fancy dress costumes

Archive for January, 2011

There really are some great 60s fancy dress outfits available nowadays, which are perfect for any retro costume party or even as groovy night club gear. However, although your basic sixties outfit should look good on its own, if you really want to create an authentic looking costume you are going to have to purchase some accessories.

Below are my top accessory tips to turn your basic 60s fancy dress costume into something really believable and, above all, totally groovy.

Accessory Tip 1: Buy a sixties wig

Next to getting the correct sort of footwear, I consider getting the right type of headgear the most important addition to your costume. A sixties wig really will give your outfit that little extra something, you just need to decide which one to go for.

There are a number of great looking sixties wigs to choose from, including 1960s style flick wigs, Cilla wigs, Gamine wigs and, for the really adventurous amongst you, Beehive wigs. Whatever type of wig you decide upon, just make sure it is one that compliments your outfit.

Accessory Tip 2: Get a sixties hat

If you do not fancy getting a wig, then the next best thing is to get a sixties hat. PVC disco hats the same colour as your outfit are always a good idea, or perhaps a Carnaby hat if you are going for the 60′s Mod look. You may also want to consider getting a hat/wig combo, which is a cheaper alternative to paying out on a hat and a wig separately.

Accessory Tip 3: Cover up

The mini-dress plays a big part in the fashion of the sixties and some of you might consider 60s fancy dress costumes to be a little bit too revealing. If you are one of those that would be happier showing just a little bit less flesh, then do not worry there are some great accessories out there to help cover you up, without taking away the sex appeal.

Cute white tanga shorts are great for making sure that your outfit is not too "cheeky", although white fishnet tights are a sexy way to cover up legs. You may also want to look at getting some long white gloves, which were a popular fashion accessory at the time.

Accessory Tip 4: Make up

It is always a good idea to do a little bit of research and copy the make-up from the time. Most specialist 60′s fancy dress websites will stock the types of lipstick colours worn during the period, as well as supplying large black false eyelashes, which were extremely popular throughout the decade.

Accessory Tip 5: Go-Go Boots

In my opinion, the must-have accessory for any 60s fancy dress costume is a pair of Go-Go boots. These come in a range of bright colours to match your outfit, but personally I would choose a white pair, which will usually go with simmering much any sixties outfit.

The 70′s was the decade of Disco. Major influences of the time originated in the 60′s when hippies were still the vogue and very present in modern culture. Bell bottoms were very popular and for the first time you could decorate your own to suit. As well, we had the technique of using bleach and tie dye for extra fashion.

An eclectic of design had come to be where you could be wearing ripped and faded denims one day and hot pants with long knee high socks, the next.

As we came into the 70′s clothing, men's fashion were also changing. Now tight shorts with loud prints and huge collars, were worn. Ethnic influences were hinted at by the wearing of bright scarves and large chunky jewelry.

John Travolta arrived in Saturday Night Fever, accompanied by the brightest colors you could wear. Remember the flared pants and bell bottoms? Psychedelia had influenced fashion with several multicolor prints,heavily influenced by Woodstock,from the previous decade. However such tight fitting clothes were uncomfortable to wear and that scene soon ended.

Politically we has the feminist movement coinciding with the Vietnam war, further compounded by the Watergate scandal.

That great sports brand of today,Nike, started business in 1972 focusing on running and sportswear. As time moved on, fashion adopted training and running shoes. In the music industry, celebrities started wearing slinky shirts and womens' make up. This the era of Boy George and David Bowie, and their influence was strong.

On the female front, Farah Fawcett's success in Charlies Angels helped create the market for the flicked end hairstyle. Afro perms were also part of the scene as worn by the young Michael Jackson of the Jackson five.

The craze for sun tans started in the 70′s with women using fake tan sprays and starting to visit tanning parlors. Perhaps the incentive was that foundation was not needed when you managed to develop a tan.

Completing the look were the shimmering eye makeup and frosted lipstick. So now as we look back, we have many rich sources to draw on when we recreate the era.

The popularity of angel fancy dress costumes appears to be on the increase. A recent fun run in the north of England in aid of a cancer charity saw the 2000 female runners competing in a variety of costumes, with many dressed in angel wings and tutus, with the colour pink the order of the day. Maybe they were hoping to finish the course on a wing and a prayer, or possibly that they could even fly the route! It could be that many runners have had enough of the impractical giant penguins and chickens, Coco the Clown or Huggie Bear costumes some participants insist on wearing and which must certainly be an encumbrance.

Although charity races are billed as "fun runs", they are still taken quite seriously by runners intent on finishing the course, which can quite often be a distance of five or even ten kilometres. Surely there can be nothing worse, in the warm weather we have had lately, than running dressed in a woolly mask and heavy bodysuit? Angel fancy dress sounds like a fun and cool (in both senses of the word) costume to wear for such an event. Wouldn't it be good if some clever person could invent a pair of streamlined angel fancy dress wings with added dynamo to increase running speed?

Fun runs are not the only events where participants have worn angel fancy dress. At public events such as music gigs, it has become fashionable to turn up dressed in all kinds of weird and wonderful costumes. One example is a certain famous female singer's recent free gig in Notting Hill, for which the 400 audience members were asked to turn up in fancy dress depicting a London tube station. Hence many of the invited guests turned up in angel fancy dress, to represent Angel tube station in Islington, North London.

Others were dressed as birds (Canary Wharf), Sherlock Holmes (Baker Street) and one couple even covered themselves in grass and green paint (presumably depicting Green Park). The star performer of the show was dressed as Queen Victoria (representing Victoria Station), complete with a grey wig and crown, frilled blouse and long Victorian skirt and corset. It was reported that the singer complained, with one or two expletives, that it was difficult to sing in a corset, but would Her Majesty have been amused?

Fancy dress is even becoming popular as wedding attire, and not only for the bride and groom. The theme could be "superheroes", film characters or pop stars for example. At a recent ceremony held by a celebrity couple to renew their wedding vows, guests were asked to turn up as saints or sinners. Apparently the female guests sparkled in angel fancy dress costumes, complete with tiaras, wings and wands. It was not reported what the men wore!