Ah, the Rocky Horror Picture Show and Rocky Horror Show. Lots of great costume possibilities and crazy characters. Check local listings for special Halloween showings and regular monthly events. The audience participation makes for a memorable experience. Neither the movie or musical is for kids.

I’m not sure what you mean, Guest 3204. I don’t have any Columbia costumes since I don’t sell costumes. Do I know where to find a Columbia costume? Right here. The costume you’re most likely to find is the satin shorts, sequined bustier, and top hat. If you want one of her other costumes from the movie, you’ll have to assemble it on your own. Or you can do your interpretation of Columbia. When theaters put on Rocky Horror shows, they often put their own artistic (costuming) spin on the characters. Why can’t you?

Let’s see, her other costumes include the mouse ears and men’s pajamas, lab apron with mask, and the floor show lingerie. Make sure your mouse ears don’t have a logo or embroidered name. The apron is worn over the bustier and shorts. Instead of a bow tie, she is now wearing a small dog collar. I’m at a lost for the mask. I don’t know where you’d find one. On to the floor show: panties, corset, fishnets, boa, and glove. You’ll need one red sequined gauntlet. Columbia’s corset is tied at the top. Basic black corset with sequins along the top edges and some along the bottom. Look for the red scrunchy garters at lingerie stores. The boa is the trickiest part of her floor show costume. I’m not aware of any black, red, and yellow tulle boas on the market. Look around, you never know where you’ll find one. Worst case: you make it yourself.

The makeup. Columbia has pencil thin eyebrows. This will require you to cover your eyebrows (I assume you don’t want to remove your eyebrows). One way it to smooth down your eyebrows using spirit gum. Brush your eyebrows down then cover with the first coat of spirit gum. Let this dry completely for about 4 minutes. Press down on your eyebrows to make sure they’re flat and add another coat. Use your discretion with the number (about 4) of spirit gum layers (brow wax, appliances, and latex are other options). Once the eyebrows feel and look smooth, you can begin to add the makeup. Powder is a good start and will help the makeup set. Use a base that is one color lighter than normal, or concealer, for the first coat. Then use you normal base to blend the eyebrow to your skin color. Stipple on another round of powder. Lastly, draw on the curved eyebrow. Once you’ve applied the rest of your makeup, set everything with more powder. You don’t need to buy expensive spirit gum remover. Baby oil should do just fine.

Powder is important. Never forget it!

And you simply cannot go without the big gaudy fake eyelashes.

Mouse Ears: Magical Memories, Treasure Kingdom,
A Pinch of Pixie Dust.

Check out the RHPS livejournal for more help from a community of Rocky costume lovers and performers.

We’d love to see pictures of you dressed as Columbia.

I’m pleased that so many of you are using the shoutbox to ask questions about costumes. Today’s post is about answering some of those questions.

Last week I covered the question of Wendy Watson. Since then, I’ve been searching stores for the green vest and have failed to find anything other than charcoal or black. Perhaps you could find one of the black ones on clearance for less than $10 (similar price of a pattern). Take apart the vest and use it as a pattern for a green Wendy vest. Good luck.

On to the scrappy Laura Ingalls Wilder. I wore a calico dress when I was ten and played pioneer girl and young Annie Oakley. Here are a few nice patterns from Simplicity and McCall’s that can be used to make a Laura-style dress. You can keep it simple with just the dress or add a cotton pinafore. Look for calico patterns with small flowers. To play the Mrs. Wilder version, use a similar adult pattern or put together a conservative blouse with a cameo and skirt. Wear your hair in a period adult style like a braided bun. If sewing isn’t your thing, hit the western wear store nearest you and ask for suggestions on where to look for a prairie dress.

Looks like Jem is next in the tag. I found a commercial costume available. It’s not cartoon accurate, but it’ll work if you want ready-to-wear. CandyApple Costumes has some fun rocker wigs. Check out the cartoon wardrobe for costume ideas for Jem and the other characters. Jem’s memorable concert attire is a pink wrap dress. That should be an easy pattern to find and sew. Get your friends together to round out the Holograms, the Misfits, and the Stingers. Don’t forget to have a Rio. Nothing like a purple-haired man to up your 80s cool factor.

The human piñata is a great idea, Guest_3348. I’ve pondered this a bit. Party stores carry wigs that are made of paper or plastic strips. Usually they come in mascot colors like yellow, green, or blue and marketed on the sports fan aisle. Its a great example of wig possibilities. Pick up a cheap bald cap and glue strips of construction paper to it. I worry tissue paper is too weak to hold up for long periods of wear. As for the mask, I don’t recommend gluing paper, tissue or construction, to your face. Craft stores sell mask blanks. Use the blank as a base for the piñata mask. Since some piñatas are made of paper mache, the paper mache method would also work for a mask. Finish the paper mache mask with markers or paint.

Last up for today is another person in need of a Dr. Horrible costume. Before Dragon Con I posted a quick how-to. Queza7 wrote a detailed sewing how-to by modifying a Matrix jacket pattern. PJ Otaku left a helpful comment.

Keep the questions coming. I’m having fun and I hope you are too.

It’s time for October holidays. I skipped September holidays since I was on location. I think we all survived National Beheading Day and the move into Autumn. There is one seasonal event I failed to mention but it’s not too late to sill celebrate: Oktoberfest.

Oct 1: World Vegetarian Day. You can velcro green styrofoam balls to your chest and be a pea pod. If you’re not in the mood for a carrot blazer, try a dinner of tempura battered veggies. Mmmmmm.

Oct 3: Techie Day. This day seems to be held on the 5th of October, but it’s a weekend this year. I hope this date is right. Cnet thought of this idea in 1999 to celebrate technology jobs and promote the tech industry. If you want to let your techie side out wear jeans and a wrinkled shirt and keep your thumbdrive on your key chain with your fob.

Oct 5: Last day of Oktoberfest. Have your friends and family over for brats and beer. Have everyone bring their own stein and have a little costume and mug contest.

Oct 6: Mad Hatter Day. Wear your wackiest hats to work today. It’s all about the fun and the absurd. If you don’t have a mad hat, you can modify an existing hat. Add ribbons, baubles, flowers, stuffed animals, or anything else you have on your coffee table to a cheap hat.

Oct 9 and Oct 13: Leif Erikson Day and Columbus Day. Since Columbus didn’t really discover the New World (he told Europe where it was), many people now refer to it as Discoverer’s Day. You can have a viking party. That sounds like a lot of fun. Get the kids interested in explorers with fun globe activities.

Oct 17: Wear Something Gaudy Day. Rumor is Larry Dallas came up with this one. This is a day made for thrift stores. Once you’re dressed in bright and bold designs you should head on down to the Regal Beagle.

Oct 23: Talk Show Host Day. This day was picked in honor of Mr. Johnny Carson’s birthday. Carry a mic with you and ask people questions all day. You could wear a red pompadour wig and be Conan. If you want to be Ellen you can wear skinny jeans with a vest and dance.

Oct 24: United Nation’s Day. This is a fun one for the kids. Have everyone dress in traditional garb from one of the 192 member nations. It’s a great opportunity for an international food party…mousse, strudel, baklava, and etc.

Oct 31: The Greatest Holiday Ever. In the United States, Halloween, aka All Hallow’s Eve, is celebrated by children and adults by wearing costumes, sharing treats, and having parties. I’m giddy thinking about it!

October is a great time of year. The weather’s perfect for cookouts and afternoon get-togethers. Pick a holiday and have fun with it.

A few weeks ago Project Rooftop hosted a new redesign contest. This one would be one of the trickiest and more iconic assignments they’ve given the readers. Revamp Vampirella.

Vampirella is known for her revealing costume: blood red, cut down to there, string suit. I thought I’d give it a shot. Why not? I looked through lots of Vampirella covers and thought about it a while and decided the look I wanted. I saw her as a Pin Up. A kind of 40s bathing beauty style. I tried to draw what was in my head. That’s not where my talents lie. The costume is still Vamp red with the white collar. I added cuffs to just because I liked them. The cut is much more modest. I moved her bat emblem to the left thigh instead hovering over the crotch.

Anyway, my head just couldn’t make my hand produce what I envisioned. Oh well. I tried.

Today they posted the results of the contest. Some of the designs are amazing. They’ve listed the winners and a few runners-up. Over 100 entries came in for the Vampirella contest. Project Rooftop has never had so many submissions.

I did not win. I didn’t expect to win. I’m not an artist when it comes to drawing. I see where I made my design mistakes. Vampirella is very much a sexual being. Alien. Foreign. My design just didn’t hit that mark.

I’m proud of myself for trying my hand at a costume contest that didn’t require any sewing. It was fun.

Your child decided what to be for Halloween. But you don’t have $40 to spend on a costume he’ll grow out of before Winter arrives. What do you do?

Generally speaking, you head to the fabric store. Sit down at the pattern table and search Simplicity, Butterick, McCall’s, and all the other pattern books. Expect to pay around $10 for a new pattern. If you’re an avid sewer, you probably already have all the notions back in your sewing room (this could get pricey if you’re not). For pattern, fabric, and notions you’ll spend $20-35. It can quickly match or exceed the licensed costume.

For my money, the best way to build a Halloween costume is a combination of pre-made and hand-made. Little Johnny wants to be a Vampire. No problem. You can find dress pants and dress shirt in his closet or the local thrift store. The local costume or party store carries inexpensive black capes and novelty teeth. Check your makeup drawer for pale powder and grey eyeshadow. If you don’t have any, you can pickup makeup kits for Vampire, Witches, and Clowns at the drugstore. Let your son design his royal medallion. Draw a star shape onto cardboard and then color with markers, paint, and glitter. Attach the medallion to a piece of ribbon. The final touch is some gel through his hair for the fiendishly slick look. Voila.

Animal costumes are quick and easy. Your child will need a base costume to build up the dog, cat, pig, what have you. Leotards or sweatsuits are great for this. Choose the one best suited for your climate. A Black Cat needs a black leotard and tights. You can fill a black stocking with padding for a little tail. Use a headband for the ears’ base. The ears can be made of stiffened fabric, pipe cleaners, or foam. Glue or sew the ears to the headband. Some creative makeup and you have the cutest little kitty in the world.

This method works for most animals. If you need a specific dog, like Snoopy, don’t worry. You’ll need: white sweatpants and shirt, one black felt spot sewed onto the posterior area, a pair of black socks for ears can be attached with bobby pins or a headband. The last touch is a little black nose. See how easy animals can be?

Clowns require a quick trip to the thrift or Goodwill store. Pick busy shirts and old golf pants. A silly novelty wig can really make your daughter feel like a cut-up. Have fun with the makeup. What good is a Clown without a prop? You can pin an plastic flower to the lapel or…tie a series of three or four bright scarves or bandanas together. Let her practice pulling them out of her pocket or her hand. She’ll be a show stopper.

You want a creepy costume for your kid? I have the perfect most terrifying thing. Guaranteed to make candy givers hesitate: Chucky. I doubt your child knows anything about Chucky, and that’s for the best right now. After a few doorbells, he’ll believe you were right about having the scariest costume. Little Chucky will need a rainbow striped shirt. Discount stores and chain stores typically carry them. A pair of overalls. Use a red fabric marker to write “Good Guys” on the front center pocket. The shoes should be red. Try the discount store for cheap canvas shoes. Hand your son a plastic knife and then hide behind the couch because he might just scare you too. Weasley red hair is best for this look, but don’t worry about a wig. If you must have the hair, pick up some color hairspray that can be washed out when he’s done trick-or-treating.

Good luck crafting!