I found this image of a costumed woman while looking through Amazon’s preview images for the 1922 edition of Dennison’s Bogie Book. Crêpe paper costumes like this were popular in those days. Although saying the costume is “crêpe paper” is somewhat misleading, as the image clearly shows a woman wearing the paper portion over regular clothing. I couldn’t find this particular book online, but Dennison’s Christmas Book has directions on making a somewhat similar costume and advice on working with crêpe paper. I also found a list of what all the codes given in the instructions mean, complete with a color coding guide! The October 1922 issue of Everygirl’s Magazine also has tips on making such costumes like these. Given all the hanging parts, it might be better to take the time to adapt this into a cloth costume. Not only will this help prevent tearing and costume damage, but it’s also less of a potential fire hazard this way. When you factor in what a spilled drink can do to a paper costume, it suddenly becomes clear why this style fell out of fashion.
RavensBlight has printable masquerade gear in addition to papercraft monster masks and various costume accessories. Don’t let the name fool you, Shelby’s recipe box offers up plenty of costume and makeup ideas in addition to recipes. I found the post discussing how to make a simple dress out of an old pillow case to be particularly creative.
Like its name says, Coolest 1000+ Homemade Costumes You Can Make! has a ton of costume ideas. Mom vs the Boys shows how to make a shirt into a ninja mask, while Celebrating Halloween has ideas for both Halloween costumes and makeup.
I Love Halloween has some skull and skeleton-themed nail art and LittleThings has festive ways to accent your eyes (along with countless other Halloween makeup tips). Martha Stewart has tutorials on “Mummy,” “Black Widow” and “Motha” makeup. But don’t think for a second that those are the only things she has available!
Clown makeup is surprisingly complicated. Bruce Fife’s The Birthday Party Business goes through all the steps of designing and applying face makeup for clowns. Thankfully making your own is much easier. Creative Resources for the Early Childhood Classroom by Judy Herr favors using colored cold cream while Randy Horn’s You Gotta Be Kidding and Cindy Fuller’s Haunt Your House for Halloween: Decorating Tricks & Party Treats favor using ingredients found in most kitchens. It can also be used to create makeup for other Halloween characters! Come to think of it, Brian Wolfe’s Extreme Face Painting has some notes about face painting with sponges that might come in handy. Just be sure to test a small amount of any makeup you plan on using on your arm the day before you do the full application in order to test for allergic reactions. It’s better to have a little rash on your arm rather than a huge one which covers your face.
There’s plenty of recipes for fake blood out there, but why not try the special method used by Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi? Popular Mechanics has plenty of makeup tips for you to peruse including…making a fake nose out of Silly Putty? A little investigation shows this idea is more widespread than one might think.
Al J. Vermette’s Boo Biz: Guide To Home Haunting recalls the time he used Silly Putty to create a crude mask and the March 1970 issue of Boys’ Life suggests using it in a guide on monster (and clown) makeup. Personally, I prefer the monster costume and makeup guide from their October 1966 issue (even though it lacks Silly Putty). Speaking of scouts, the October 1990 issue of Scouting has instructions on making various costumes and masks. My personal favorites are the “Space Robot” and “The Thing from Outer Space” costumes. It’s a shame they don’t tell how you’re supposed to see out of them without making blatant eye holes, though.
Simple Pleasures for the Holidays by Susannah Seton has ideas for costumes like “Bumble Bee,” “Vampire Victim,” “El Niño” and the classic “Mummy.” Those who enjoyed the cute costumes from that selection might appreciate the inexpensive elephant mask from the October 2003 issue of Working Mother or the candy costume from Beth L. Blair’s and Jennifer A. Ericsson’s Everything Kids’ Halloween Puzzle And Activity Book.
If you already have a costume idea but aren’t sure how to actually make basic costume components, Nifty, Thrifty, No-Sew Costumes and Props by Carol Ann Bloom has the patterns you need for making tunics, collars and more! Creating Halloween Crafts by Dana Meachen Rau shows how to make easy costumes from sweat clothes, along with some headband ideas and makeup advice.
Not only does Joey Green’s Clean It! Fix It! Eat It! show how to make easy fake burn makeup, but it also discusses using Miracle Whip to remove makeup! Terry Rowan’s Halloween: A Scary Film Guide also combines makeup application and removal tips and Linda Cobb’s The Queen of Clean’s Complete Cleaning Guide focuses on removing makeup and cleaning costumes.
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