We all need to dress in costumes from time to time
Costumes were not available commercially until the 1930's, according to this website.
But, by the 1960s the shelves of stores like Woolworth were packed with options. (See some of the trends here.)
By the time I was 11 or so, I was a fan of the homemade costume. My friends and I came up with fun concepts. I was a balloon man, a gypsy, and (as pictured here) Honey West, a seductive blonde who packed a pistol and fought crime.
As a mom, I loved getting my kids ready for Halloween. By then, infant costumes had come into vogue and my daughters were peas and pumpkins. (I'm not sure why, but dressing ones kids up as fruits and vegetables was quite popular.) As they got older, they became bats, Power Rangers, the sun and the moon, pirates, and cowgirls.
We all go through phases in our costume-ing. I've been scary, sexy, and unrecognizeable. (My freshman year in college I wore a mini skirt and fishnets and a rubber-y old crone mask with long flowing hair...I looked hot from the back and hideous from the front...I think I was probably making a feminist statement of some kind.)
I think I will be a boxer again this year, a reprise of a costume I wore after Hillary Swank took the Oscar for "Million Dollar Baby." I can relate to the character...bobbing, weaving, talking smart, hanging tough, and beating the odds. (Yeah, the ending was sort of grim, but let's ignore that part.)
What we choose to be each Halloween says something about our psyches. Experts agree. See here and here for some perspectives. (Hmmm...feeling Lady Gaga-esque? You might have "issues.")
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