As Halloween nears, students scramble for best costumes

Ohio University students have been busy planning, shopping and even making their own Halloween costumes for Court Street's annual block party this Saturday.

Senior Emily Bowman said she struggled to come up with a costume idea until her friend suggested the ballerina from the 2010 movie, "The Black Swan." "When she suggested it to me, I was so excited,"  Bowman said. "I already had most of the stuff, so all I had to buy was a tutu, tiara and face paint. Bowman and her roommate, Lauren Elliot, are pairing up, and Elliot will accompany Bowman as the White Swan, or the "good ballerina."

Since the ballerina attire isn't very warm, Bowman added that she will bring a jacket to fight the cold temperatures forecasted for Saturday (high of 55, low of 29, as of Wednesday morning). "Girls will definitely have to worry about the cold, especially if their costume is skimpy, unless they wear an 'alcohol coat'," she joked.

Bowman and Elliot aren't the only two who found their inspiration from a movie. OU juniors Garrett Finkler and Don Super were inspired by the movie "BASEketball," a 1998 sports comedy that blends basketball with baseball. Finkler and Super will dress up as the movie's pro athlete characters, sporting replicas of the "Milwaukee Beers" jerseys that they found online. 

Other students worked together and brainstormed group costumes. OU students Alyssa Kencson, Caroline Dreyer, Lova Green and Cody Blakeman are dressing as Mother Nature's four seasons. Kencson will be winter, Dreyer will be spring, Green will be fall, and Blakeman will be summer. "Since it's our senior year, we wanted to do something together, and so we spent a little more time on it and tried to be more creative," Kencson said.

Kencson explained that it's been a time-consuming process shopping around and putting together their costumes. Kencson is wearing a "wintery" silver dress and painting snowflakes on a pair of tights; Dreyer will be decked out in spring-like floral; Green will wear fake leaves; and Blakeman will be submerged in "fun in the sun" flotation devices. They also found seasonal stickers to complete their look.

Other creative group costumes include the familiar "Saved By The Bell" TV cast, which will be portrayed by OU senior Matt Johns and friends.

Senior Kristen Witham and friends also joined forces to brainstorm their group costume as a life-size sandwich. "I always thought costumes of inanimate objects are the funniest," Witham said. "They're funny because they're so unexpected." Witham plans to be a giant piece of lettuce, and several OU friends will join her as slices of bread, cheese and lunchmeat. She admitted they have yet to make the costume, but plan on putting their costumes together with cardboard in time for Saturday's block party.

Though many students saved money by making their own costumes, Ashleigh Carman said she invested a little more money into her costume this year since it will be her last quarter at OU.

"I saved the best for last," she said. "In the past I've been a cheetah, sailor and a Greek princess, but this year I'm going to be a harem princess." Carman explained that it's a more cultural, Middle-Eastern inspired look, resembling a belly dancer. "It's very different," she added. "I'm getting my bachelor's in communications and dance, and so I love all forms of dance. I hope to take belly-dancing classes sometime soon."

ONCE AGAIN, HALLOWEEN CITY moved into the mall on East State Street and will be there until next Wednesday. Executive assistant Marty Stern acknowledged how busy they've been in the past few weeks, but he's anticipating an even busier crowd after the holiday weekend. He said they usually have a "monstrous" crowd on Nov. 1, as customers race in for the sales, resembling Thanksgiving's Black Friday.

Halloween City employee Ben Irwin has been helping customers find their costumes this season, and he said the first costume to sell out this year was the Indian Princess. He said he was surprised there weren't as many Lady Gaga requests (a popular costume last year), but instead several requests for an Amy Winehouse costume. "I thought that was a little odd, maybe a little too soon," he said in reference to the singer's recent tragic death. Irwin added that a popular trend has been cop costumes. The store has a variety of "in uniform" costumes ranging from police and FBI to military attire.

FOR THOSE WHO WANTED to avoid the popular trends, many students and townspeople shopped at Athens Underground, a vintage boutique on North Court Street. Owner Barb Stout said, "We cater to the more creative customer looking to do something more unusual and unique, and also those looking to buy things that they can wear again; or at least some part of it in a different context."

Stout acknowledged that the store has been busy this week as Halloween approaches, but since they are a year-round boutique, they had people shopping for Halloween ideas as early as August. Most customers that come to Stout's boutique are trying to do something nobody else is doing, with very specific characters in mind. Athens Underground gets new, vintage merchandise daily to help accommodate the unique demands of customers.

Since shoppers at Athens Underground all seek exclusive costumes, Stout said it's difficult to single out popular trends. However, she said she has noticed a demand for '80s attire, Harry Potter glasses and Roaring Twenties' flappers. "Flappers are always huge," she confirmed. "We have all these headbands; some have glitter, feathers, sequins, all different styles. We sell amazing numbers of these; they work really well for flappers."

Athens Underground is hosting its third annual costume contest. To enter your costume, post a picture on the Athens Underground Facebook page before Nov. 2, and winners will be announced Nov. 3. "Costumes don't have to be purchased from us, but no packaged costumes are allowed. It has to be something creatively put together by yourself," Stout explained.

Last year's winner was a re-enactment of the "American Gothic" farm couple/pitchfork painting, where two individuals posed in costume behind a large frame.