Give me your ideas and nobody gets hurt...

September 1, 2012 12:15 PM

Creative costume ideas for a cops and robbers theme party for a plus size lady.

I'm going to a cops and robbers theme party next weekend and am looking for help coming up with interesting costume ideas. I'm not averse to sexy but I'm also really not into the generic pseudo-lingerie that passes for costumes (see,e.g., these ) at a lot of Halloween stores. I'm also totally willing to buy clothes and such for a costume, but finding things in my size in thrift stores can be a bit of a crap shoot. Costumes I've contemplated: wall street crook (but I only have nice suits that I don't want to have to get cleaned afterwards and feel like this concept might be a bit played out) and jewelry thief (all black and gaudy costume jewelry - this will probably be my backup if I can't think of anything else). Please help me creative and witty mefites!

posted by wuzandfuzz to clothing, beauty, & fashion (20 answers total)

Cat burglar. Wear all black, carry a sack of stuffed animals.
posted by decathecting at 12:16 PM on September 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Charlie Chan, especially if you can put together a white suit.
posted by easily confused at 12:21 PM on September 1, 2012

Would you wanna do 1920s mobster? You could get a fabulous flapper dress and be a gold-digger or something.
posted by These Birds of a Feather at 12:23 PM on September 1, 2012

How about a judge? Robe and gavel... then you could either be sexy judge or old school battle ax.
posted by kimdog at 12:24 PM on September 1, 2012 [2 favorites]

Chief Wiggum.
posted by Frank Grimes at 12:41 PM on September 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

What about emulating Queen Latifah's warden character from Chicago?
posted by vignettist at 12:55 PM on September 1, 2012 [7 favorites]

Be Grimace, and get your friend to be the Hamburgler.
posted by thylacine at 1:01 PM on September 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Find a male friend to go with as Bonnie and Clyde.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 1:02 PM on September 1, 2012

Yeah, I came here to suggest the 'Mama' warden character from Chicago.
posted by rmd1023 at 1:07 PM on September 1, 2012

Be a bag of loot for the crooks to fight over/cops to rescue. Easy costume, just a sack with arm and leg holes, opening pinned to the shoulders of a shirt. Paint a $ symbol on it and you're set.
posted by Garm at 1:07 PM on September 1, 2012

Ma Beagle could be fun. Vintage dress, dog nose, straw hat, domino mask (you can make your own that's comfortable to wear all day, just cut it from felt or neoprene). If you're up for carrying a prop, you could make a moneybag or cake-with-file-baked-in to carry around.
posted by polymath at 1:18 PM on September 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Thanks for the ideas all - keep 'em coming!

Further info/questions: I'm going with my boyfriend so a couple's costume could work (like Bonnie and Clyde suggested above). I should have clarified that I don't want to be totally asexual/dumpy, hence normal cop uniforms being out along with Chief Wiggum. Also, I'm in my late 20s as are most of the people that will be there (to the extent that informs anything).

For those suggesting the warden from Chicago, what would a costume like that entail? I haven't seen the movie for years and I can't say I remember specifically what she wears - google images seems to show a jumpsuit kind of outfit and a flapper-esque gown outfit. Is one of those more evocative of the character than the other?
posted by wuzandfuzz at 2:20 PM on September 1, 2012

I have a little Dora the Explorer fan, so my first thought was to dress up as Swiper the Fox. Then you could go around the party acting like you're trying to take the television, the dishes, whatever, and have a friend say "Swiper, no swiping!" after which you stop and say "Aww, man!"
Keep trying, and when you do swipe something, just make it ridiculously obvious, like toss it right behind you or put it under a couch cushion or something and then bust out the "You're too late! You'll never find it now!"
posted by hypersloth at 6:50 PM on September 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Frances McDormand in Fargo
posted by 23skidoo at 7:04 PM on September 1, 2012

If your boyfriend is up for it... you could get some orange overalls (and you can probably make some stencils and use spraypaint to turn them into supermax prison uniforms) and you could go as the "mommy" (or whatever the term is - tat up with wash-off tattoos, carry a toothbrush as shiv, hair up in a hairnet or get a bald cap, &c.) and your bf could put on a wig and go as "your bitch."

Go around "trading" "your bitch" for drinks/cigs throughout the night.
posted by porpoise at 7:33 PM on September 1, 2012

Go around "trading" "your bitch" for drinks/cigs throughout the night.

I would really encourage you not to do this; there are enough negative stereotypes of convicts and the chuckling acceptance of rape that happens in narratives about prison is really uncomfortable.

Could you go as Carmen Sandiego? That's what I was for Halloween a couple of years ago and it was awesome. I got a red fedora and a red trench coat online, wore black gloves and black pants/shirt and it was awesome; powerful and reasonably sexy and fun without being short or tight (I also am not a petite woman). Have fun!
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 8:22 PM on September 1, 2012 [2 favorites]

How about as the classic cartoon thief?
Black & white striped shirt, a black eye mask,
Black pants and a pillow case converted to a bag of loot with a dollar sign?
posted by calgirl at 10:37 PM on September 1, 2012

i would try: tailcoat, cute semi-formal dress, zorro/bandit mask, fake sack o loot.
posted by quiteliterally at 11:21 PM on September 1, 2012

I like the Carmen Sandiego idea. Or you could go as one of the assassins from Kill Bill (perhaps with your boyfriend dressed as Bill?)
posted by polymath at 3:06 AM on September 2, 2012

Oh, man: Crime Scene Investigation! This may be more just a "me" thing, but I ADORE watching CSI episodes in anticipation of the flashlight scenes ... I mean they are all about the flashlights. Seriously. Deceased was killed in his own apartment this very afternoon while watching TV? Cleverly murdered in a lightbulb factory? IT DOESN'T MATTER THERE'S NO ELECTRICITY OKAY? Gotta use the flashlights for spooky effect!

A CSI vest would be easy to put together, and you could wear surgical gloves, the badge on the belt thing, carry important flashlights and evidence bags... maybe a big pair of tweezers for picking up hors 'd'oeuvres, and chips and such. It would be fun to deposit various things in your evidence bags, and use your flashlights to check out everything.

(Sunglasses are also a reliable meme-licious option.)

If you wanted to arrive with friends, you could do coroner, victim, perp, too.
posted by taz at 10:01 AM on September 2, 2012