{"id":233,"date":"2012-10-19T07:12:56","date_gmt":"2012-10-19T13:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/?p=233"},"modified":"2013-01-19T16:32:56","modified_gmt":"2013-01-19T23:32:56","slug":"last-minute-no-sew-halloween-costumes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/archives\/233","title":{"rendered":"LAST-MINUTE, NO-SEW HALLOWE&#8217;EN COSTUMES"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\" align=\"center\"><strong><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">LAST-MINUTE,<\/span><\/em><\/strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><em> NO-SEW HALLOWE\u2019EN COSTUMES<a href=\"http:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/?attachment_id=235\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-235\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-235\" alt=\"Mummy for No-Sew Costumes Oct.\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Mummy-for-No-Sew-Costumes-Oct.1-189x300.jpg\" width=\"189\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Mummy-for-No-Sew-Costumes-Oct.1-189x300.jpg 189w, https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Mummy-for-No-Sew-Costumes-Oct.1-647x1024.jpg 647w, https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Mummy-for-No-Sew-Costumes-Oct.1.jpg 1506w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 189px) 100vw, 189px\" \/><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Resist the urge to buy ready-made costumes this fall\u2014conjuring them up yourself is one of the quickest cheap thrills I know to satisfy the creative urge! My sibs and I grew up trick-or-treating in the flashiest outfits (a skunk that sprayed, a ballerina remade from a pawn-shop wedding gown) and my own kids stuffed their tickle trunk full of disguises they played in all year long (a hula girl, a purple chenille elephant). Like the character in my novel who designs for Incognito Costume Shop, I personally love to sew, but I\u2019ve come across some great ideas that involve nary a stitch\u2014though you might want to heat up your glue gun. Just follow these few principles that ensure costume-making success:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Check out patterns <\/em><\/strong>at your local craft and fabric store or online, but only to ignite your imagination. Don\u2019t cave in to the illusion that, with a bit of luck and a couple of hours, you can fabricate the \u201cStrong Man with Padded Pecs\u201d or \u201cQueen Elizabeth in Historic Honeycomb Collar\u201d! Instead look for strong, thematic images: a <strong><em>woodland nymph<\/em><\/strong> can be born of netting and fake ivy attached to a filmy dress already in your closet; a bulbous red nose is synonymous with a <strong><em>clown<\/em><\/strong>;white greasepaint and gloves paired with a striped t-shirt screams <strong><em>mime.<\/em><\/strong> I once pulled a square of gold-embroidered cranberry sheer silk through a paper cone decorated with sequins for the start of an imperial <strong><em>princess<\/em><\/strong>; this same scarf veiling my face beneath heavily lined eyes later transformed me into a <strong><em>harem girl<\/em><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Utilize inexpensive materials you have on hand.<\/em><\/strong>For example, a thin, old sheet still makes a great <strong><em>ghost,<\/em><\/strong> or add a golden belt and flower coronet for a <strong><em>Greek goddess. <\/em><\/strong>Alternatively strips of that sheet or gauzy cheesecloth can be wound around a body for the perfect <strong><em>mummy<\/em><\/strong> (ensure eyes, mouth, and bottom can be loosened for seeing, snacking, and peeing!). One year our ranch yard yielded up a deerskin hide, cow horns, and a cone from the tip of an airplane propeller spinner; with a screwdriver and a bit of my husband\u2019s brawn, I remodelled our son into a helmeted <strong><em>Viking<\/em> <em>warrior.<\/em><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Visit the dollar store.<\/em><\/strong>Don\u2019t waste money on expensive props;instead go for one oversized item that sparks your imagination. An out-of-season water gun spray-painted black (paired with grandpa\u2019s fedora) has <strong><em>gangsta<\/em><\/strong> written all over it. Blow up two dozen green or purple balloons and pin them onto clothes for a perfect <strong><em>bunch of grapes<\/em>, <\/strong>topped with a cap of curled pipe cleaners as grapevines. Stick softly crumpled sheets of white tissue paper all over your body (or use cotton or quilt batting) and fill a spritzer bottle with water to become a <strong><em>raincloud<\/em><\/strong><em>.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Consider caricatures.<\/em><\/strong> A costume is overblown illustration rather than exact replica. Instead of making a complete furry body for a <strong><em>mouse, <\/em><\/strong>for example, dress your youngster in sweats and draw whiskers radiating from a lipsticked nose, add a tail of heavy cording, and pop on ears via headband with pink-lined grey semicircles of posterboard or stiff fabric. Try stuffing four pairs of tights attached to the waist for an eight-legged <strong><em>spider <\/em><\/strong>or <strong><em>octopus<\/em>. <\/strong>Dress up as a sassy <strong><em>Santa\u2019s helper<\/em><\/strong> using red toque, short skirt, and tall black boots, and give away candy canes from a Christmas-wrapped box. My favourite caricature costume was one my sister made of a <strong><em>marionette<\/em><\/strong>: she dressed in suspenders and shorts, brown ankle boots, perky green hat with feather, and a tie-on Pinocchio nose; she drew \u201cjoints\u201d at the knees on leggings and at the elbows on sleeves; finally, she criss-crossed wooden dowels and attached the four ends to her hands and feet with heavy string. It was remarkable!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Use international souvenirs. <\/em><\/strong>Wooden shoes from Holland and a basket of tulips transformed my daughter into a <strong><em>little Dutch maid<\/em>. <\/strong>The <em>yukata <\/em>robe, sash, and lacquered <em>geta<\/em> sandals I brought back from Japan as a young woman still elicits the <strong><em>geisha<\/em> <\/strong>in me. A sombrero, fake moustache, sandals, and woven poncho say <strong><em>Mexican<\/em><\/strong> loud and clear, <em>se\u00f1or!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Make a point.<\/em><\/strong> Costumes are a great excuse to get up on your soapbox. If you\u2019re a literary buff and want to tell your favourite story, glue on a red \u201cA\u201d and represent Nathaniel Hawthorne\u2019s <strong><em>adulteress <\/em><\/strong>in <em>The Scarlet Letter, <\/em>or carry a large bell and flaunt a hunchback and a limp to bring Victor Hugo\u2019s <strong><em>Quasimodo<\/em> <\/strong>to mind. If you\u2019re a frustrated theologian, carry a hammer, nails, and a scroll titled \u201cNinety-Five Theses\u201d to introduce the event that sparked the Protestant Reformation when the German monk <strong><em>Martin Luther<\/em> <\/strong>posted his opinions on the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church on October 31, 1517. Or dress in tweeds and hat, clench a pipe between your teeth, and grasp a magnifying glass to celebrate <em>The Adventures of<\/em> <strong><em>Sherlock Holmes<\/em>, <\/strong>published by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle on another Hallowe\u2019en\u2014October 31, 1892.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Think professionally.<\/em><\/strong>Grab a carving knife and dress in auntie\u2019s scrubs and mask and as a <strong><em>surgeon<\/em><\/strong>; exchange the knife for pliers and you become a <strong><em>dentist<\/em>. <\/strong>Snorkel plus mask plus ridiculous flippers and a hint of French accent equal <strong><em>Jacques Cousteau.<\/em><\/strong> Transform into a <strong><em>cowboy <\/em><\/strong>with Stetson, chaps, boots, and lasso<strong>. <\/strong>Here\u2019s a fun one for the artist in you: become an artist\u2019s <strong><em>paintbrush<\/em> <\/strong>by dressing all in black or tan, adding a tin-foil band around the neck and maybe silver paint to your face, then gel your hair up straight and spray it a vivid colour.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Don\u2019t discount the humble cardboard box.<\/em><\/strong>A shoulder-width, flat box with openings for head and arms can be painted black and then stuck with skeleton bones of shoulders, chest, pelvis, and thighs to imitate an <strong><em>X-ray machine<\/em><\/strong>; the same carton painted with Cheerios or Lucky Charms simulates a <strong><em>cereal box.<\/em><\/strong> I once made a fabulous robot with a kid-sized box, arms of dryer vent ducting, and battery-powered Christmas lights glinting off the metallic-paint finish. And <strong><em>Rapunzel<\/em><\/strong> is a winner: draw stone shapes on a tall hexagonal box and tape loosely crumpled \u201crocks\u201d of brown paper on the hem to hide the feet; then cut an arched window near the top for your face and attach a long swath of braided blond wool to dangle to the floor.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Don\u2019t give in to purchasing or renting a pre-made costume; designing one is hilariously fun and doesn\u2019t take a lot of expertise\u2014just imagination and a sense of humour!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0LAST-MINUTE, NO-SEW HALLOWE\u2019EN COSTUMES Resist the urge to buy ready-made costumes this fall\u2014conjuring them up yourself is one of the quickest cheap thrills I know to satisfy the creative urge! My sibs and I grew up trick-or-treating in the flashiest outfits (a skunk that sprayed, a ballerina remade from a pawn-shop [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=233"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":239,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233\/revisions\/239"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rolledscroll.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}