Halloween has got to be my favorite holiday of the year, even more so than Christmas. For one, the weather is usually better and two, it's a chance to be somebody else for a little while. As an added bonus, you get the option of scaring the crap out of a whole bunch of people - or at least startling them.
[making of] [photos] Straight out of the internet is Slenderman. I couldn't figure out how to get the right propotions without stilts, but thought a sort of costume-puppet would work. I took photos while I was working on this too.
[photos] We have a Labyrinth on campus - and you know how those things attract minotaurs. Well, not on my watch. For Theseus, I wore a paper mache bull skull, red and white rags on my torso, a black fur skirt (sewed to a pair of shorts), rough looking shoes, and a rope belt. I also had a foam sword tucked into my belt and carried a ball of golden thread to lead me out of the Labyrinth. I really should have printed out cards to explain who I was. :)
[photos] The Mask of the Red Death is a story by Edgar Allen Poe and I decided to recreate the title character. The costume was simple, the make-up was not. Red makeup, liquid latex, more red makeup, and three bottles of fake blood. The mask itself was simple, but effective. I also had random bandages to imply that I was gross all over - though it was really just my head. Bloody gloves, a ruined shirt, dress pants and sensible shoes and I was on my way.
[photos] An Oni is a Chinese demon, frequently depicted as a giant floating head. I didn't have the special effect budget for that, so I went with giant mask and cloak. The mask was made out of foam-in-a-can sprayed over a human sized plastic mask. Well, six cans of it. I built the features separately and then spray-painted them and hot melt glued them together. The lips are pipe insulation and the tongue is a piece of rubber ball. I hot melt glued black cloth around the edge to cover the rest of me. Then all black clothing and sensible shoes. No room for my glasses and no peripheral vision made it challenging to walk around, but it was fun.
[photos]Ahhh...puns. You usually have to explain them, but even if you get a groan, it's worth it. I dressed up as the doctor from the TV show House and added a fly's head. So, HouseFly. The signature cane was made from PVC pipe, the wings were wax paper and wires (hmmmm...) and the head was paper mache, spraypaint, wire, and foam. I scared one woman so bad coming out of an elevator she ran to a corner to hide. I also freaked out the boss's daughter while walking across campus - she had no idea who I was. I didn't see as many people as I usually do, but those I did see really enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun too - and gained a new respect for those that are vision or mobility impaired. The campus is MADE of stairs.
[photos] It was time to ramp things back up and go "old school" scary. In this case, an old school vampire - Count Orlock from the silent movie Nosferatu. No sparkly vampires for me, I wanted to scare the crap out of people - and I did. This was less construction and more transformation. Shaved head, contacts, fangs, white makeup and claws. Subtle, but very very effective. I covered a lot of ground on campus and saw a lot of people - and as usual, I had a blast. Special thanks to Jamie and Casey for some freaking amazing photos.
[photos] - [making of] Cute, and gruesome. That's what I was going for with this one. And I think I pulled it off. Say Hello to a Zombie Kitty - feared and loved across campus in equal measures. I usually use this part to talk about the making of the costume, but this time I did a separate page for that with photos. I got second prize for this one in a contest and had a really great time on campus with people. I really brightened people's days this time around and interacted with a lot of students. I think I walked father than in the past and my calves were still sore days later from the giant shoes. It was totally worth it. :) I had a BLAST!
[photos] Cthulhu is a scary dude. Based on HP Lovecraft's novels, this squid/bat/monster thing kicks butt, eats babies, and makes people crazy to death with a glance. I spent several months on this to do it justice. As with last year, the mask was the most involved part. Paper mache over a balloon framework. Foam pipe insulation for the tentacles - which everyone wanted to touch - with cut-out foam circles for the suckers. I used some sticky "foam insulation in a can" to make the attachment. Worked really really well. The all important vision/oxygen hole was covered in a screen and the left over foam pieces got added to the head for texture. Lots of hot melt glue and spray paint. I was without the use of my garage for a while since it's been windy.
The gloves were the wrong color and needed to be painted as well - and since the paint wore off, it ended up looking more "authentic" as the day went on. The wings were the wrong color too - I needed to re-do the fabric on those. The robe was a re-use from last year and the dress pants and dress shoes completed the outfit.
I had a blast this time around and got some great reactions. I had one girl shriek when she saw me come around a corner and even those that were expecting me still got a fright. Only a few people knew who I was supposed to be - and one guy actually quoted from one of the books. I won first prize in a costume contest - and my room-mate won second place:
[photos] This one was really fun. Based off of one of the Egyptian gods of the dead (Sobek, the crocodile headed) and partly off of the Unraveler from the Diablo video game, I got back to my "scary roots" and pulled off a winner. The mask was the most involved, took me months to paper mache it. I started with balloons to get the basic shape and then spent many evenings in my basement adding layer upon layer of paper. Once it was finally done, I (with difficulty) cut through the thick mask and smoothed the edges. Took a while to get the color right, but I think it turned out well. The accents of hot melt glue cobwebs and little snakes really set it off. The staff was a lot of work as well, but I got a lot of compliments on it.
I got to see a lot of people and scared quite a few - but it's a big campus and I didn't get to see everyone. I also won 4th place at a costume party the weekend before.
[photos] This was a rough one. I'd been thinking about it for months, but the actual execution was very difficult. First, my balloon for the paper mache head deflated between coats and forced me to start over with an origami framework. I went through tons of spray paint and hot melt glue and fought with a defective glue gun. The actual day of my walk-around on campus was overcast and ultimately rainy. The legs of the costume got soaked and tore apart. And most people couldn't figure out what I was. Still, I got to see some of my on-campus friends and most people really enjoyed it. Got some good reactions and managed to have fun. Note - this is not a good costume idea for a crowded party.
[photos] It's always good to get back to your roots - so this time around I went "scary" again. A sort of Jacob Marley meets Beetlejuice. A lot of pre-planning went into this one and I think it turned out pretty well. There's always one element that I focus on a little more than the rest of the costume - and this time it was the chains. Great visual effect, and a great audio effect as well. They made such weird noises on the floor that people knew "something" was coming, but they didn't know what. Pictures and comments at the link, highlights below.
The ankle cuffs were a hit, but the bolts holding the chains in place really rubbed my legs raw - especially around my achilles tendon. I'm still not back up to top speed after a day of that - but I'm not limping anymore. Didn't get to see as many people this time around - but it was still a blast I'm already planning for next year.
[photos] I wanted to do something less scary this time around - something bright and cheerful. What better than a gigantic grinning lego dude in primary colors? Got a really late start on this, but it came together pretty quickly. And I had some help - big thanks to Jeff for the spray painting and consultation. Pictures and comments at the link, highlights below.
Remarkably sturdy, though a little difficult to get in and out of. Okay, maybe a lot difficult, but it still looked good. The funniest part of the campus walk around was the people that saw me and then tried not to react. Come on, people. I'm a 6 foot + tall Lego-man. Go ahead and react - you're not that cool that you can't enjoy Halloween.
[photos] A recycle of the old version, this upgrade included a wicked looking pitchfork and hooves. I had a lot of trouble getting them to work and they didn't end up as I expected. They also gave me a terrible blister. But, people were impressed and everyone I met seemed to really enjoy the effort. Photos and thank-you's - click the link. Highlights as follows:
Simple, but very effective. I scared the crap out of quite a few people. A lot more people approached me this year and really had fun with it.
[photos] Some of my best work to date. I had several false starts on this one and as a consequence I was behind schedule for most of the planning and preparation. Highlights of the final work:
[photos] Lots of planning went into this one and it paid off. I bought a lot of the supplies at Home Depot and literally built the headgear ("are you making fun of my headgear?") and modified glove. The other "arm" was a plastic mechano-claw from Kay*bee Toys.
I worried a lot of people and really scared a few. My throat was sore at the end of the day from being menacing.
[photo] I was off my mark on this one, still freaked a few people out, but it wasn't my best work.
Okay, I'm scrawny, so any attempt for me to portray the Hulk is just going to be funny. And it was. The shower was green for quite a while after this one.
Oh boy, this was great. First head-shaving event, totally transforming. In the student center, a guy asked me "What's up, my man Lucifer?"
Even better, I was working on the Computer HelpDesk at the time. Ever have the devil reset your password? I think I may have scarred some people for life.
Not even sure if this qualifies as a costume, but I was more dressed up than most people so I'm going to count it.
I had the cloak from a previous version of this costume that my Mom made. Went around silently, just walking up and touching people. Fun!
Summary - my hair seems to suffer the most from these costumes, but my skin is close runner up. The hair can vastly change a person's appearance and since it grows back pretty fast for me, it's no big deal to shave it off - though, it's not as full as it used to be. Damn genetics! Fortunately, I don't look bad as a bald guy.
I also used to help Jeff with his costumes - here's that archive
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