Help with Circus/Carnival themed costumes for a tall, cheap curmudgeon?
October 1, 2014 10:58 AM Subscribe
Help me put together a circus/carnival themed Halloween costume for a pub crawl.
My good friend R and I have been organizing pub crawls (aka "Whiskey Walks") with friends in NYC every 3-6 months for the past several years now. Our next crawl will be on October 25th, and R, who is a fancy lady who loves fanciness, has insisted that we impose a costume theme on the attendees, and has further insisted that the costume theme be "Circus/Carnival." We did a themed crawl a few years back, but it was "the Wild West," so boots and a hat and a gingham shirt were all I needed to not get in trouble. This one, however, is throwing me for a loop. I don't even know where to begin. Help!
Relevant details:
- I'm a 6'5" guy who's rangy enough (170 lbs., 36L suit size) that it's nearly impossible for me to find shirts and jackets off the rack that fit me, including vintage.
- This will be a pub crawl, so intricacy, delicacy, and fussiness are to be avoided at all costs.
- Must be comfortable to walk in, warm enough to wear outside in late October in NYC, have some place to store a wallet, etc.
- I'm cheap(ish), and would prefer not to shell out for costume elements that I'll never wear again. Everything less than $50 would be awesome.
- Neither I nor my wife can be relied upon to do anything even remotely competent with makeup, although I'm game if you've got a good suggestion.
So what the heck can I do with this?
My good friend R and I have been organizing pub crawls (aka "Whiskey Walks") with friends in NYC every 3-6 months for the past several years now. Our next crawl will be on October 25th, and R, who is a fancy lady who loves fanciness, has insisted that we impose a costume theme on the attendees, and has further insisted that the costume theme be "Circus/Carnival." We did a themed crawl a few years back, but it was "the Wild West," so boots and a hat and a gingham shirt were all I needed to not get in trouble. This one, however, is throwing me for a loop. I don't even know where to begin. Help!
Relevant details:
- I'm a 6'5" guy who's rangy enough (170 lbs., 36L suit size) that it's nearly impossible for me to find shirts and jackets off the rack that fit me, including vintage.
- This will be a pub crawl, so intricacy, delicacy, and fussiness are to be avoided at all costs.
- Must be comfortable to walk in, warm enough to wear outside in late October in NYC, have some place to store a wallet, etc.
- I'm cheap(ish), and would prefer not to shell out for costume elements that I'll never wear again. Everything less than $50 would be awesome.
- Neither I nor my wife can be relied upon to do anything even remotely competent with makeup, although I'm game if you've got a good suggestion.
So what the heck can I do with this?
Make yourself a sideshow-type sign: WORLD'S SHORTEST TALLEST MAN
Then wear whatever you want and your sign.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:11 AM on October 1, 2014 [1 favorite]
Then wear whatever you want and your sign.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:11 AM on October 1, 2014 [1 favorite]
There are tons of ideas on Pinterest. Search for circus themed costumes or carnival themed costumes, because "Carnival costume" doesn't get what you need to see.
posted by raisingsand at 11:16 AM on October 1, 2014
posted by raisingsand at 11:16 AM on October 1, 2014
I'm with Emperor SnooKloze. Go as a short guy on stilts.
posted by phunniemee at 11:29 AM on October 1, 2014 [4 favorites]
posted by phunniemee at 11:29 AM on October 1, 2014 [4 favorites]
It's a bit off-theme, but might be workable: what would it take to imitate the classic gag of two short people, one atop the other, in a tall raincoat? You'd basically need a tall raincoat/trenchcoat, and some way to make a face that peeks out between buttons somewhere around belly-level.
You could really sell the aforementioned WORLD'S SHORTEST TALLEST MAN with this 1 simple trick.
posted by Sunburnt at 11:36 AM on October 1, 2014 [2 favorites]
You could really sell the aforementioned WORLD'S SHORTEST TALLEST MAN with this 1 simple trick.
posted by Sunburnt at 11:36 AM on October 1, 2014 [2 favorites]
How tall are you and how good is your voice?
posted by John Kennedy Toole Box at 1:41 PM on October 1, 2014
posted by John Kennedy Toole Box at 1:41 PM on October 1, 2014
Add makeup to any outfit you choose to become a circus/carnivale crew member. At minimum, black eyeliner is a must. A bit of blush could be good. Doesn't have to be done well. Check out these pictures from Cirque Alfonse, an acrobatic group from Quebec.
An acrobat outfit can be several things, here's some pictures of that troupe. Wife-beater shirt, suspenders, loose pants that aren't jeans. If per chance you have/can grow a moustache & beard, or wear fake facial hair, that would be great. Mutton chops and tied-back hair add to the effect. And I really don't see why you couldn't wear a plaid shirt over it for warmth. I saw a troupe where one guy had a vest on over top of his outfit. Add a hat if you like - bowler, top-hat, one of those tweed paperboy caps. Black shoes.
If you're willing to make a prop accessory to definitely be a strong-man type, a couple of styrofoam balls on a stick, painted black to make dumbbells.
posted by lizbunny at 6:36 PM on October 1, 2014
An acrobat outfit can be several things, here's some pictures of that troupe. Wife-beater shirt, suspenders, loose pants that aren't jeans. If per chance you have/can grow a moustache & beard, or wear fake facial hair, that would be great. Mutton chops and tied-back hair add to the effect. And I really don't see why you couldn't wear a plaid shirt over it for warmth. I saw a troupe where one guy had a vest on over top of his outfit. Add a hat if you like - bowler, top-hat, one of those tweed paperboy caps. Black shoes.
If you're willing to make a prop accessory to definitely be a strong-man type, a couple of styrofoam balls on a stick, painted black to make dumbbells.
posted by lizbunny at 6:36 PM on October 1, 2014
Response by poster: UPDATE:
First off, thanks for all of the great ideas. But I just realized that I have an underused leather motorcycle jacket in my closet that could be the basis for a sweet motorcycle daredevil costume. Does anybody know how I could temporarily affix a daredevil name to the back. Also, any suggestions for a good name?
posted by saladin at 1:00 PM on October 2, 2014
First off, thanks for all of the great ideas. But I just realized that I have an underused leather motorcycle jacket in my closet that could be the basis for a sweet motorcycle daredevil costume. Does anybody know how I could temporarily affix a daredevil name to the back. Also, any suggestions for a good name?
posted by saladin at 1:00 PM on October 2, 2014
Response by poster: UPDATE:
It ended up being way too hot in NY to walk around in a leather jacket and motorcycle helmet, so I just went as a carney. Thanks for your help everybody!
posted by saladin at 1:24 PM on October 27, 2014
It ended up being way too hot in NY to walk around in a leather jacket and motorcycle helmet, so I just went as a carney. Thanks for your help everybody!
posted by saladin at 1:24 PM on October 27, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Emperor SnooKloze at 11:02 AM on October 1, 2014