Ex-ter-mi-nate! Hall-o-ween-ate!

OK maybe the title isn't great, but the point here is that I'm sharing my Dalek Halloween costume!

The most feared alien race in existence.

2012 has been largely about Doctor Who for me, so it's no surprise that I went that route for my costume this year.

I've seen a number of amazing realistic Daleks as well as fun wearable dresses, and since I have limited capabilities I decided that a dress would be the right way to go. It would have worked for me to purchase a pre-made dress and then sew or glue on various accoutrements to make it Dalek-y, but I decided to make it myself. Having no knowledge of clothing assembling, and no pattern, this was a ballsy move.

Can Daleks suck the life from themselves? Do they ever smile?

The results could have been worse, but they also could have been loads better. I knew going in that it'd be a bit of a disaster, so that cushioned the blow of the wonky finished piece. I can wear it though, so I'm very proud of it! I can mark it off of my dream costume list, and maybe next time I attempt a costume I'll actually purchase a pattern. I'm hoping to wear this one to Gallifrey One in February because it turned out better than I thought it would. The styrofoam balls really pulled it together! It is very difficult to drive wearing this, though. Heh.

What's your costume this year?

-MJ

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Dream Halloween Costumes: Geek Edition!

As a lady it's very difficult to buy a Halloween costume that is fun and also not skankalicious. Take a look at some men vs. women comparison costume articles and you'll see what I mean. After giving into the situation a few years in a row (many years ago) I grew tired of the expense vs. lack of skin covering ratio and decided to start putting together my own costumes.

In the past I have been Saria, Uhura, and Raggedy Ann, all made or put together myself. This year I'm hoping to go as a Dalek, so we'll see what I end up with! It's easier than you'd think to put together a creative outfit by yourself. It takes a willingness to thrift, (sometimes) a teeny bit of sewing knowledge, and the ability to accept that your costume may not be a perfect re-creation of the person/thing you're going as. And, the nice thing about these costumes is that they can double as cosplay for conventions! One of the many benefits of being a geek: recycling!

 The green wig was my crowning glory as Saria. Spock was appropriately unimpressed.

I have a few dream Halloween costumes that I hope to make a reality someday. I've seen many of them around the internet, so it gives me great hope regarding my own success. Let's take a look at them!

TARDIS dress:

There are so many options for this particular dream.

The adorable:

The scandalous:

The amazing:

I would definitely go the "adorable" route for a few reasons: comfortable and I think I could probably make it. Aside from finding a pattern online (which is difficult) or buying one from a craft store, my best bet would be purchasing an existing blue dress and then adding embellishments such as the Police Public Call Box sign, the Pull to Open sign, and the windows. Throw in a tiny light-up hat and I'm finished! There's a great tutorial over on youtube that builds off of a corset and skirt design. It's a little risque for me, but they have brilliant ideas.

FemmeTen:

I've never seen female Doctors in the show, although Eleven has mentioned one lady Time Lord before, but that hasn't stopped dedicated fans from storming the fandom with Femme Doctors. Being a bespectacled lady who doesn't wear contacts, I have great sadness when it comes to costume accuracy; not very many characters that I like have glasses. Fortunately, the Tenth Doctor wears glasses every so often!

The great part about cosplaying as Nine, Ten, or Eleven is that they have relatively normal outfits, things that some men would wear on a day to day basis. I could probably buy a complete FemmeTen outfit at Macy's! Brown/blue or pinstriped dress suit, snag a tie from the men's section and throw on my pre-existing red Converse. I am DONE. Like this lovely lady:

All rights reserved Rachel McCauley

The long tan jacket is very important. Never forget that piece! The internet is also full of various fun Doctor Who memorabilia, so once I include my Sonic Screwdriver and track down some psychic paper  the task at hand is done. I will then be able to walk around proud and intelligent with all the swagger of a two-hearted being.

Minecraft Person:

This is one of the simplest options I could pick, so I don't understand why I haven't done it yet. Laziness? That must be it.

From Geekosystem.

Jeans, check. Tennis shoes, check. Green t-shirt, easy enough to obtain. The pickaxe can be purchased online, and I imagine if I were particularly strapped for cash I could buy a large piece of foam core and cut out the shape myself. The trickiest part here is the head piece. But guess what? That can be purchased online too!

If my Dalek dress doesn't turn out at least I've now convinced myself of an easier option.

Zelda:

Without a doubt this is the most difficult costume on my dream list. Pulling off a Zelda costume requires  an immense amount of time, skill, and detail. Not to mention a very specific wig and accessories! I've come to another conclusion: this costume requires a lot of money. Unless I start to develop a lot of finesse and experience with my sewing machine, my best bet for this is to buy one from the internet.

Of course, I like to believe that if I had a spare $300 lying around then I'd buy patterns and take a few classes on costume/clothes making. Then someday you may all see me looking like this:

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You can rest assured that it'll be the happiest day of my life. 

Link:

I'm pleased to report that I'm actually working on a Link costume right now! I've wanted to cosplay as Link while at PAX for quite a few years but that's kind of tough to do without the outfit in tow. My first attempt at a tunic was far too small, and the second one fits but just barely. Truth be told, the sleeves are too small and I'm running out of fabric to try and fix it. I don't expect this one to be Con quality, but maybe Halloween next year.

Link is a much easier costume than Zelda because he has fewer embellishments. One of the key components is a sword, and I was gifted one for Christmas last year so really I'm already halfway to a Link outfit. There are a lot of very great costume tutorials out there, and they're where I'm starting.

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I shall start with that, and someday achieve this:

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The extra detail. Not the masculinity. Don't be ridiculous.

Similar to the Zelda costumes, many places on the great internets will sell me a Link costume, but I think this one needs to come from my sweat, blood and tears, not my wallet.

What is everyone going to be for Halloween, and will you be buying your costume or making it? Have you ever made your costumes in the past? What is YOUR dream costume? Also, if you have any great sewing internet resources then please do share!

Happy costuming!

-MJ

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Halloween For The Rest Of Us

As we welcome October into our lives, I find myself deeply harassed like I am every year.

Excuse me while I remain unamused and feeling as though I'm being stalked by demon creatures. 

Redead image from here!

While I attempt to enjoy movies in the theatre and TV shows, I am bombarded with trailers for horror movies. Screaming in the background, frightened, sweaty faces in close up shots, and more and more often twitchy, disjointed filming tactics that thoroughly mess with my mind.

I love Halloween, but I prefer a Scooby Doo approach. You know, one that's not actually scary. I used to throw a Halloween party every year for my friends and they always wanted to watch a horror movie. So when it came time I'd sit in the kitchen and eat candy by myself while everyone else screamed and laughed in the living room.

It's high time I made a Halloween play list for myself and any other scaredy-cats out there like me!

1. Hocus Pocus

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This is the epitome of Halloween for me. I've watched this movie every year with my sister for as long as I can remember. At least since 1993, at any rate. It's a great combination of a story about witches who suck the life out of little girls, a token cool high school dude trying to woo the popular girl, annoying younger sister, and hysterical performances from the witches in question: Mary, Sarah and Winifred.

Who out there actually hasn't seen this movie? It has probably shaped my life in more ways than I realize. Like, a deep rooted love for cats, and an intense desire to learn French, and the fact that I am extremely wary of supposed "fake" witchcraft. If you've never seen it, make this Halloween count and get your hands on a copy!

2. Casper

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Ah, Devon Sawa. He may not have been the J.T.T. of his age, but he certainly had his place. And even though Mr. Sawa proper was only in Casper for about five minutes, he did a stellar job as the voice of Casper, everyone's favorite friendly ghost!

Instead the bulk of screen time is given over to Christina Ricci, who plays an outcast teenager who is new in town thanks to her father moving them to a new house. She quickly learns that her house is home to some ghosts though, and things just move right along from there. The movie culminates in a giant Halloween party the likes of which I can't even dream of, and one of my aspirations in life is to throw a recreation of that party.

People ask why I throw parties every year if I hate scary movies? It's because Casper has given me something to look up to.

I'm also pretty sure I had a Casper poster in my room as a child.

3. Halloween is Grinch Night

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I will tell you now that it's impossible to go wrong with Dr. Seuss. Doesn't really matter the context, the man had a solution for everything. You hate funny colored food? We have a solution. But right now we're talking about needing non-scary Halloween films.

When little Eukariah Who leaves his house for the Euphemism on a stormy night filled with sour-sweet wind, he encounters the horrible Grinch out wreaking havoc across Whoville. The whole thing has a great classic cartoon vibe with plenty of Seussian thrown in. The most terrifying part of this film? The Grinch repeatedly running over a flower with his wagon wheel, to make extra sure it is crushed.

4. Coraline

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Hands down, this is the scariest movie on my list. I saw it completely unaware of what I would be experiencing. Let me tell you that I felt legitimate terror in the movie theatre, but coupled with total intrigue and fascination and damn if stop motion doesn't impress me.

Even though I'd need to be a part of Coraline's adventures into the Other World with company in tow and a blanket to potentially hide under, it sits firmly on my Halloween film list. Fun fact: Coraline was my first foray into the world of Neil Gaiman.

5. ParaNorman

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This one is actually still in theatres, so I'm not sure how I'll be watching it for Halloween this year, but, having seen it, there's no way I could make a Halloween movie list without it! Norman is a lonesome boy who can see and speak with ghosts. Hence the lonesome part. He has a hysterical, if stereotypical, older sister, a mother who loves and supports him and a father who has no patience for the ghost antics.

As Halloween approaches, Norman becomes tasked with saving the town of Blithe Hallow, Massachusetts from a witch's curse that is normally kept at bay by someone else. Armed with little to no knowledge and a mostly reluctant group of helpers, Norman searches for the answers to save the day.

It is another gorgeous stop motion film, and some of the ending sequences are so beautiful that I found it difficult to focus on the story progression. Oh, and the story progression is amazing. It was all worth being a little bit spooked at times.

Honorable mention: It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown! Because... I love Charlie Brown.
Honorable mention: The Nightmare Before Christmas. It's an obvious choice, but I prefer it as a Christmas movie, actually!

What will you be watching this Halloween?

-MJ

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