Five Tips for Costume Parties

I had a conversation the other day with a customer who wanted some tips on throwing a costumed party, as she had never hosted one herself.  Dot (my coworker) and I immediately set into different ideas for themes and why they would work, and it occurred to me that there really are some good costume party themes and some that are... less appreciated by the guests.  Believe me, I know, for guests are much more open with their costumer than the host.

1. Good ideas are ones that can work on a variety of levels and complexity.  Hollywood Movie Stars is an easy one, as you can twist any costume to fit the theme.  That way your guest can find a costume they like, and with a little ingenuity we'll find a famous actor to suit it.  Say your bff Betty found a renaissance gown she loved.  Great! If she's blonde, she's Kate Blanchette as Queen Elizabeth, or Gweneth Paltrow from Shakespeare In Love.  If she's brunette, she's Sigourney Weaver from 1492, Judy Dench from Shakespeare In Love, or Rachel Weisz from The Fountain. Does Bob hate dressing up?  Jeans, a white T-shirt, and slicked back hair and he's John Travolta from Grease.  How about a slightly overweight dark haired friend who hates costumes because she (mistakenly) feels like there aren't any costumes out there for her?  She can wear what she usually wears from day to day, bring along a sledge hammer, and she's Kathy Bates from Misery.  The possibilities are endless, and it accommodates wall flowers and limelight lovers, penny pinchers and spendthrifts, creative types and those of us who are forever chained, Prometheus-like, to creativity's writer's block.  Another accommodating theme is Decades, where guests can wear anything between 1910 and 1980.  That theme is particularly fun if you have guests of highly varying ages, as you can request they dress from the decade they were born in. Masquerade Ball is also versatile, as it allows guests to go all out (think Marie Antoinette style gowns) or minimalist (simple black dress with a cool mask).   

2. Keep in mind how much skin your friends like to show.  In example, a 1920s party is always fun, but flapper dresses (what most people envision for that era) are usually sleeveless and above-the-knee short, making it difficult for women who desire a little more modesty.  It's not impossible to find dresses with more coverage in that time period, it just requires a touch more work and creativity.  Playboy Bunny is not a good theme for the modest crowd.

3. I know we've all at some point gone to a Halloween party dressed in a head to toe replica gown of Queen Elizabeth the first, only to find the other guests didn't bother to dress up at all, am I right?  Help your guests avoid that awkward misstep by letting them know how all-out you're planning the event to be.  You can tell them in person, include a dress standard in the invitation, or make an arrangement with your local costume shop.  Here at Mask Costumes, if a host lets us know they're throwing a large costumed party, we'll sometimes bring in more of that type of costume, give discounts to the party goers, and we can tell people how extravagant or simple people are going.  Encourage them to dress up by having a costume contest with a worthy prize, or by decorating the venue to the hilt in the theme.  Set up a photo op spot where guests can take their picture in costume.  Include costume suggestions (with pictures) as well as local costume shops' addresses with the invitations.  And always, themed music is a necessity for getting people in the spirit.  If you can't think of what music suits a Vikings party, find a movie that feature vikings and go from there. 

4. If you want to host a small crowd, How To Host A Murder mystery games are a great way to go.  They're fun, funny, they guide you through the process step by step, and the invitations include costume suggestions.

5. In the end, the most important thing to keep in mind is the comfort of your guests.  If you run in an economically challenged crowd, don't require them to shell out a lot of dough on an expensive costume.  If your friends tend to be shy, Pimps and Hos is not a theme for you. Surprises are fun, but erring on giving guests too much information vs too little is the better way to go.

Here are some more theme suggestions, and may the Hosting Force be with you!

• Hollywood
• Decades
• Famous Musicians (anywhere from country, Mozart, to 80s hair bands)
• Carnival (ring master, bearded lady, lion tamer, tightrope walker, patron, the lion itself, magician, etc)
• Famous Book Characters

(and a few more themes that are fun though not as versatile)

• Vikings
• Comic Book Characters
• Video Game Charactres
• Rock and Roll
• Famous Couples (Sonny and Cher, Ketchup and Mustard, etc)
• Zombies
• Pirates
• Renaissance
• Medieval
• Brand Mascots (mermaid of Chicken of the Sea, Land O'Lakes Indian Princess, Mr.Peanut, etc)
• Cartoons
• Anime
• Individual Decades
• Alice in Wonderland
• Disney
• Fairytale (Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Three Blind Mince)
• Greek or Roman
• Black and White (where everyone wears only black or white, or any monochromatic scheme makes for dramatic results
• Animals
• Hats  
• Heroes and Villains              

             

The Medieval Rennaissance

My days in rentals frequently go like this:

Me: "Hi, how may I help you?"

Customer: "Fine, how are you?"

Me:......."I'm well, thank you.  How are you?"

Customer: "I need something Medieval."
Me: "That's great, we have lots of Medieval costumes!  What is your project?"

Customer: "Oh, I'm in a play, that's why I need a Renaissance costume."

Me: "Wait, so you need a Renaissance costume?"

Customer: "Yeah."

Me: "Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you said Medieval."

Customer: "I did, I need a Medieval Renaissance costume." 

That tricky Medieval Renaissance, it gets us all at some point in our lives.  Like using apostrophes in non-possessive plurals, the terms medieval and renaissance are frequently erroneously used interchangeably to describe the centuries in Europe somewhere around 1100 AD and 1600 AD (sweet! That sentence sounded smart).  I am here to tell you my friends, Romans, and countrymen, that the years considered Medieval and the years considered Renaissance are not the same, and it's important to know the difference.  Why, you ask?  For similar reasons it's important to recognize the difference between the American Revolutionary War and World War Two.  Or to just sound smart at parties.

Let me paint you a picture of life in Medieval times.... the year is 1100 AD in a place someday known as Europe.  Your neighbor, Rome, is just getting over a whole slew of problems and has basically left you to your own devices.  You're still trying to figure out why this guy called the Pope thinks he's the king, the Islamic community is telling you that IV is really 4 (whatever that means, since you probably can't read), while you're still trying to grasp the concept of this crazy thing called "the button".  You can build some pretty cool cathedrals, though.  And you're excited to join your friends on a little trip they've dubbed The Crusades.

It was a very dark age.  Things were not very technologically advanced.  Clothing wasn't complicated, so when trying to determine if a costume piece is medieval or renaissance, ask yourself if it looks hard to make.

Look for tunics and simple silhouettes, as well as cyclas (basically a rectangle with a hole in the middle for the head, worn down the back and chest).

Women wore full length, loosely fitting dresses with tight wrist length sleeves as well as the cyclas.  Eventually flared sleeves were added to the tight sleeves.

 

For good medieval clothing movie references, watch "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves", and "Kingdom of Heaven". I make no promises over how good the movies themselves are, just the costumes.

Now for Renaissance!  Its picture is much rosier.  Renaissance roughly means "born again", and is sometimes referred to as the age of enlightenment.  The year is closer to 1500 AD, and thanks to the Italians, Europe has grown an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.  They've just survived the plague and are feeling pretty good about life.  Nearly every aspect of life is flourishing from this fresh approach to study; philosophy, science, politics, literature, religion, and especially art are advancing, and fast.  Famous renaissance artists include Michelangelo (the statue of David and the Sistine Chapel), Da Vinci (the Mona Lisa), and the Bard himself, Shakespeare.  Queen Elizabeth the first occupied the throne, and life was a peach.  

Renaissance clothing is all about extravagance.  Corsets for women came into vogue, combined with hoop skirts giving the silhouette a very exaggerated look. 

Men wore linen shirts under doublets (a kind of fitted jacket), with a jerkin over that (another fitted jacket but without sleeves).  Codpieces made their appearance (if you don't know what that is, I'm not going to tell you), and hose for the legs.  Yes men, you were the first to wear pantyhose. 

In the picture above, Geoffrey Rush is wearing a doublet (the long dark sleeves) and a jerkin (the matching bodice piece), with short puffy pants and hose.  This comes from the best movie I can recommend for appreciating Renaissance clothing, which is "Shakespeare In Love".

Here's a run down of the basic differences between Medieval and Renaissance.   

Medieval: Dark Ages.
Renaissance: Age of Enlightenment.   
Medieval: Slim silhouettes.   
Renaissance: Exaggerated silhouettes.
Medieval: Tunics.  Lots of 'em.   
Renaissance: Very structured doublets, jerkins, and puffy pants for men; corsets and hoop skirts for women.   
Medieval: Robin Hood and King Arthur.  

  Renaissance: Shakespeare and Queen Elizabeth.

            

These two time periods really are tricky to differentiate when faced with costume upon costume, though it is important to know the difference.  This only skims the surface of these two very different times, but hopefully this gives you some kind of guidance the next time you're in search of a costume.  Or need to sound impressive at parties.