In honour of Halloween month, I thought that I should share some of my secrets to crafting great costumes. Each Monday in October, I’ll deliver a breakdown of one of the three key elements in the costume-making process. In the final installment of this series, I’ll take you through the entire process of making my own costume for this Halloween from start to finish. You can find part one here and part two here.
At this stage in the costume-making process, you’ve conceivably sketched your look and narrowed your area of focus, honing in on either putting together a great outfit, doing imperfect-but-dramatic makeup, or creating a headpiece. This focus does not mean, however, that you should let the other elements of your look slide! It’s true always, and it’s especially true on Halloween: the devil is in the details. A truly excellent Halloween costume has a veracity deepens, rather than flattens, the longer you study it. As discussed in parts one and two of this series, you want a costume that reads clearly and quickly from afar, but you also want something that maintains interest once people get up close to you.
If you’re reading this newsletter (which you obviously are), I’ll guess that you’re already a fan of the tiny, glittery minutiae that pull people in to examine your outfit. Now just take all those things that you love and, well, make them scary! Of course, the possibilities for terrifying accessories and finishing touches are endless, but here are three of my favourite ways to add detail and intrigue to a Halloween costume.
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