I have a pink suit, now I need a costume idea
October 4, 2012 10:22 PM Subscribe
Usually I love Halloween and think of a costume months in advance. For some reason I felt stuck this year until I saw a totally awesome bubble-gum pink suit at Goodwill. It fits me perfectly and I want to wear it, but... what should I be?
Details about the suit: it is pretty fitted, and the cut is fairly conservative, although the jacket could be worn unbuttoned for a more casual (or "sexy") look. It has a skirt which hits just above the knee and has a ruffle along the bottom. The fabric is triacetate and polyester if that is relevant. My friends will have a laugh just seeing me in a suit like this, but I want ideas on really making this suit work for a costume. What should I be? The suit in question.
Details about the suit: it is pretty fitted, and the cut is fairly conservative, although the jacket could be worn unbuttoned for a more casual (or "sexy") look. It has a skirt which hits just above the knee and has a ruffle along the bottom. The fabric is triacetate and polyester if that is relevant. My friends will have a laugh just seeing me in a suit like this, but I want ideas on really making this suit work for a costume. What should I be? The suit in question.
Delores. Umbridge.
posted by hellojed at 10:25 PM on October 4, 2012 [41 favorites]
posted by hellojed at 10:25 PM on October 4, 2012 [41 favorites]
Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter.
Lucille Bluth from Arrested Development.
posted by erst at 10:26 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]
Lucille Bluth from Arrested Development.
posted by erst at 10:26 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]
Delores. Umbridge.
Er...we keep saying this and you might ignore it but, no seriously, that suit is Delores Umbridge.
posted by The Whelk at 10:28 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
Er...we keep saying this and you might ignore it but, no seriously, that suit is Delores Umbridge.
posted by The Whelk at 10:28 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
She's really one of the evilest villains in fiction so yes, please be Dolores.
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 10:32 PM on October 4, 2012
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 10:32 PM on October 4, 2012
If you want more generic stuff, that suit is also total HI I WANT TO BE YOUR REPRESENTATIVE - get stickers with your face on them, buttons with your on face them, banners with your name and 2013! written on them, your costume is "overzealous campaign person" and you have on a sash with all your stickers slogans and buttons on them, all of them have your face on them. Create a fake, oddly generic campaign, EZAINCH GETS RESULTS! and such. Hand out lollipops with a picture of your face tied to the stem, just go nuts with the it.
posted by The Whelk at 10:33 PM on October 4, 2012 [6 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 10:33 PM on October 4, 2012 [6 favorites]
Also if you're into Makeup, you could totally turn that suit into an Effie Trinket like so
posted by The Whelk at 10:36 PM on October 4, 2012 [7 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 10:36 PM on October 4, 2012 [7 favorites]
It might be a bit dated by now, but Elle Woods from Legally Blonde.
posted by captainawesome at 10:38 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by captainawesome at 10:38 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
Mary Kay cosmetics.
posted by cairnoflore at 10:56 PM on October 4, 2012 [9 favorites]
posted by cairnoflore at 10:56 PM on October 4, 2012 [9 favorites]
I definitely agree with Delores Umbridge. However, another option is Dr. Girlfriend from The Venture Bros. The suit doesn't quite fit, but you could make it work.
posted by FakePalindrome at 11:02 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by FakePalindrome at 11:02 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]
I give you my 2004 costume, "gum on the bottom of a shoe".
posted by judith at 11:11 PM on October 4, 2012 [5 favorites]
posted by judith at 11:11 PM on October 4, 2012 [5 favorites]
Delores, Delores, Delores.
She is so evil, and so perfectly perfectly that suit, my god. You need: pink flats/maryjanes with some sort of hideous embellishment like a pom-pom or a bow, a brooch of some kind of cat, a pink hair band, preferably with a bow right on the top, and a blood-letting quill, which you can make from a large feather and the nib of a fountain pen. Wield it menacingly. She is a better villain than Voldemort, and ideal for Halloween.
posted by Mizu at 11:24 PM on October 4, 2012 [10 favorites]
She is so evil, and so perfectly perfectly that suit, my god. You need: pink flats/maryjanes with some sort of hideous embellishment like a pom-pom or a bow, a brooch of some kind of cat, a pink hair band, preferably with a bow right on the top, and a blood-letting quill, which you can make from a large feather and the nib of a fountain pen. Wield it menacingly. She is a better villain than Voldemort, and ideal for Halloween.
posted by Mizu at 11:24 PM on October 4, 2012 [10 favorites]
Ooh... Ever watched The House of Yes? I'd never be able to pass up the chance to channel Parker Posey channeling Jackie Kennedy.
posted by mochapickle at 11:32 PM on October 4, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by mochapickle at 11:32 PM on October 4, 2012 [2 favorites]
Two words: DOCTOR GIRLFRIEND (from The Venture Brothers).
posted by Alice Russel-Wallace at 11:34 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by Alice Russel-Wallace at 11:34 PM on October 4, 2012 [3 favorites]
Definitely Dolores Umbridge.
posted by thylacinthine at 11:36 PM on October 4, 2012
posted by thylacinthine at 11:36 PM on October 4, 2012
It reminds me of the 'Lawyer suit' my Barbie had when I was growing up, so the first thought that comes to mind for me would be to pull together a Lawyer Barbie or Business Barbie costume. Blonde wig, pink pumps, excessive makeup, and everything made to look as fakey as possible. Extra points for a pink briefcase and scaled up versions of the cardboard props your Barbie would have (degree certificate, laptop, maybe some big credit cards).
posted by polymath at 1:14 AM on October 5, 2012 [5 favorites]
posted by polymath at 1:14 AM on October 5, 2012 [5 favorites]
Ooh... Ever watched The House of Yes?
posted by wreckingball at 1:15 AM on October 5, 2012 [4 favorites]
"I went as Jackie Onassis, in a pink Chanel suit and a pillbox hat, and blood on my dress. Well, ketchup mostly and other stuff like macaroni, sort of glued on like brains."mochapickle's answer is the correct answer.
posted by wreckingball at 1:15 AM on October 5, 2012 [4 favorites]
Shelby from Steel Magnolias. That was her honeymoon suit.
posted by pearlybob at 1:45 AM on October 5, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by pearlybob at 1:45 AM on October 5, 2012 [2 favorites]
With the new Arrested Development movie in productiion, god damn do I hope you favor Lucille Bluth!
posted by jbenben at 2:35 AM on October 5, 2012
posted by jbenben at 2:35 AM on October 5, 2012
Mrs. Frederic from Warehouse 13. A braided beehive, cat's eye glasses, pearls and pumps is about all it would take.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:04 AM on October 5, 2012
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:04 AM on October 5, 2012
Barbara Cartland. You'd need a white permed wig, a dog, and an awful lot of blue eye-shadow.
posted by mippy at 6:27 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by mippy at 6:27 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
If you do not go as Dolores Umbridge, you are going to be doing some lines for me.
posted by Rock Steady at 6:35 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Rock Steady at 6:35 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
Barbara Bush.
posted by Kololo at 6:57 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Kololo at 6:57 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
Legally Blonde (you will need a dog.) Barbie, or even Campaign Barbie.
posted by DarlingBri at 7:37 AM on October 5, 2012
posted by DarlingBri at 7:37 AM on October 5, 2012
I like the Delores Umbridge advice, but on the off chance that you don't take it...
Pour fake blood on it, add a pillbox hat, and be Jackie O!
Or maybe some kind of vintage flight attendant? This will depend more on the cut of the suit -- if it has strong shoulders and an 80's look, it probably won't work for that.
posted by Sara C. at 7:50 AM on October 5, 2012
Pour fake blood on it, add a pillbox hat, and be Jackie O!
Or maybe some kind of vintage flight attendant? This will depend more on the cut of the suit -- if it has strong shoulders and an 80's look, it probably won't work for that.
posted by Sara C. at 7:50 AM on October 5, 2012
Oh, another outlier, but maybe appropriate if you have a certain type of friends.
Hillary Clinton or Angela Merkel.
posted by Sara C. at 7:51 AM on October 5, 2012
Hillary Clinton or Angela Merkel.
posted by Sara C. at 7:51 AM on October 5, 2012
Professional Attire Kirby (>'_')>
posted by Freyja at 8:36 AM on October 5, 2012 [5 favorites]
posted by Freyja at 8:36 AM on October 5, 2012 [5 favorites]
I had a pink suit like this several years ago. I went as a Church Lady and scared the crap out of all my friends. But yes, you should go as Dolores Umbridge.
posted by RedEmma at 9:37 AM on October 5, 2012
posted by RedEmma at 9:37 AM on October 5, 2012
Queen Elizabeth, dependent on the right hat.
but really, political candidate just needs hokey pearls and a coiffed wig, so I'd go with that.
posted by acm at 9:49 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
but really, political candidate just needs hokey pearls and a coiffed wig, so I'd go with that.
posted by acm at 9:49 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
Yeah, Delores Umbridge or Effie Trinket.
I also really really want to suggest Pinkie Pie (because, oh! So much pink!), but that suit's a little conservative for her, and you'd have to come up with a great alt-version of her to pull it off. Which you could probably do if you're a MLP fan, but if not, probably not.
posted by rhiannonstone at 9:53 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
I also really really want to suggest Pinkie Pie (because, oh! So much pink!), but that suit's a little conservative for her, and you'd have to come up with a great alt-version of her to pull it off. Which you could probably do if you're a MLP fan, but if not, probably not.
posted by rhiannonstone at 9:53 AM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
Marge Simpson, when she found the Chanel suit at the outlet mall.
posted by ShutterBun at 4:24 PM on October 5, 2012
posted by ShutterBun at 4:24 PM on October 5, 2012
Dolores Umbridge, for the win.
Backup choice, Angela Merkel or Barbara Bush, but that's a PERFECT Dolores suit.
posted by easily confused at 6:07 PM on October 5, 2012
Backup choice, Angela Merkel or Barbara Bush, but that's a PERFECT Dolores suit.
posted by easily confused at 6:07 PM on October 5, 2012
It doesn't matter who or what you go as in that suit, everyone will assume you're Dolores Umbridge regardless, so you might as well roll with that and own it. :)
posted by anonymisc at 9:48 PM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by anonymisc at 9:48 PM on October 5, 2012 [1 favorite]
With a little work, an eraser.
posted by chrisinseoul at 3:18 AM on October 7, 2012
posted by chrisinseoul at 3:18 AM on October 7, 2012
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