ZOMBIECON NYC 2015 is Saturday October 17th

Zombiecon NYC #11
~Walkers in Wonderland~

It's official, "Happy Ever After" is dead. Not only is it dead, its rotting and it stinks of putrid decaying flesh. Those fairy tale dreams and childhood story fantasies you once had are shot down like a walker who broke through the containment zone. Come stagger and moan as your favorite zombified cartoon, fairy tale or childhood movie characters at Zombie Con NYC 2015: Walkers in Wonderland. All day enjoy the company of your fellow undead as create our own Dismaland shuffling after mortals and scaring the bejesus out of tourists.

Saturday October 17th, 2015
11:30am til Night

Our starting location will be announced the day before and zombies shall assemble to put the finishing touches on their zombie make up and begin to terrorize the neighborhood. We will shamble through streets and into fine establishments to quench our terrible thirst for brains. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for hourly updates.

Theme: All zombies are welcome however if you would like to play along with the theme dress as a zombie version of your favorite fairy tale character, childhood tv show host, cartoon star, muppet, beloved movie hero/heroine. Just remember to zombify it. Add blood, add brains, add fun!!

And don't forget if someone asks you "What is going on?" The proper answer is "Brains!"

ABOUT: Zombiecon NYC was the first big zombie walk and maintains its uniqueness with themes. We urge all to participate while staying safe and "leaving no trace" at all venues we visit. We are part of a bigger community with many year-around events with more info at kostumekult.com.

RSVP
Mailing List:  http://www.zombiecon.com/
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/zombieconnyc

Group Costume Ideas - Halloween 2013

People can not get enough of group costumes! Turn up the fun to 11 and dress as a group costume this Halloween. 

Here are some starting point ideas. Run with it, bring props, soundtracks, dance routines!  

Seasons (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter)

Ideal for 4 friends but you can always add more people per season. 

To do it yourself, head out to your local inexpensive trendy place (i.e. Forever 21, Rainbow, Strawberry) to find cute outfits in appropriate seasonal colors. Then head to Micheal's Craft Store to decorate them. Since their holiday decorating items are already out you will be able to find snowflakes and autumn leaves as well as spring blooms and sunflowers. All are available in their HUGE fake flower section! Make headpieces with a lightweight basic wreath as a base. Do fun glittery makeup. Have Fun!

Summer

Winter

Autumn Fairy Wings

Spring Fairy

Bachelorette Party (All Brides Edition)

EASY! Go to the party store, buy all the penis adorned party tiaras you can handle, go out get drunk and scream "whoooo!" all night. People will think you are actually having a bachelorette party. They will ask who the bride and you can all scream "Meeeee bitches!!".

Mean Girls 

You could dress like their regular outfits from the movie poster OR..

One girl does Regina George in her "sabotaged" tank top or halo prom queen.

On Wednesday we wear pink.

Gretchen Wieners in her Santa baby outfit

That is so fetch!

Karen Smith as Sexy Mouse

I'm a MOUSE. DUH.

Cady Heron in her Halloween costume

Why are you dressed so scary?

You get the idea. I love that movie!

Don't forget Janice and Damien!

Marvel Superheros

Spirit pop-up Halloween stores are everywhere! I must admit though they have stepped up their game with some very funny and creative new costumes. One really cute new category  I saw is the "sexy" Marvel hero section. Corsets, tutus and booty shorts adorned with your character of choice! I would LOVE to be Sexy Wolverine sometime, sideburns and all. The Spirit Halloween store pictured is on 6th Ave between 32nd and 3rd street by Herald Square. For more locations visit their directory site. 

Booty Short WITH CAPE!!

These guys are doing it right.

Last one:
BAD Disney Princesses

Fairytale Mugshot 

Love this idea. Dress as the Disney Princesses then make mugshot signs with your crime written on them. Cute!

As always I encourage you to tap into your creative side, take these ideas and run like crazy with them!

Love and Tutus,
KostumeGirl

Autumn Affair in Windham, NY is Oct. 12 & 13th

October 12 & 13th 2013 up in the beautiful Catskill mountains will be a special autumn festival hosted by my home town of Windham. Its called the Autumn Affair!

Great for a day trip since the leaves will be at peak colors, come pick out a pumpkin and celebrate not paying $15 for it at Whole Foods in Manhattan! More festival details here.

In related news I will be doing my first craft fair during the Autumn Affair. That's right your very own Kostume Girls Closet will be set up and I'm bringing a little bit of everything! Cute tiny witch hats on headbands, Day of the Dead Sugar Skull masks and full blown wigs and headpieces. I'm very excited to share my over stuffed closet with the people. Just look for me on Main Street next to the Millrock restaurant. Believe me, Main Street is not so big, just take a stroll down the leaf covered slate sidewalks and you will be able to find me. Also I'll be in costume of course!

XOXO
KostumeGirl

Burning Man 2013 - How was your trip?

Burning Man 2013 - How was your trip?

Here I am again back in the real world after my 3rd trip to the dry hot/cold dusty weirdo land that is Burning Man. Once again friends, family and coworkers are asking out of politeness or actual intrigue, "How was your trip?" or as my Uncle Tony put it, "How was Burning Tree?". Well..

I arrived at the Reno airport feeling like a seasoned vet as friends started pouring off their flights, met Kendrick and knew he was a kindred spirit right away, played Car Tetris getting more supplies than is safe packed into an SVU, gave Tempe his new name: Optimist Prime, saw 2 weirdos with a REAL OWL in their car during entrance traffic, they claimed it was the owl who played Hedgewick in Harry Potter (yeah right), helped introduced Kendrick the virgin to playa angels and the dust stroke, arrived at my Burning Man home at 3:15 & Esplanade and joined 170 or so of my closest friends at the best damn camp on playa, met my new friends from Tennessee, was enthusiastically greeted by Kostume Kulters who may or may not have been drinking, was completely in awe of the playa at night again, rode around on the Electric Bubble Bus with MC Christopher who makes each person feel like a VIP, went to church, came across an abandoned crashed UFO, thought to myself the Man is so short this year, was 100% entertained by Stefan Spins fire hula hooping skills and showmanship, was covered in SPF 50 each day by Baba the Love Sponge, walked out to opening day of our runway dripping in diamonds, talked and goofed and never got tired of MCing on our frontage, probably let the power of the microphone go to my head, gave away about 5,000 pairs of Mickey and Minnie ears (hot item on playa this year), used my megaphone for good and a little tiny bit of evil, did the triple pickle back pass with Geoff, twerked on the runway, introduced myself as Assmaster, got all sorts of strange looks, helped Kimmy put Kong's tutu on for TUTU Tuesday, visited the Crop Circle Cantina, had a very nice conversation with a handsome bearded gentlemen in a French Maid costume, we gifted him said costume earlier in the day at Kostume Kult, he said it changed his whole experience for the better (this is what we do), saw 2 muppets performing Lionel Richie's All Night Long, could not stop laughing, was blessed by a lady/man with the "Pineapple of Truth", laughed for hours again, dropped into Balls Deep (A dome full of yoga balls), danced in front of the Mayan God art cat, loved the Ichthyosaur Puppet Project, also loved both of the spinning and strobing animated sculptures, was very entertained by the Sheep art car's back entrance (which I initially thought was an Aardvark), was given a tour of the pinata art car's control room (Yes, there is candy inside), was gifted my pirate name "Queen Dancing Shark" but then changed it to the much better "Lady Tiger Shark", took another Pirate Night journey aboard the Nautilus X to deep sea adventures with sexy pirates and wenches, drank some mighty strong whiskey from Ian, fell in love with a soft fluffy white furry art car that matched my playa coat, started a Little Mermaid sing-a-long while laying with pirates in a piece of art, asked strangers to tell me something interesting about themselves, wore my very first pair of pasties, finally found Robot Heart, was NOT disappointed, participated to my hearts content, watched when I was overwhelmed, was attacked by vicious piranhas in Black Rock Lake (Don't go swimming there, its just not safe!), finally saw a fight in the Thunder Dome, was fairly intimidated/jealous by the chicks at Death Guild and their flame throwers, witnessed LOTS of fire at Charcade, figured out how to shove ear plugs far enough into my head so they are effective, slept quite well, enjoyed Miguel's "hot coals" dance moves, found new species of fungi art in the Flaming Lotus Girl's Tree sculpture, rode along side TOAD as he charmed the masses, got a sore butt from my little pixie bike, totally biffed it off of my bike while acting like a dork and weaving through the BELIEVE artwork, shook the dust out of my party cat onesie and got back on the wagon, climbed the Like Temple but then quickly climbed down as it was "too cheesy to spend a sunrise there", wore lots of onesies and questioned whether or not I am a plushy at heart, accidentally peed on my onesie and decided maybe I'm not plushy material, found a forrest of Truffula trees, was just thrilled with all the people willing to play along with my goofy ideas (that never happens in the real world), ran in circles like a kid, marveled at El Pulpo Mechanico again and again, watched Tempe run off into the dust "Gooodbyeeeeee!", met The Devil at a bar, made s'mores on wire coat hangers with the lost boys/girls of Kostume Kult, went to a sexy safari party at Club Bang Bang again where the sexiest beasts are found, saw the sun come up AGAIN, had my very first set of pasties removed by a friend...like a band-aid (yikes), watched those nutty marathoners run by our frontage, cat called hotties from our dance platform with Amanda, heard a really funny story about a group of crabby crabs, danced the Sexy Snake...Sexy Kangaroo...Sexy Gopher...Sexy Sloth!, watched the flames crawl up and over the Man during the most beautiful burn to date from the best seat in the house the Electric Bubble Bus, my eyeballs and brain melted from the sight of it all, felt the crowds energy level rise during the burn, was prepared for the dust storm after with my goggles and dust mask, enjoyed coming home to find friends to talk to in the common shade, lost my voice, once again did not make it to Bubbles and Bass, slept no more than 3-4 hours a night, said Good Morning each day to my neighbor Exactly, just wished I had more time, packed my things including about 20 extra lbs of new costumes, said goodbye to the early burning Temple from afar, sat in exodus dust storms and traffic that moving once and hour, drove back into the default world, had a very big breakfast at Peg's Glorified Eggs, washed the shit out of our rental car, took an amazing shower where I used 3 hotel mini bottles of shampoo, enjoyed the very little bit of time I had left with my west coast friends, got on the plane in Reno with LOTS of burners, got on the plane in Phoenix with very few burners, started dealing with the decompression back into reality and that about brings me to now.

Photo Credit: Jendra Jarnagin

I have to say my trip was less spiritual this year and more about the fun and silliness. It could be reflective of my default life and how I haven't felt deep spiritual connection in a while or just a particularly silly year. Either way it wouldn't trade it for anything. Now that I have a few burns under my belt, I can bring knowledge of the things that worked and didn't work to next years event. During exodus I was asked if I am planning to go again next year. I  always say "No, I'm going to Europe next year!", but who am I kidding? As a friend once said, "My name is Fortune Cookie. I'm from the future. This will not be my last burn.".

I took some pictures but for the most part I just tried to live in the moment. Besides my camera isn't good enough to really capture any of the amazing sights you will find at Burning Man. I'm grateful for the talented folks who do take great photographs and video. My friend Stefan made this amazing video this year that really captures Burning Man's romantic side.
Please enjoy...

Mardi Gras Costumes & Jazz Funeral Dress

Kostume Kult will be camping near the Black Rock French Quarter this year, taking over the 3:00 sector and we could not be more thrilled about it. What a terrific pairing of costumes and revelry for Burning Man 2013!
With this cosmic collaboration comes a few fun events which will take place on playa.
Tuesday - Mardi Gras Celebration
Sunday - Jazz Funeral for the Man
In case you are clueless on how to dress for these events, below is a handy guide for what to wear for maximum debauchery.

Mardi Gras Costuming - 

Key Items: MASKS, JESTER HATS, CROWNS, PARASOLS, BEADS, PURPLE GREEN AND GOLD

A celebration of excess and debauchery that is the prelude to Lent. Parade, revelry and beads, beads beads!
As far as costuming going this is a no rules celebration of dress. Masquerade masks, jester hats, tutus, gold crowns, long gloves, fringe!

The color scheme is-
PURPLE (symbolic of justice),GREEN (symbolic of faith),GOLD (symbolic of power).




I recommend this Mardi Gras harlequin printed body suit. Bonus: Its on sale!

If you have Mardi Gras costumes to donate to Kostume Kult, Email KKostumes@gmail.com.


Jazz Funeral Dress -
Key items TOP HATS, SASHES, UMBRELLAS, BRASS BAND, FORMAL WEAR

A "funeral with music" is a procession from the church to the cemetery led by a band, family and friends of the deceased. The music on the way to the burial is somber with hymns and dirges, but after the final goodbye is said and they "cut the body loose" the tempo changes to more upbeat jazz music with cathartic dancing.

People following the procession after the band are called the "Second Line".  The Second Line opens their colorful decorated umbrellas and parasols, waves their handkerchiefs and breaks into a rousing dancing send off.










The musicians typically dress is dark pants, white shirts and dark ties with a cap. The Grand Marshal wears a tuxedo with sash and top hat. Other participants wear a boater or skimmer style hat.

Video of Jazz Funeral procession. 

So go grab the extra umbrella from your closet, go buy some fringe trim and JoAnne Fabrics and get to glue gunning it on the edge. A few stitches with a needle and tread couldn't hurt either in case the wind picks up. 

If you have any jazz funeral costumes to donate to Kostume Kult, Email KKostumes@gmail.com.

REMEMBER: FEATHERS, ALTHOUGH THEY WOULD BE PERFECT FOR MARDI GRAS ARE NOT WELCOME ON THE PLAYA. MOOP ALERT!!

See you on playa! 

Love,

Kostume Girl

Figment NYC is June 8-9 2013

SUMMER!!

Who's excited to start the season of sidewalk cafe eating, rooftop drinking and music festivals!? The changing of the seasons gets New Yorkers pretty excited. We own closets (albeit tiny ones) FULL of summer clothing which only gets to see the sun for a few months a year before its back to coats that look like sleeping bags.

With summer comes some fun and often FREE events in NYC. Music of all varieties can be enjoyed from River to River (June 15 - July 14) to Summer Stage (all summer long) and Backyard Festival (July 13). For event details follow @R2RFestival and @SummerStage on Twitter.
 
One event to look for right away is Figment NYC. Taking place on Governor's Island June 8-9. This is great FREE event to attend. The official site describes Figment as "FIGMENT is an explosion of creative energy. It’s a free, annual celebration of participatory art and culture where everything is possible. For one weekend each summer, it transforms Governors Island into a large-scale collaborative artwork – and then it’s gone.".  I have also heard Figment being described as Burning Man East. I could see that but there are way more children at Figment and that, my friends is where Kostume Kult comes into the picture. We lug our tents and costumes onto the Ferry and set up shop to make some lucky kids' days. Stop by and see us cause we will be bringing the fun with Free costumes and face painting.

Quick side note: There are opportunities to volunteer at Figment. Volunteering especially at these type events really provides a richer experience over all. Its just a quick online form to get more information and join a group of cool people doing cooler things!!

Kostume Kult Horned Ball Saturday April 13, 2013

Unicorns, Vikings, Goats, Brass section of the Philharmonic.. What do all of these things have in common? They all have HORNS of course! 

As all of us here on the East Coast wait patiently for Spring and the shorter skirts that come with it, there is one sign of Spring that comes before all others and that is the Kostume Kult spring romp Horned Ball. This year the horns are hornier than ever as the theme is Return to Skull Island. Oooh! Aaaahh!
Time travel with us back to a prehistoric land of primitive beats and gargantuan beasts. The venue is amazing and as per usual Kostume Kult will not disappoint with the decor.

Welcome to the Jungle:

3LD Art & Technology Center
80 Greenwich Street (at Rector street)
Downtown Manhattan, NYC MAP

What to wear:
That gorilla suit that is collecting dust in the hall closet cause it just never seems appropriate, skulls, dinosaurs, sexy fur, etc. Whatever you wear, dress to impress cause they dont call us Kostume Kult for nothing!

See below for the run down on the details:

Consider buying a ticket now cause rumor around the first tickets sold out in record time. You do not want to be outside looking in on the hottest costume party this side of the prehistoric era. 

Buy TICKETS!

- $25 Presale (lower tiers sold out)
- $40 at door (if available)
- $50 KK Contributor (presale tier including a chilled bottle of champagne and big thanks for supporting the cause)

RSVP

 Volunteer

Music Details:

DJs spinning electro/progressive house and breaks in two rooms including:
- Milk (Kostume Kult, OneLegUp)
- 2Melo (Cumba Mela/Bombeat)
- Barney Iller (Vitamin B/Mischief/Rubulad)
- Douggie Style (DISORIENT)
- Boris "Burning Elf" (Kostume Kult, TOAD)
- Been Jammin' (Entwined)
- DK (Kostume Kult, TOAD)
- B3AR (Digital Native NJ)
- Orange Krush (Entwined)
- Casey Skodnek (The People's Caravan)

Contribute Art

Valentine's Night Party - NYC Kostume Kult Original Sin

Valentine's Night, Thursday, Feb 14th, please join Kostume Kult, Friends and Lovers for an unforgettable evening.

The apocalyptic year is over and rebirth is at hand.  Some call it sin, most call it love and we call it an all-night, naughty garden of eden.

Mixing the Chinese 'Year of the Snake' with forbidden fruits, phallic flowers and suggestible natives, expect a night of divine naughtiness and dirty pleasures in a crazily creative venue with a pumping sound system and convenient downtown access.

Valentine's Night

Thursday, February 14th

8pm til 4am

WIP (Work In Progress)

34 Vandam Street

Betw 6th Ave and Varick

(near Spring Street C/E trains)

West SOHO, NYC

$5 limited presale + before 10pm

BUY NOW

$10/stylish after 10

Cheap drinks all night 

($6 beer, 7 well + special V-day cocktails)

RSVP on Facebook Event Page

DRESS:  Colorful, flowery, reptilian, juicy fruits, birds, bees and black light reactive.  Clothing optional, body painting, candied hearts and prickly cherubs.  A Thursday night, costuming is not required, but encouraged.

DJs spinning funky-house and sinful breaks...

Burning Man 2012: How was your trip?

A frequent conversation I've been having lately-

Person I know:
Hey how was your trip? 

Me:
*Pause*
*Huge deep breath*...Well I...

White Trash Minnie Mouse and her megaphone

introduced myself to Kostume Kult for the 10th time - saw people smile at me like it was the 1st time, felt a REAL hug, reaffirmed what I already knew - people will do whatever you tell them to if you are speaking into a mic or megaphone, rode on a tiki bar with 12 people during a daylight whiteout while Riders on the Storm played on the stereo, climbed a sinking pirate ship, biked in the bumpy ghetto of 2 to 3 o'clock, zipped down a very unsafe zip line, was lectured by Safety Taco, had a personal dream come true by getting a tour of the Never Was Haul with Tempe, complained about being a sober Runway MC - 10 people ran to me with booze, took a baby wipe shower - felt pretty good about it, took at real shower - felt like a new person, peed in a hot sauna of a porta potty at noon, heard Jungle in the morning OOohhing,  AAhhing and complimenting mostly women on the runway, ate next to nothing all day then ate gourmet food every night that saved my life, asked a dead sexy man via megaphone to rub his scruff on me, said some more inappropriate things while MCing, carefully climbed to the top of Mal-Mart to marvel at the view of Black Rock City, dove down 20,000 leagues deep under the playa with sexy pirates aboard the Nautilus X,  danced with hot pirate maiden Laura, resurfaced at a movie theater, resurfaced at concert of fire jets, lost my freaking mind, jumped ship, swam with Tom back to camp, collapsed in my tent, ate pancakes with Poddy All The Time, talked to so many strangers which I normally hate doing, hugged everyone again, had a moment at the Temple of Juno, cried over other peoples dead pets, made promises to myself that I probably won't keep, helped Cha Cha build the balloon chain, didn't turn on my cell phone, faithfully followed our fearless leader DK, became one with the dust, was a Zombie/White Trash Minnie Mouse/Bad Bunny/Pirate Captain/Santa/Pink Kitten, dressed a man in a prairie dress which he loved, changed peoples perspective on costumes, felt proud when I told people I was a member of Kostume Kult, made people "get sexy with it" on the runway, couldn't quite get anywhere on time, indulged in the simple act of cuddling, saw rain and lightning for the first time on playa, danced at a safari with hot Australian giraffe and buffalo, showed off my assets, watched a Dragon Theater Shadow Show, waved to art car riders, pedaled a bike bar, got dirty with a dusty boy,

Riders on the Storm

hopped in the Billion Bunny March, marveled at how that silver spaceship stays upright, did a pickle back *or 23*, rode my bike drunk with a drink in my other hand, practiced safety third, fell off a piece of art, fell deeply in love with everyone in KK, was very entertained by Johnny Letrik, had a white wedding with Noodle, laughed with Dusty Lashes, marveled at Charlie Won's energy, was rubbed down with SPF by Babba the Love Sponge, had a tent party at Cowboy Roys, watched the Bull burn with Constantino, was envious of Maddie's free spirit, shared my secret crush(s) with Maria, heard a lot of tent sex, nearly came face to d*ck with a shirt c*cker, saw the sun come up MULTIPLE times, watched a lot of sh*t burn, was in awe of how attractive everyone in our camp is, enjoyed the sound of my own voice on a megaphone, acquired a lot of new costumes, watched our frontage come down, demooped for hours, wished I could stay just a few more days, watched the playa disappear in out the back window.

Passenger aboard Nautilus X.

Most frequent responses:
*Blank Stare*
Wait, were you just telling me about a dream you had?
You went to Birmingham?!
I just couldn't deal with no shower for a week.

Bad Bunny's Good Side

Its hard to put into words for others an experience that forever alters your life, even the second time around. Each burn is different but so far both of mine have started the same. The first night I have anxiety that a week is too long to spend in this desolate wasteland. "What have I done?!", I think. The next few days are filled with people and things that do not exist out side of this dried lake bed we inhabit for such a short time. The hours and days fly by. My body acclimates to the new environment and I stop noticing there is dust all over my fork when I put it into my food. The energy builds steadily throughout the week and when the man finally does burn that 1 mile circle is the center of the universe. You can't imagine there is anything else going on in the world. Its a beautiful week long escape. Everyone asks me if I will do it again next year, my inner burner smirks, she will be back. 

Below is the video I took this year. Unfortunately a dying battery prevented me from taking more. 

Mask & Masquerades

There is something to be said about the artistry of a real mask. They are mysterious and ornate yet playful and childish. Forget your rubberized ill-fitting Richard Nixon mask, I'm taking about masquerade ball masks and carnivale masks.



I found an etsy seller with particularly impressive creations today while tooling around the treasury section of the site. I love the treasuries. They are like visual crack for us artsy types. The shop is called The Art of the Mask and it is owned by Cyndy Salisbury from Bainbridge Island, WA. If you can afford one of her amazing pieces it is sure to be a show stopper next Halloween. But why wait until then, Mardi Gras is just around the corner!!