'Fessing Up To Dressing Up
When I was dressed, and later when I dressed myself up for Halloween, the final creation was never based on a personality, on a face from television or from the movies. As a cherubic (make that chubby) toddler, Mother would lay the creative smackdown on me and transform me into a pretty animal, or an exotic lady, not likely to be found in these parts. On the evening of October 31, the young Aubrey disappeared and would come back as a different type, a new genre, an unexpected subspecies. When i was older I wasn't interested in putting aside one identity for a night, only to pick up someone else's. I never wore a mask.
I was a crimson kangaroo when I was two, more interested in the contents of my bag than what might have been in my pouch (as I recall, the costume came with a stuffed 'roo):
At the tiny age of nine, I was a bumblebee - yellow and black, bright and buzzing. (I still have the costume).
One year I wore scarlet, Oriental pajamas. They were loose-fitting, allowing for my patented two-fisted-candy-retrieval system:
My godmother made me a shining silver gladiator's costume - 'helmet', pleated skirt and all. My left hand is clearly wondering where the sword and scabbard went, while the right is going for the candy - I hated having my picture taken, usually starting a howl over it. This vocal disapproval would not subside until the sugar tithe was paid:
When I grew older, the costumes became outfits. One year mother made me into a geisha girl - complete with plastic cherry blossoms in my hair. I was once a Spanish gypsy (the black and white bangles I still have and very useful they are too). I also detect the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship with lipstick. The skirt was mother's:
Trick or Treating stopped long ago. What a personal tragedy that was.
Still. Perhaps the Halloween tradition of creating 'looks' has stayed with me.
I confess: my closets and jewelry boxes will always be full.
Comments
oooh i'm impressed...a geisha?? that's very fancy. i was a cat every year from the age of 5 to the age of 12.
mama M: 'what do you want to be this year, maggie?'
Me (without fail): 'A CAT!!! A CAT!!!'
Great pics! And the characters, oh my.
You do make a fetching Senortia, by the way.
I remember some of mine, but the pictures are long gone, sadly.
Why not.
We had a couple of hooded black sweatshirts with added ears.
Add some eyebrow pencil whiskers.
All cats, all the time.
Complete with fingers doing the walking (stuffed glove) and toy telephone as a hat.
Last year I was a tuxedo kitty.
lauowolf: No! A wolf in kitty's clothing?
LT: What about equal time - will you go as HRT this year?
My cat ears actually look more like hers, so I was sort of a combo of the two last year.
I love these they are all so cute and put me in mind of all the costumes I made for or helped my daughters make. And of course all of my costumes growing up. My favorite was casper the ghost I was four or five.
I was always a black cat or a witch. One year I was a gypsy.
Best costume I saw this year was a man, wearing a bee costume, yellow & black stripes and black stockings, cute bee wings, and a witch hat and witchy boots. He said he was bee-witched.
Like lau, I like the 'roo suit best.
I think my cutest costume was my purple dragon that Mama Miao made for me when I was 5. It was quite elaborate. I was a butterfly as a 3 year old.
"candy tithe". ha! I love that.
Excellent photos--you look gorgeous as a lady of Spain. What an interesting upbringing you had. I wish I had pics of my childhood costumes. I remember my mom made me a princess costume once--I loved the tall pointy hat with the cascading tulle.
you had wonderful costumes in your childhood, you mom did a great job:))))
Especially I liked the Gladiator's costume:)