a wig, so I'm not sure how a redhaired version would look. I think I can come up with something to put inside my hair to make it look so huge and full like that.
So comments, critiques, pointers?

[Kalanit]

what about making your own out of ribbon? They wouldn't necessarily be realistic, but you wouldn't have to revert to cheap silk roses.

[Dragonflower]

I have thought about that- I made a bunch for hair things for friends back in the spring and they're easy peasy... but hard on the fingers (the stabbing!). I may do that but I haven't given up hope yet.

[FeeSewBug]

I love Halloween, I'm so excited as I have Two events to go to, that does mean two different costumes!!

A victorian-ish get up for a screening of Nosferatu and Little red riding hood but I can't decide if it should be 1950's style(Victory rolls!!) or a kinda traditional dirndl?

I'm needing help with my victorian get up but didn't want to post a massive story(but if anyone is willing to help me I will elaborate!)

Also LuvelyCritter heres a pic of my other half as the cheshire cat

[N30Nb100d]

FeeSewBug, I think you should elaborate! Aren't we all here to help each other?