Halloween Costume Ideas from 2013 Movies

31 Days of Halloween - Day 19
Costume ideas from 2013 Movies

The zombie kid from Warm Bodies

I didn't see this movie, but it looks cute. I'll add it to my Netflix. Anyway, this is an easy guy costume. Get yourself a red hoodie, zombify it, pale your skin with face paint and carry around some flowers. Those teen zombies are such hopeless romantics.

Spring Breakers
If you and your friends prefer to wear as little clothing as possible, hope you live in a warmer climate! Bright bikinis are in order here but probably most important is the James Franco character with his white guy cornrows, bad sunglasses, grill and loud Hawaiian shirt!

Ryan Gosling in
The Place Beyond the Pines

If we all know one thing to be true, its that ladies love some Ryan Gosling. Am I right ladies?!
Sensitive, Caring, Covered with Tattoos! I'm breaking a sweat just thinking about him. Sigh.

Jackie Robinson in "42"

I enjoyed this movie. Put on your 42, grab a glove and Dodgers Uniform and go for it.


Great Gatsby

Excess, Gold, Art Deco! This is a great group costume opportunity. Men in tuxedos, ladies with cute fringe dresses and headbands. Pop the bubbly and get the party started.


Bridesmaids
Another good group costume idea.

You get it right?

The Lone Ranger
This could be a couples/best friends costume - Tonto and the Lone Ranger.
Have a dead bird handy? Just strap it to your head and get your partner a white cowboy hat. Critics didn't love this movie and I'm not sure how racially insensitive it is as a costume, but hey I say go for it.

Love and Fake Eyelashes,

KostumeGirl

Follow me on Twitter!

ZombieCon NYC is October 12th 2013

Gather the horde cause the zombies are reuniting to scare the living bejezzuz out of unsuspecting civilians.

ZombieCon NYC 2013 is October Saturday 12th!

RSVP and splash on the blood liberally!

ZOMBIECON NYC 2013 

~ World War X ~

A scary, silly, slightly x-rated, shockathon rampage.

Zombie lore is growing like never before... Brad Pitt is investing, TV networks are thriving and Undead Chic is all-the-rage ... And somewhere along the way, all this slippery, scabby, brain-sucky fun got kinda sexy.  Or, at least it will be on...

Saturday October 12th

Noon til Nite

Manhattan Route TBA soon 

RSVP for info updates

- Email list & info

- Twitter

FREE early with donation requested at 5pm dance party location. 

THEME

Zombie characters from any zombie flick, show or comic - with a sleazy, bleedy, edge...  Main characters or those cameo'd and quickly killed... You cannot have an easier theme... Special spaztastic public activities designed for hilarity, hotness and horrification.  And Drinking...

ROUTE:

Manhattan with plans to flow through a certain comicy convention en route to the super special Zombie dance-party after 5.  Noon Launch spot TBA the week of 10/7.  Be there by 1pm for maximum fun or RSVP for updates throughout the day.

BRING: Comfortable walking shoes and extra zombie makeup/ blood to zombify others as we go... Zombies are infectious!

PARTICIPATE or beware. Looky-loo tag alongs are subject to explosive zombie barf.

ABOUT: 

This is Zombiecon #9 developed by a creative community that has crazy costumey fun year-around.  We have bloodied the Wall Street Bull, attacked Fox News and brought much irony to many public places… (We are more than a bar crawl!)  For more check zombiecon.com and kostumekult.com

Zombie costumes are easy and inexpensive. For more on how to prepare you costume visit my post on how to Zombify yourself! I also have a post for a zombie makeup tutorial. Do Enjoy!

Check out this awesome photo taken at last years event. It was taken by the talented Caryn La Greca. 
Take a look at her other photos from the event!

Photo Credit: Caryn La Greca

Love and Brains,
KostumeGirl 

How to zombify yourself. Making a zombie costume in a few easy cheap steps.

So you want to be a zombie?


Great! Join the hoards of seething undead, embarrass your family and do ANYTHING for free brains. But what will you wear?
I'm hear to show you how in a few easy steps you can look your Zombie best for ZombieCon or any other undead occasion.

Here are a few things you may need:
Serrated Knife or Exact-o blade
Face Paint (white, red, black)
Acrylic Craft Paint (about 60cents a bottle at Michaels)
Old clothing or costume
Bloody Scab ($4 at Ricky's)
Fake Blood


One thing to consider is when a living person is transformed into a Zombie, or infected, they will stuck forever wearing the clothing they were wearing at the time of their infection. So for example if one were a sexy nurse or a sexy construction worker, they would simple become a sexy zombie nurse or sexy zombie construction worker. Sexy is a given here. Start with your base clothing or costume. Hit up the thrift store or the back of your closet for items you do not want to wear in a "normal" situation again. Remember to dress for the weather too. Just cause you are no longer human doesn't mean you can't get a little chilly out there! Then let the fun begin!

Do not just use a scissors and cut zig zaggy shapes on the edges of your clothing. This is an amateur move. The clothing has to look like it has been ripped and shredded from chasing innocent people through the woods, stopping at nothing to devour their brains! Anyway I use a serraded knife or Exact-o blade and also rip the clothing by hand. Caution: if you go too crazy with the deconstruction of your clothing it will not stay on you anymore and the police will be more likely to bother you for unintentionally exposing yourself. Cut and tear a little bit at a time, trying it on, looking in the mirror and deciding where you need more damage.

Then begin the bloodying process! Get some cheap acrylic craft paint at the store in dark red and black. Don't get a bright fire engine red cause real blood does not look like that when it dries on clothing. Take the item of clothing in your hands, add two drops of red paint and one of black then rub the fabric together like you are scrubbing out a stain. This will give a natural dirt plus blood effect. DO add LOTS of blood around the tears in your clothing because this makes sense. DO add LOTS of blood down your chest as if it has been dripping there from the brains you ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner. DO allow plenty of time for your outfit to dry before the event you are attending. Nobody likes wet paint in their car or on their couch.

Now your outfit looks good time to work on your makeup.
Watch the Sexy Zombie Makeup Tutorial here.
Start with a white or light grey base because after all Zombies are dead bodies. Add lots of black makeup to your eyes and a fair amount on your cheeks to make them look more sunken in. Fake blood - I have tried some however most are too sticky and never dry. I much prefer to use red and black face paint around my mouth and then add this magic stuff called "Bloody Scab". It looks like just that. Add it sporadically around your face and neck for optimum results. I think a detail that people overlook is that zombies have really dirty hands. Take the black face paint and rub on the backs of your hands as if you're just dug your way out of a fresh grave!


Congratulations! You are ready to go terrorize some civilians! Don't forget to stagger, gasp, groan, roll your eyes, get distracted by shiny things, let out a terrible scream for no reason and reek havoc in general. However try not to intentionally scare children, thats just not nice.



OXOX, Kostume Girl

Halloween Costumes on a Budget - Guys Edition

31 Days of Halloween - Day 1

So you spent all your money at Oktoberfest this year and now you have no more moola left for your Halloween costume.  No problem!  Kostume Girl is here with a few clever ideas that can get you to the party costumed and ready.

Guy Who Passed Out at the Party-
Supplies: plain white t-shirt, jeans, a Sharpie and a black eyeliner pencil, possibly a red Solo cup

Write all sorts of "hilarious" things your friends would write on you if you were the first person to pass out at a house party on the t-shirt with the black Sharpie. Then use the black eye liner NOT THE SHARPIE to continue drawing wieners, mustaches and "I heart Disco" on your face. You can use the red Solo cup to drink out of all night or attach it to a headband and wear it on your head as if you "hilarious" friends balanced it on your passed out head. Remember to buy eye makeup remover and a bag of cotton balls beforehand cause you're gonna need it!


Marathon Runner-
Supplies: Running apparel, old racing bib or printout, red paint

Nobody enjoys self torture more than marathon runners. I wish they would trade in the sneakers and upgrade to a whip and self flagellation . We're not going to judge!
Anyway, dress in normal running clothing, sacrifice the free shirt they gave you that one time you did a 5K and drip the red paint right at your nipples. Pin your number to your front and ta-da!

NYC Tourist-
MTA map, Bright colored shorts, camera with neck strap, backpack

It was my New Year's Resolution to be nicer to NYC tourists who are standing in gaggles with their shorts on blocking the sidewalk. So far I've been fairly successful. I don't want them leaving NYC thinking we are all cynical d-bags (We just have places to be!). Anyway this costume is easy peasy. Dress in bright colors and shorts that no native New Yorker would be caught dead in. Proudly display your camera around your neck and unfold that MTA map all the way! Make sure to ask everyone around for directions and "Where can I find a bathroom!!??!". If you have friends, dress as a tour group and one of you can hold that really tall flag and you all follow him around so you don't get lost.


To Catch a Predator Star-
Trashy t-shirt, sweatpants, six pack of Bartles & Jaymes

Sure this idea is in poor taste, but I also find it very funny. Put on your "Just the Tip" or Eaton Beavers t-shirt, make sure to cut the sleeves off and perhaps add some grass stains from when the police officers tackled you on the front lawn and covertly tuck your six pack of wine coolers under your arm. Perhaps you have a friend who could be Chris Hansen! Simply print out a transcript of your dirty chat session with an underage girl (that's bad, don't actually do that).


Just for fun, here's Adam Sandler's terrible cheap Halloween costume ideas on old school SNL Weekend Update.



Well I hope that helped. Get creative and go have a good time. Just remember Guys, don't be the first to pass out at the party and don't fall for a young looking girl with a plate of brownies just for you!

XOXO
-Kostume Girl

Hauntcon 2012 Recap

Kostume Girl's trip to HAuNTcon in Monroeville, PA in May was terrific. I returned to NYC triumphant with a suitcase STUFFED (I had to sit on it in order to zip it closed) full of new makeup, catalogs and oddities. The Halloween fans I met were enthusiastic, creative and just super nice.

Halloween Booty from the first day of Hauntcon

Meeting the people behind the haunts was great. For so many people out there running a haunt is a family business. They work incredibly hard during the Halloween season to scare as many people as they possibly can. I met nice guys from Austin, TX who run a non profit haunt to raise money for breast cancer research called Scare for a Cure. Their attraction is described as "Austin's only extreme, full contact, interactive haunted house adventure—guaranteed to chill you to the depths of your soul!".  You can volunteer your time and scaring skills for a great cause there.

The couple that collects roadkill together...

For something completely different, I met a couple who reside in the curiosity exhibit known as Trundle Manor. In the town of Swissvale, PA you will find a house filled to the brim with their collection of formaldehyde preserved critters in jars, antique weaponry and more taxidermy than is probably legal. So if you are a little bit steampunk and a little bit rock and roll, this place is right up your alley. Here's a fun fact: All of the animals featured at Trundle Manor died of natural causes, well as natural as roadkill can be.

I knew Halloween is a huge industry but I had no clue the vast arrays of technical equipment and scare products out there.  Take for instance companies like  Frightprops and Scare Products. They sell huge animated spiders, motion floors, air blasters and latex props that can be installed in your haunt to ramp up the screams. I'm a notorious wuss when it comes to haunted houses. Being in the dark with the very real possibility of something jumping out to scare me around every corner makes my heart rate increase to dangerous levels. When I tried explaining to the people I met that not only do I not run a haunted venue but in general I do not visit them, there was a lot of laughing at me, not with me. Its ok though I love Halloween for the spectacle and the costumes. I know scary business comes with it too so I'm working on embracing the holiday completely and facing my fears head on!

RJ Haddy turns good looking Martin into
Creepy Ghoul But Still Kind of Good Looking Martin.

One of my goals while at Hauntcon was to learn as much as I possibly could about airbrush body paint. As part of a plan to up my kostume game, I've been entertaining the idea of purchasing my own airbrush system. It turns out this was the perfect event to do just that.  I attended a hands on workshop taught by makeup artist RJ Haddy, best known from the reality TV show Face Off. With only an hour to do so, he showed us the basics on how to apply a foam latex appliance and blend it into the skin fairly seamlessly with airbrush techniques. For most haunts, speed is the main concern since you are trying to prepare a multitude of actors or volunteer haunters for your event. An airbrush can really help facilitate a speedy application of all sorts of scary OR SEXY looks. Personally I cannot wait to try out my new airbrush set for Mermaid Day parade. No more painting my entire body with a sponge for 2 hours. No wonder I'm always late to the parade! 

Sexy leopard spots sealed the deal
on my airbrush purchase!

I also attended a seminar on airbrush basics taught by Constance Hall. She and her father Cleve Hall are the stars of a new show on the SyFy channel called Monster Man. Constance showed us basic shading techniques including how to add fine line veins to the face and how to use lace to make interesting textures with your airbrush. She also went over what can go wrong when you are airbrushing and how to troubleshoot. It was very inspiring and I'm sure in no time I will be bribing my friends to let me practice on them!


The final straw that really made me believe I had to have an airbrush was when one of the guys from Evil Twin FX painted sexy leopard spots on me. I was in love. Imagine doing that to your whole body! Shortly after, I bought an airbrush from the knowledgable guy at the Paasche booth based on the fact that all the pros there seemed to be using his airbrushes for their demos. He patiently showed me how to put it together and what never to clean it with. Big thanks to Chuck! Hopefully you have started me off on a path to a new way for me to elevate the caliber of my costumes. 


Leaving the trade show on Saturday it was time to wash off my day makeup and get ready to put on my zombie makeup. The highlight of Hauntcon was that night, The Dawn of the Dead Costume Ball! Time for all the attendees to show off their costume and make up skills. They did not disappoint!

How to freak out your roommate.

For the event I made a special zombie dress from muslin. I wanted a fabric that would really soak up the blood and show it off. Also it was super cheap! I spent $12 for 4 yards of 65" muslin at 21st Century Fabrics (263 West 37th Street between 7th and 8th Aves). I used a pilgrim dress pattern from Simplicity 3723. Then I used Rid Crimson dye and black and red craft paint to bloody up the dress. Its weird sewing a complete dress just to tear it up again. I suggest doing the ripping of the dress with a serrated knife stabbing holes at random spots, especially along the hems. Be careful to do a little tear at a time, the dress still has to fit on your body.
After you are happy with your now damaged garment, hang it on a hanger with a garbage bag inside of it and hang it the bathtub or shower. The garbage bag prevents the paint and dye from bleeding through to the back of the garment. You want the majority of the "blood" on the front since you are a zombie gorging on brains all day. Start by dripping the paint from the top down. If you want, splash a small amount of water to help it drip down the dress. Use gravity to your advantage and don't forget to do this in the bathtub! Once you have added enough blood, let it dry and clean the bathtub right away. The dye does stain and you don't want to end up scrubbing grout for hours.  Once your garment has dried, try crunching it up in a ball and stepping on it a bit to add some wrinkles and to loosen up the painted part as it can get a little stiff once it has completely dried. 


Here is my finished zombie dress and make up. I did the make up using the same techniques as in my Zombie Make up tutorial but I really laid it on thick! I ended up bustling the dress a bit cause people were stepping on it at the dance. This is probably my new favorite wig. I bought it at a Halloween sample sale. It's similar to my real hair but thicker and with dramatic bangs.

Thank you for the sweet pic, Doreena!

Do NOT come and play with them!

Ok so back to the costume ball... There were LOT of really scary zombies there including some zombie construction workers, zombie rednecks, zombie lumberjacks, zombie doctors, and some zombie clowns that will forever haunt my nightmares. Food and free beer was sponsored by Froggy's fog company and then there was dancing into the night. Everyone knows zombies love to dance. Check out a more of my photos. 


As I said in the beginning of this post everyone at Hauntcon was so friendly. At the ball I got the chance to chat with two lovely girls from Las Vegas named Doreena and Tabitha. Their twin zombie girls costumes were great. Love the wigs and those matching baby dolls! These ladies have been working on a Halloween photo book for the past year documenting the many Vegas Halloween events and the people at them. They were obviously VERY busy girls for the month of October. Look for their book Halloween In Vegas Coming Soon!


I will be doing some more posts about the cool people and products I discovered at HauntCon, especially as Halloween draws closer and closer. We are past the half way point people!


Love,
Kostume Girl


PS. Follow me on Twitter @Kostumegirl

KostumeGirl's 2011 Wrap Up

As I look back on my posts from 2011, I'd have to say this was my best year for costumes yet! Through practice and good old fashioned trial and error I've learned how to build costumes that are comfortable without losing any WOW factor. I've also learned what can be built and what you should just purchase ready made. If you will oblige me, I'd like to take a trip down memory road and recap my favorite costumes of 2011.

The year was off to a running start in February with a very daring and clever (at least I thought so) costume that I wore to Kostume Kult's 5th Annual Alt. Oscars, the wildest costume Oscar party out there. Attending this year were flocks of Black Swans, Tron, Pixar characters and myself as the 2010 epic film Piranha 3D. How this film, NAY this work of art, remains yet un-nominated for an Oscar is a great travesty. Briefly, the movie is about an underwater tremor that releases millions of prehistoric piranhas from their dormant state. This unfortunate event happens to coincide with Spring Break at Lake Victoria where hundreds of coeds are letting loose in the water as well. The two make for a deadly mixer. So basically I was dressed as a college spring breaker who met an unfortunate piranha feeding frenzy demise. To read my detailed recap click here. For more photos from this raucous event, check out this great album of photos of the event by my friend Loren Darklyng. It won't be long before this event comes around again and the Kostume Kult red carpet is rolled out so start thinking about your favorite movies from 2011 and which one would make a great costume. You could win yourself a coveted Atly!


April brought spring flowers and an AMAZING event called Horned Ball 7: Road to Valhalla. Kostume Kult hosted this event at Santo's Party House this year. The Party House was transformed back in time to a viking wonderland with a ship, ice, fire and animal hides. Really an unbelievable transformation and the set up crew deserves lots of props for a bang up job. Oh and if you do not know, Horned Ball is a spring event with a horned or mythical beast theme. For the past two Horned Balls, I have dressed as a unicorn. The first attempt was pretty amateur with a paper towel roll horn but in 2011 I got it right. I found a Christmas ornament for my inspiration that was a white and red spiral and happened to look a lot like a horn! I mounted it on a headband and set to work on a red and white spandex body suit. I'm very happy with the results. Read my previous post for full recap for more pictures.

In June the NYC weather finally warms up and the sea creatures get their chance to shine at the Coney Island Mermaid Day Parade. I must admit this is the event I tend to get the most attention at. There are a LOT of great photographers there and I love finding my photos online after the parade. The event organizers have got this parade down to a science now since it has been going on for more than 10 years and there is even a family friendly section of the parade where the nudity is less brazen and the mixed drinks don't fly quite as loosely. Anyway I went to the mermaid parade with my wonderful college friend and co-creator of the "More is More" mantra, Erin. Also attending were our friends Melissa and Natalie, both Mermaid Parade first timers. The weather was great and we had an absolute blast. Read about it in my previous post recapping Mermaid Day 2011. If you are looking for an event that celebrates costumes without the debauchery of SantaCon give the Mermaid Day Parade a try. Coney Island is a bit of a trip but I love to do it once a year.

In July I was "featured" in a photographic list of "48 Things You Will Only See in NYC" on Buzzfeed.com. The photo is actually from 2010 when I was riding the train home from the Mermaid Parade. As you can see I was resting between some of my neighbors on the 7 train. As usual I was not thinking anything odd about the way I was dressed as strangers stared at me and took pictures! Anyway I'm proud to be part of the NYC spectacle. Living here never gets old that's for sure.

July was also when I debuted my first makeup tutorial! I did face paint for my Cheshire Cat costume for the Massive Mad Hatter Tea Party in the West Village. As I was getting ready I made a little tutorial to help out people trying to recreate the look or get some inspiration. I hope to add many more tutorials on makeup, sewing and costume crafting.

Skipping to October, I attended NYC Comic Con for the first time. There are some very serious cosplay and costumers at ComicCon so I was ready to be out dressed for sure. I went as Minnie Mouse since I've been a fan since I was about 4. I sewed my costume the week before and got a great pair of tights from work.The ears I found in the costume dome out at Burning Man. Thank goodness I held on to them! We took some fun photos at Comic Con, walked around all day and bought some great original art! I think I am ready to upgrade to San Diego Comic Con!

Such a busy October! Only two days after ComicCon was ZombieCon. I found my inspiration for my outfit this year at Mood Fabrics. I was buying plain fabric for a sewing class when I spotted a beautiful black and white striped thick jersey. INSPIRED, I went home and started thinking about how to sew it into a horrifying zombie dress. Luckily I stumbled upon some help when I found a video on YouTube for How to Sew a Morticia Addams Dress. It was exactly the silhouette I was looking for. Then I bloodied it up with some fabric dye and paint. This picture is silly and I have no idea what I was doing, but I like it. For some reason I do not have a lot of photos from that event. I'm sad cause I don't think I got a good full length one of the dress. Oh well. Sometimes you just have to go out and have an experience and not worry about documenting every second of it.
I also did a Zombie makeup tutorial that got a lot of views on You Tube right before ZombieCon. This video was much more complete and polished. It even had the music from 28 Days behind it. Hopefully it helped some people achieve the sexy zombie look they were going for.

Then of course, the Grandaddy of them all Halloween. This year was a special circumstance however since I had been in California Halloween weekend for a wedding. My flight back to NYC landed at 3pm the day of Halloween so I had just enough time to go home, throw on something and head to the NYC Village Halloween Parade! It was worth it to walk along side the Kostume Kult parade float which looked insane and great with its Eye-Kandy theme and rocking sound system. Check out some of the video I took. Also a highlight my friend Erin @erinokeefe5 won the costume contest at the W hotel on Park Ave! She was a Sexy Porcupine. Spiky!

Rounding off the year was SantaCon. This event has grown to proportions that are simply epic. Telling someone you are going to SantaCon hardly requires any explanation anymore. I was a Sexy Candy Cane and I think it turned out great. The wig and headpiece required a great deal of work but the leggings thankfully I reused from my Horned Ball unicorn costume. I love the bold red and white stripes and the long length of my wig. Right as I arrived at the South Street Seaport one of the most exciting events in my creative career happened. Bill Cunningham took my photo! He is a NYC fashion and street photographer for The New York Times and was recently the subject of a documentary. He took some photos of me, I said Hi and gave him my card and prayed my photo would show up in the Times. Then low and behold a few days later, there I was in the Times Sunday Style section and even in a video of the photos he took called Reds. So very exciting! I will have to save a clipping and put it in my portfolio.

So there you have it. The many events and many costumes of 2011. As always I have ideas brewing for the coming year so check back for more updates. Happy New Year!

-KostumeGirl
Twitter @Kostumegirl

Group Costume Ideas for SantaCon

Group costume ideas for Santa Con!

Snowflakes:
No two are alike after all but you and your friends could be a blizzard of fluffy white snowflakes! I've seen big foam snowflakes at the Dollar Store which you could attach to your white outfit. Of course if you are participating in SantaCon NYC your whites wont stay that white on the subway! Sorry.

Santa's Reindeer:

Of course you will have to fight over who gets to be Blitzen cause we all know how he had a problem with the egg nog. Extra points if you manage to tether all 9 of you together to a sleigh and drag it around town all day.


12 Days of Christmas:

Ok so the first few days are easy. Just hope you don't get screwed and end up having to come up with 11 Lords a Leapin'. *This is for very ambitious costume groups only.*


Home Alone

Nuff Said


A Christmas Story

Lots of good costume opportunities here. Raphie in the pink bunny suit from his Aunt Clara. There is even directions on making your own pink bunny suit on Instructables! Ralphie in his cowboy outfit with BB gun. Then again, leave the BB gun at home. The NYPD can be a little uptight. What about being "Blind Ralphie"? "It... It 'twas... soap poisoning!" Then they will be sorry!! Also someone has to be the most rotten one of them all, Scut Farkus. Someone could be the lamp! I saw on a blog once a girl with one leg and a great sense of humor who was the leg lamp for Halloween. Way to laugh about it! Fra-gee-lay! That must be Italian.

Check out some of my previous SantaCon posts for tips and MORE costume ideas!

Santa Says: "I'll be sending periodic bulletins through the rare North Pole twitter-bird at twitter.com/santacon."

SantaCon Wig Progress

As SantaCon NYC draws closer still, my costume preparation is in full swing. Usually I procrastinate till the last few days before, but this year I'm almost ahead of the game! So with my motivation I've decided to write a little post about my big wig for the event.
With every costume it is important to pick a color scheme and really adhere to it. Otherwise your outfit can look a little haphazard. This year I am going to be a Sexy Candy Cane so my colors are obviously white and red. I found a lot of good Christmas decorations at dollar stores this year as well as my favorite store Michael's Craft Store.
*Side note: If you have a smart phone download Michael's app. They can scan weekly coupons right off the phone so you never have to be annoyed you forgot your 40% off one item coupon at home. I love it!*
Anyway the wig I had envisioned in my head was white with red stripes which would have to be custom made. However I'm not Lady Gaga and commissioning a custom piece is not in my wig budget. If it were, I would by wigs from PoshFairytaleCouture an amazing seller on Etsy with mind blowing headpieces and wigs.

Inspiring indeed.
So to realize my wig vision I had to do a little improvising. After reading lots of Amazon reviews I bought a long white wig that a lot of people had purchased to be Storm from the X-Men for Halloween from ToyNK.com. Its a very long wig for how inexpensive it was and it has little threads of sliver tinsel in it that you can't see well in the photo online but in person is very cool. Then I bought red hair extensions at Wigs and Plus (152 W 32nd St btw Avenue Of The Americas & Penn Plz). Great store for wigs, extensions, lashes, contact lenses at very good prices. The extensions are Kanekalon braids in bright red. They are not attached to a weft or a clip so its basically loose hair. They are kind of hard to work with since once you remove the rubber band the hair goes everywhere but I found a way to make it work. I took a needle from my knitting kit with a large eye. Then I threaded a small amount of hair through it, pulled it through the mesh of the wig and attached with a slip knot and a dot of hot glue. I tried to evenly space the red so it looked like stripes on a candy cane. It was a pain, but the results are amazing. I will wait to reveal the completed wig. This is after all just a tease. In order to add all the fun glitterly goodies I wanted to, I needed a base to attach them to my wig. So I took a styrofoam cone that would be used for a floral arrangement and bobby pined it to the wig but pushing bobby pins into the bottom of the styrofoam cone from inside, catching the mesh. I swirled the hair around it, pined it to the styrofoam and then went crazy with glitter picks and dollar store tree decorations. It looks as though Christmas has exploded on my head. Another Sneak Peek...
Meet up with me at SantaCon NYC on December 10, 2011 to see the final look. It's gonna be Candy Cane-riffic!
I will be tweeting during SantaCon so if the NYCSantaCon gets bogged down follow me @kostumegirl for locations!

PirateCon NYC Sept. 17 2011

BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES! As the blustery winds if Hurricane Irene threaten the East coast and kick up the surf I'm reminded of a certain group of pillaging villains that relish in this inclement weather. PIRATES! ARGH! AHOY! AVAST and all that!
If you would like to indulge your bad boy/girl pirate side in a little fun I recommend and upcoming NYC event.

PIRATECON 2011
Saturday September 17 from 11:30am - 10:00pm
Drink some rum or pirate booty brew of your choice and join for fellow scallywags for a fun pub crawl in Manhattan dressed as Cap'n Hook, Smee, or a Pirate Wench.

Here are a few links with photos from last years event. They can be found at MetroMix and Village Voice.
Pirate costumes can be pretty easy. Party City always has eye patches and pirate hats on hand. Besides that guys, just put on some worn cargo shorts and a striped shirt and don't shave. Ladys, put on all your jewelry at once and get a Jolly Roger bandana. Not sure why pirates love red and white stripes, but they do. Bonus points if you can get your drunk ass parrot to stay on your shoulder the whole time.

Check out their Facebook event page for some good information.

ARGH! Follow on me twitter @kostumegirl.

Note: This is not a Kostume Kult event.