Howl-oween Fun Goes Straight To the Dogs

Categories:

Halloween, Pet Costumes, Suggestions and Ideas

October 29, 2012

by Jenna Maxwell

It’s funny.   On the news we hear over and over about economic struggles that are happening throughout our great nation.  Many of us have cut coupons, shopped sales, and to a great degree, done without.  Apparently, however, when it comes to Rover and Fido, American’s have refused to scrimp or even cut back. This year, over 370 million dollars (no that’s not a typo!) is expected to be spent on Pet Costumes alone.  Yep, you read that right.  Outfitting pets for Halloween (and life!) is big business.  Today’s chicest pets are wearing every imaginable and creative get up.  Along with community Pumpkin Carving Contests and other local events, it’s not at all uncommon to see Pet Costume Contests and Pet parades as part of neighborhood Halloween festivities. What in the world is going on here?

Retailing has been trending in the “pet” direction for a while now and has definitely reached an all-time high.  Pet products in general are one of the fastest growing segments of the retail marketplace. You can likely thank the baby boomer age group whose kids have now gone off to college for this fast growing trend.  With kids grown up and out of the house, the family pet then becomes the focus of attention in much the same way the kids used to be.  Today’s pets are considered vital members of families and for many, are treated very much like children.

Some pets are more responsive to wearing costumes than others, and even though you (and everyone else) may think that a pet costume is cute, it still is wise to keep your pets feelings in mind when dressing them up.  If you shower your pet with attention (and a few treats) when putting a costume on them, they likely will learn to associate the experience with good things and thus may not mind dressing up at all; they may even look forward to it!  If your pet clearly isn’t into the experience, try something less obtrusive (perhaps remove the headpiece for example) and maybe that will be enough. Halloween themed collars and leashes are an easy way to get your pet into the spirit of things if they aren’t into the clothing part.  At any rate, the experience is supposed to be fun, not frightening, so be sensitive to your animal’s needs as some are already a little anxious around Halloween anyway due to all the door bell ringing, costumes, flashlights and other doggie annoyances.


Some pets are more responsive to wearing costumes than others.

Not sure what costume is right for your pet?  There are many costume choices out there that are designed to fit an animal’s body appropriately and comfortably.  If your family has a theme for costumes this year, of course you will want to try and dress your pet to go along with every one else’s costume if possible.  Sometimes it’s fun to take into consideration your dog’s breed and choose a costume that is well suited for his body type.  Choosing something completely contrary to the dog’s breed can be very funny. For example, dressing a tough looking Bulldog in a fluffy tutu and tiara, or a tiny Chihuahua in leather Biker attire, etc.  Pet costumes come in a wide variety of sizes as well.  The correct size is especially important for a pet costume, as too small will be tight and uncomfortable for your pooch and too large is going to be hard to keep on a very busy furry friend.

Pet costumes are here to stay and you are likely to see many of them out and about in your neighborhood this Halloween.  Perhaps it won’t be too long before dogs will be trick-or-treating on Halloween night for dog treats, just like kids who go out looking for candy.  Your pet is part of your family.  Be sure to include them in all your Halloween fun with a really cute pet costume.  Don’t forget to take lots of pictures of the lovable furball!

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Last Minute Costume Solutions for Halloween Procrastinators

Categories:

Costume Accessories, Costume Suggestions, Halloween, Halloween Accessories, Suggestions and Ideas

October 25, 2012

by Jenna Maxwell

You know who you are.  We also know (honestly!) that you just can’t believe it’s happened again!  You swore this time last year that you were going to plan for Halloween better, didn’t you?  Here it is, just days from Halloween, you’ve been invited to a party and you have absolutely nothing to wear–and the ideas are running pretty dry as well.  OR even worse, your kids don’t have a costume to wear out trick-or-treating and they are looking to you for some solutions.  (Mom’s can fix everything, right?) Anyway, once again, we are here to save your bacon and offer you some last minute costume ideas that might just help bail you out!

Make up (for lack of planning) with Makeup:  Creative use of makeup can create a character face that will redeem you in many instances, and with relative ease.  Many costume looks can be created using makeup supplies you likely already have on hand, or that can be easily obtained at the last minute.  Drawing on a nose and whiskers with black eyeliner can easily create a cat face.  With brown, green and black eye shadows you can turn an ordinary face into a camouflaged soldier.  With white face makeup and black eyeliner, any face can be transformed into a stunning mime.  Procrastinators often are forced to be a little bit creative, but some of the best, most original ideas can often result.  Don’t be afraid to experiment a little bit.

Hit the Thrift Store…or the Back of Your Closet:  Your local thrift store can be a gold mine when it comes to throwing together a last minute Halloween costume.  Go into the store with few preconceived notions and see what inspires you.  Retro looks are usually a great place to start, as thrift stores often have a plethora of outdated clothing styles for you to choose from.  Hippies, Rock Stars, Hobo’s, Gypsies and Nerds are easy looks to put together with a quick trip to Goodwill or even to your own closet.

  • Hobo:  Any old raggedy clothes will work for this look, but if you can find an old suit jacket, even better.  Cut the fingertips off some old gloves.  Find an old hat to wear on your head; a beat up fedora style would be considered the Holy Grail to top off your look.  Making up your face to be a Hobo is pretty easy–check out our how-to video here for some Hobo makeup ideas.
  • Gypsy:  Creating a gypsy look is pretty easy for you Halloween desperados.  A good gypsy look, requires jewelry–and lots of it.  Especially necklaces, rings and bracelets; pile them on with reckless abandon.  The most critical piece of jewelry is a pair of very large, hoop-style earrings–if you don’t have these, look for something that is fairly big and ostentatious.  The finishing touch is to tie a headscarf around your head and don’t forget to add some very bright, red lipstick.
  • Rock Star:  The great thing about a Rock Star costume is that you can go in a lot of directions depending on the look you are shooting for.  A Lady Gaga look can be obtained with a pair of sunglasses and a scarf worn as if it were a snood.  A more classic rocker look can be obtained by braiding long hair and letting it dry–when you remove the braids, tease the hair a little to make it look huge and instant rocker.  Black leggings or tight jeans, a loose shirt (don’t forget cowboy boots if you have them) and some beads or other bling around your neck and you are set.  If you have a guitar, by all means, accessorize with it, even if it’s plastic. 
  • Hippie:  An old t-shirt can be cut along the bottom hemline to create “fringe”.  A sort of must-have item is a peace sign worn around the neck, but if you are truly desperate, you can make one of these with carefully fashioned tin foil positioned on another large pendant you already have or make one from a cardboard disk.  Headbands, beads and sandals will complete the look.
  • Zombie “Anything”:  Nowadays, any character can be made into a cool zombie.  Shred the clothing you are wearing a little bit and then add some dark makeup around your eyes, using a white powder or a more pasty colored makeup on the rest of the face.  Mess up your hair–zombies always have bedhead.  A must-have item for any proper zombie look is vampire blood and lots of it; this is especially effective around the mouth area. 
  • Nerd:  Short pants, pulled up too high or khaki shorts belted tightly, along with a button front shirt, buttoned all the way up to the top are the essentials you will need for this hilarious last minute getup.  Find some dorky shoes to wear with white socks, of course. (If you are wearing shorts, make sure your socks are pulled all the way up–crew or knee length socks are best.)   Outdated glasses are an important part of the nerd style; add some tape at the bridge of the nose to really “goofball” up your look and give him some extra dorky flair; a pocket protector if you have one, is a very nice, nerdy touch.

 

Work with what you have:  Sometimes it’s easier to start with what you do have on hand rather than trying to come up with things that you don’t.  For example, sports uniforms make great last minute costumes.  If you are guy, borrow a female friend’s uniform or if you are a girl borrow a boy’s uniform–this swapping adds an instant hilarious factor that will make up for what creativity you may be lacking.  Tutu’s are a great accessory to work with for a wide variety of costume looks. In fact, most any dancewear or yoga apparel can be easily morphed into a last minute costume with just a few additions.  Add a cape and a mask; you are a superhero.  Add cat or bunny ears placed on a headband and you are cute (or even sexy) cat–etc. 

Whether you are just low on cash, are a bit of a bona fide Halloween humbug, or just plain lazy–waiting until the last minute to put a costume together doesn’t have to spell disaster for your Halloween plans. You will have to be open-minded, flexible and a bit creative, but all these factors put together may give you what we will call a “Halloween opportunity.”  Of course, next year you swear to plan a little bit better–but for now, don’t stress out and try to have some fun!

P.S.  You may want to check out our affordable, guaranteed, fast-shipping upgrades.  If you hurry, there is still time to get that perfect costume shipped right to your door!

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Taking Great Photos: Making The Most of Your Halloween Memories

Categories:

Entertainment, Halloween, Suggestions and Ideas

October 22, 2012

by Jenna Maxwell

Once you have your Halloween costumes and all the associated activities planned out, you are definitely going to want to take plenty of photographs, to make sure these memories will last for a lifetime!  Getting the best photos doesn’t require any special equipment or even any special skills–in fact, today’s cell phone cameras are often all you need to take some pretty amazing photos.  Halloween creates some unique and special photographic scenarios, however; and these may require a little bit of know-how so you can obtain the best possible photo results. Here are some tried and true tips to help you get the best Halloween pictures ever!

Baby, It’s Dark Out There!  Many Halloween activities are done in low lighting that can create some unique dilemmas for anyone with a camera in hand.  An easy way to deal with low lighting is to raise the ISO setting on your camera, which makes the camera a bit more sensitive to light.  More sensitivity to light means the camera can take the shot faster, reducing any blurred images that are caused by camera movement.  You will want to experiment a bit with these settings prior to Halloween however; because if you set the ISO too high your photos can turn out on the grainy side.  Practicing in low light situations can give you an idea of what works best for your particular camera.

Hey, The Gang’s All Here!  It’s fun to get all the kids or large groups of costumed up friends into one photo–but jamming a whole bunch of people into one large group shot may not make as good of a photo as you might have hoped.  Oftentimes, someone gets shoved into the back where you can’t really see them, and squishing a bunch of dressed up subject’s into one shot doesn’t really give them a chance to show off their costumes very well.  When it comes to people wearing costumes, smaller groups are much better.  Small groups or even pairs allow more room around each subject, creating a more visually appealing photograph and even an opportunity for the subject to really get into character!  Now we’re talking! 

Don’t Forget Jack!  You’ve put some effort into carving that Jack-O-Lantern so doesn’t miss the opportunity to add him to some of your Halloween photos for a truly amazing effect! The best time to photograph a lit Jack-O-Lantern is about 20 minutes after the sun goes down.  At this time, the light in the night sky is approximately equal to the light being emitted from Jack.  With all things being equal, this creates the ideal lighting circumstances to capture the Jack-O-Lantern’s details perfectly!

Pets!  If your pet enjoys being costumed up (and many do love the extra attention and the inevitable treats, too!), make sure and include your pets in your Halloween photos.  There is something about a pet in costume that ups the adorable quotient ten-fold and will definitely add some unique character to your Halloween photographs.

Flashlights!  You are likely going to have these with you as you go out trick or treating anyway, so why not use them to create some unique photographic effects.  Have the kids take turns pointing the flashlight at each other while you shoot some ghoulish photos.  These shots can be very cool!

Get Down!  When taking pictures of children, it’s very important to be on their same level.  Whether this means stooping or sitting down, make sure the camera is being held at their eye level for the best-angled shots. 

Turn off the Flash!  Spooky, silhouetted effects can be created without using a flash.  You may want to try taking pictures with and without the flash just to see which ones you like the best.  Using the existing light alone to illuminate your subject can sometimes create a very interesting and even at times, spooky effect.

SURPRISE!  Don’t forget to take those spontaneous shots catching your subject completely unaware.  The surprise emotions that are captured in these types of shots are often the most fun and authentic.

Take Full Advantage of Seasonal Surroundings:  With all the cool decorations and props you are likely to see around town at this time of the year, you will want to make sure some of these are used as cool background and backdrops for your Halloween photos.  Spook alleys and pumpkin patches are filled with colorful and seasonal props that you will want to pose your subject around, creating that perfect Halloween themed shot!

The beauty of digital photography is that you can experiment a lot with your photos without worry or waste.  Take plenty of photos–you can always delete those that you don’t like.  The more photos you have to choose from the more likely you are to get the ones that capture the memories of your event perfectly! 

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Halloween Zero or Hero? It’s All About the Candy

Categories:

Entertainment, Family Fun, Halloween, Let's Party, Suggestions and Ideas

October 17, 2012

by Jenna Maxwell

We know you’ve gone to a lot of trouble getting ready for Halloween. It takes a bit of effort to scout out the perfect Halloween costumes for you and your family, assembling your best Halloween looks from head to toe.  You are almost ready to go–it’s the final countdown to what could arguably be the most exciting holiday of the year!  You definitely don’t want to blow it now.  What we are saying here dear friends, is that at some point, it really comes down to the candy.  What you are handing out to the trick or treaters in your neighborhood does matter–and yes, you will be judged.  What does your Halloween candy say about you?

Fun Size Candy Bars:  You are a Halloween traditionalist and you are into the whole Halloween gig.  These little candy bars are pretty standard Halloween fare and you can’t really go wrong with buying these for your neighborhood Halloween revelers.  Since most of these treats are chocolate based you will be scoring some major points with the entire group of mommy’s who may be sneaking some of the goodies for themselves.  (C’mon…don’t we all do this?)

Sugar Blast:  These are not necessarily going to be any adult’s favorites, but these are the ones that year after year score some major points with the kids.  This group of super sugary treats includes Starburst, Skittles, Twizzlers, Nerds, Sour Patch Kids,  Pop Rocks and gummy anything.  If you are looking to impress your neighborhood trick or treaters with no chocolate temptation calling out to you, these candies are sure-fire winners.

Full Size Candy:  You Halloween overachiever you!  With a treat basket filled with full size candy bars, the word on the street is going to get out fast.  If you don’t mind having lots of repeat customers, a line at your door, and your doorbell ringing all night long, these treats are for you.  Be aware that the other neighborhood parents may think you are just showing off.

Homemade Treats:  Don’t waste your time unless these are for a private party at your house.  Nobody lets their kids eat homemade treats anymore and more likely than not, they are going to get thrown out.

Lollipops:  Usually the only thing that is left at the store on the day of Halloween, this treat will scream, “I waited until the last minute!”  These are never a Halloween favorite and when the treat bag is almost empty sometime in late November, you are likely to find it filled with a variety of Dum Dum suckers that will eventually find their way into the trash as well.

Apples or other healthy snacks:  You might as well just turn out the lights and not participate.  No one wants to get these in their trick or treat bags.  Besides, haven’t you heard the urban legends of the real sicko’s that put razor blades in apples?  Apples, raisins or any fruit item are likely to get thrown out by scrupulous mommies anyway.

Pixy Sticks, Junior Mints, Sugar Daddy’s and Wax Lips:  These “retro” candies are not only popular with the kids, but they are a great way to help you re-live your childhood memories as well.  It’s not like you see these favorites in your grocery store everyday, but at Halloween it’s a great time to bring back some of these old and very groovy candies from the past!

Pencils, Toothbrushes, Coupons:  Oh please!  Are you trying to be the ultimate Halloween killjoy?  Save your passive preaching for another day and let the kids have fun on Halloween without the hidden agenda thrown into their treat bags. Boring!

The candy that’s found in your Halloween treat bowl speaks volumes.  You may actually want to put some thought into this before the big night and think about what you are communicating to all those costumed up kids that are coming to your door shouting “TRICK OR TREAT!”  Make sure at your house, it’s a definite “Treat”. 

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Big Bird and The Joker – Who’da Thunk It?

Categories:

Current Events, Political, Political Masks

October 15, 2012

by Jenna Maxwell

You really can’t make this stuff up.  Sometimes in the course of life, something a little bit crazy happens that sets the world a-giggling and making fun.  Even the most serious events, like the upcoming Presidential elections have put some interesting (and very unforeseen) characters straight into the limelight.

A few weeks ago, Big Bird was happily living a quiet and peaceful existence down on Sesame Street, when all of sudden he was thrust into the nation’s headlines through a casual reference to him by Mitt Romney during one of the Presidential debates.  Chatter about Big Bird is now all over the Internet and headlining in the media.  Big Bird is starring in memes, is in headlines everywhere and Big Bird costumes (just in time for Halloween) are literally flying off the shelves. Big Bird’s presence also has been requested on “Good Morning America” as well as the “Today” show, not to mention several of the late night talk shows. (Big Bird has respectfully declined all offers thus far.)  Who in the world ever saw this coming?  It certainly gives new meaning to the song lyrics, “Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?”  Now all anyone wants to know is how to get Big Bird!

Recently, it appears that the left side is getting some costume character comparisons of their own.  After the Vice Presidential debate had concluded, Twitter and other social media sites were abuzz with commentary on Joe Biden’s steady stream of bizarre grinning and smirking during the entire debate, some calling his demeanor more akin to “The Joker” than anything close to what is expected of a Vice President.

Halloween costume masks designed in the likeness of the presidential candidates themselves are also an obvious popular choice this Halloween season.  Can Halloween mask sales predict which candidate is more popular with the masses?  Some sites say they can and others swear that they can predict the election winner based on Halloween mask sales alone.

No matter what your personal politics are, Halloween falling right before the Presidential election makes it the perfect time to parlay your political agenda into a night of All American, tongue-in-cheek costume fun. Whether you sport a Big Bird suit, a Joker costume or go with a much more obvious choice with one of our life-like political masks, these costumes are going to be the talk of your Halloween party and create a lot of laughs for you and your friends, while at the same time hopefully inspiring them to get out and vote!

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