As a child the year was not divided by months nor seasons but by holidays. Summer was a significant one, obviously, followed closely by Christmas. But one of the holidays I looked forward to most was Hallowe’en. I’m not a huge fan of candy and if I never saw a single horror film in my life I wouldn’t see it as a loss. For me the appeal of Hallowe’en is rooted in the making of my costume.
Each year I would seek to create something unique. As all of my friends would prepare to be de
ad brides, zombies, devils and ghosts, I would plot and plan and often agonise over the perfect costume. Instead of a black cat I’d be a white one. Instead of buying a mask from a shop I would build my own from papier mache. I would choose characters from books like Harriet the Spy or Gollum (Long before Lord of the Rings was made into a film, when none of my classmates knew who I was or had heard of The Hobbit.) or I would make characters up, like a Killer Marshmallow or a personification of the night sky.
This year my costume is actually still in progress. I made the top and bottoms myself and put together a crown of ivy. I used my prosthetic mouth and ears and grease paint for the face. It's not done but it was done enough to suit me for this Halloween. I need to make wings yet, and perhaps some nice Pixie feet, but I like it as a working project as I want it to be wearable again and again. To tweak it each time I wear it out will involve unveiling another bit. Perhaps this is a costume that will never quite be done, especially as Pixies really do come in great variations.
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