When I was very little, about 4 or 5, Mom made my sister and me some matching clown costumes for Halloween. They were adorable - balloony outfits with gathered elastic neck, arms, and ankles. The fabric was half red and white polka dots, half solid red, divided on the vertical plane. Bright red pom poms were sewn to the seam line in the front, like giant buttons. We had matching hats topped with a pom pom, and Mom painted in our cheeks and noses with red lipstick. She also painted on clown eye make up. Every time I looked in the mirror, I giggled. Gawd, we were cute.
Another time, maybe age 7 or 8, I dressed as a ghost. We actually got to cut up white sheets to make the costumes. I painted my ghost face like a girly-ghost, with lipstick, eyelashes, and blush. That was a last minute costume - I remember that I imagined it looked more sophisticated than it really did. I thought I looked like the ghosts they drew in cartoons. Yet, I was disappointed when I looked in the mirror.
In 6th grade, I was in my androgynous phase, and I dressed up as a hobo, wearing stuffing for a beer belly, some of my dad's old clothes, and a mask and derby hat found at the convenience store. I carried a pouch on a stick, like the hobos of the movies did.
Two times, in high school band, we were to dress up for the marching band half time show at the football game. One year I dressed up like Smurfette. I put on a ton of blue temporary hair dye. Yeah, I know, Smurfette is a blond (and so was I at the time) but I wanted blue hair!! I had a cool white smurf hat, and I wore white sweat pants along with my white band shoes. I remember the blue hair spray dye got everywhere - I was spitting blue and blowing blue boogers.
The second year, I dressed up as Miss Piggy. I made little stuffed ears to wear, I had long gloves with big rings, a clip on pig snout, and I let my blond hair flow free. I wore a pink dress and high heels. Brilliant idea, marching on a football field in high heels - ah, the things kids do.
One high school year, when Halloween fell mid week, I was Marilyn Monroe, and I wore a bright red party dress to school. The dress was my aunt's from the 1950s, and it included rhinestones, taffeta, and chiffon. I teased my hair and did the marvelous make up of the fifties (bright red lipstick, powder, heavily lined eyes). I wanted attention. I wanted to be pretty. Normally, I was such a nerd.
I don't remember what I did in college. Hell, it was just an excuse to drink, anyway.
Oh, wait, I remember one year, I dressed up as Barbie Doll. I had a gold metallic prom dress (which I had not worn to a prom, but had acquired some other way), and a did barbie doll hair and make up. Too bad I wasn't as busty or thin as Barbie. This was at a sorority event - some of my sisters dressed up as the chicks in Robert Palmer's Addicted to Love video from MTV. They looked awesome.
MTV. Yes, indeed, it *was* the 80s....
As an adult, a few of my memorable costumes were:
- Black cat with cat's eyes fashioned out of black sunglasses with fluroescent green eyeballs. (That one was very effective. I wore it a couple of years.)
- Hans and Franz from Saturday Night Live in the 90s (I was Franz, my boyfriend was Hans)
- Wallace and Gromit (I was Gromit, dear husband was Wallace)
This year, nothing. I wore a Halloween pin to work yesterday.
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