Recently I stumbled upon an old folder of Halloween costume photos and since its Halloween today I figured I may as well show them off. These are from quite some time ago (8-12 years in some cases) back when I was young and super enthusiastic about dressing up for Halloween.
As you can see I also had some fun turning the photos into cartoons. I think it really adds a little something to the look but also, these pictures were taken a decade ago on numerous shitty cameras so most of the originals are grainy and blurry and not all that great for posting.
But enough with the preamble bullshit, let's get to the costumes, how they evolved over time and some maybe some stories that go along with them.
Like most people of my generation there was a time when I was obsessed with zombies and the zombie apocalypse.
My first zombie costume started off pretty basic as you can see. It was really nothing more than some pale face makeup with some dark shit around my eyes. I wore a dress shirt and tie and on occasion had a pipe for god knows why really. It didn't make sense as a zombie costume but things don't always have to make sense on Halloween.
A little later on I adopted the noose for a new level of terror. Its all fun and games until some random person thinks it's funny to grab the end of the rope and pull you around the room.
This photos was obviously posed (say hi to my sister) but it could actually be a risk so I wouldn't exactly recommend wearing a real noose around your neck out in public.
After that I experimented with more of a contagion virus zombie and added a black rubber bat as a makeshift pocket square, you know, for some additional flare.
I'm a zombie yes, but why shouldn't I be classy?
Why?
Imagine that little sequence of "whys" being said in a voice thats getting deeper and increasingly more growly and you will have some insight into my mind and where I was going with that. Okay moving on
I don't know what the hell I was thinking when I bought this costume but I did have few good times in it. Imagine wearing a giant wobbly helmet with two tiny eye holes the size of golf balls that are situated 6 inches away from your face and constantly moving and spinning everytime you turn your head...you can't see shit.
Oh and no one can hear you when you talk to them either. That's what it was like to wear my Kung-fu Panda costume.
I couldn't wear the body suit though because it was way too hot. It was like wearing garbage bags under warm clothes and a winter parka. The first time that I wore it I sweated so much after 30 minutes that I have no doubt that I die of dehydration if I left it on for just an few hours.
I couldn't see anything at the club and I basically got molested on the dance floor but it was all totally worth it, because it was so hilarious. My friend at the time informed me that whenever he looked over there was a crowd of people hanging off me, using me as a prop to take photos with. That explains why it felt like people were rubbing their hands all over my body the entire night.
Okay take note the shoes of the costume. They are basically big fluffy slippers. Now imagine wearing big fluffy slippers into the mens bathroom of a packed club... I think I tossed them in the garbage after that night. At least I hope that I did.
Kung-fu Panda made a few appearances but in the end the costume was sold to the highest bidder. In keeping with the theme of this post you could think of it like an evolutionary experiment that just sort of died off in the end. It just wasn't meant to exist in the world of zombies.
My next costume came a few Halloweens later in the form of Bill the Butcher from the movie Gangs of New York. I bought a top hat and my friends aunt sewed me a costume based on my specifications. I think it was pretty bang on considering I had to pick out the material myself and design it based on movie images.
Image from the movie Gangs of
New york
The pants were the hardest part. I went to many many fabric stores before finally finding something that was somewhat close to the original (though the material was more akin to pajamas).
Bill the Butcher was a psychopath in the movie and I think I did alright pulling off a psychopathic look.
"I'm gonna paint Paradise Square with his blood. Two coats. I'll festoon my bedchamber with his guts."
"This is fresh meat. What I mean is we need to tenderize this meat a little bit. Okay, let's kiss goodnight to that pretty young face of yours."
By the way, the mustache was fake. I wish I could grow one that nice. It was made of horse hair and made me sneeze a little bit but again, it was all totally worth it.
My Bill the Butcher costume, or parts of it, we're used for all sorts of events following its initial creation, including a zombie themed wedding fundraiser for one of my friends.
I told you that there was an evolutionary aspect to the costume and this was its final iteration.
The entire wedding party and the bride and grooms families dressed up as zombies for the event and in the end it was a pretty unique party and a lot of fun.
Zombie-Bill was the birthchild of two different costumes, which in the end turned into a sort of Victorian style zombie.
I actually still have most of the costume today and could easily throw it on if I ever needed to.
The images were created using the app Cartoon Photo. For those who are interested
