Alex's Guide

Oh, this was so much fun to draw!  I was planning on doing this next Friday, but I was stuck on comic ideas this morning, so I’m doing it now!

Obviously, I grew up in a homemade/found-item costume kind of house, and I can’t really recall a single year where I wore something store bought.  Now indulge me in a rundown so that I may reminisce!

Fairy:  This was my kindergarten costume.  My dad made me wings out of wire hangers and plastic wrap, and my “gown” was a secondhand dressing gown.  1992.

Cat:  This was my go-to-costume for a couple years as a kid.  I was a little cat-crazy until we got our first cat in 1998 or so.  1993-??

Cheerleader:  A hand-me-down costume that one of my older sisters wore at one point.  Before anyone cries foul at an OSU alum in blue and gold, those were the colors for my elementary school, Harvard. My elementary school can totally beat up your elementary school, because it’s a fucking castle.

Also, that hill is killer for sledding in the winter. 1993-5ish.

Butterfly: A liberal interpretation of a butterfly, sure.  I think this was from some sort of nightie set that I don’t even know how I acquired, but it was fluttery and awesome.  That year, we had an exchange student from Mexico named Efrén who would tease the hell out of me by calling me a Peanut Butter Fly. 1996.

Bunny: I think was was a last-minute costume my mom put together because I don’t remember much about it other than it was a white sweatshirt, sweatpants, and a bunny tail and ears. 1998.

Witch: I planned this costume with my BFF at the time, who was also a witch that year. I was in love with my wig, because it had the grey streak!  First year of middle school. 1999.

Buttercup: A very crude homemade costume that consisted of white stirrup pants (I lived in stirrup pants during the last half og the 90s) a green t-shirt, and a black belt that I cut out of an old pair of pajama pants, I think. 2000.

Tejina:  An original character from my longtime project The Hues, at the time.  I mostly did this because I had the right glasses, and it was an easy costume.  2002.

Arwen:  My friend Amanda made this costume for me for Trilogy Tuesday!  Those big sleeves were perfect for smuggling food into the movie theater.  Amanda made herself a very impressive Legolas costume, and my sister was Rosie Cotton.  I actually wore this dress to my senior prom, too. ^_^; 2003.

Jeremy: This was the ill-fated Great Trifecta Switch. I was going to dress like Jeremy, Jeremy was going to dress like Aryn, and Aryn was going to dress like me.  When it came down to it, I was dressed like Jeremy, Jeremy was dressed like a scarecrow, and Aryn didn’t dress up at all.  I even rubbed dish soap in my hair to make it extra grimy, man! Not that I’m still bitter, or anything… 2005.

Generic Elf: A group of us went to Kent, OH for their big Halloween fest, so I paired my bridesmaid dress with my Arwen cloak to be a generic, fancy elf.  It was a fun time, and I’m glad I got to wear my dress more than once, though I think it’s still got a faint Diet Coke stain down the front of it from that night. 2005.

Chris:  I went to a Halloween party that Chris wasn’t able to attend, so I brought him along in spirit.  Chris had long hair when I first met him, so I put mine in a ponytail, donned my glasses, and stole a red shirt and flannel from his closet to complete the ensemble.  I even made a fake PDA with a printed-out picture of the Wikipedia home page to carry around.  Our friends were very entertained. 2008.

Lori Beth Denberg: Some of you may remember this because I mentioned it last year before Youmacon!  This costume is entirely why the Corn exists.  Lori Beth was an original cast member on All That, and is one of my fat heroes. 2010.

Cass Elliot:  This is my costume this year.  It will be epic.  For those who don’t know who Cass Elloit is, get thee to YouTube. I’m fashioning my costume after this album cover:

And these are just the ones I can remember.  There are a couple holes in the timeline where either I can’t remember what I wore, or I just didn’t dress up.  Did you have a favorite childhood (or adult) costume?  Throw it out there in the comments. :D