halloween 2018: how i made my imagine dragons costume

I. LOVE. HALLOWEEN. I know I've said this before. Every year I spend months coming up with an idea, then buying entirely too many things to make it work. I try everything on over the course of a couple weeks and am ready to go on Halloween. 

Not this year. This year I came up with an idea a couple weeks ago, and started ordering things last week. It all arrive on Thursday and I put it together for the first time Saturday morning, a couple hours before my Farmoween Halloween party. The panic kicked in immediately and was very real. Nothing worked in real life like it did in my head. 

I was going to be Imagine Dragons. They have been all over the radio this year and I finally got to see them in concert, so it fits my rule of something having to do with my life that year. I'd be this fun colorful dragon and then I'd have a thought bubble that was dry/erase so people could be hilarious and draw things that I'm imagining. 

Problem one: I didn't know what a dragon looked like. 

I did some research on the Google machine and decided it's a lizard with wings. Instead of painting an entire bodysuit like I did the past two years, I bought one. Didn't try it on, just felt good about a medium. [Note: a medium was not good. It was way too tight.]

Problem two: There were zero tails that matched my bodysuit. 

In my head, this was no issue. I'd buy any random tail and spray paint it to match. I never thought about the fact that there is no paint that is holographic like my bodysuit was. I bought a holographic green tail, and ended up painting dark purple over it. It actually worked better than I thought when I started painting.

Problem three: Getting the thought bubble on. 

I had seen thought bubble headbands on Amazon, but they weren't Prime, so I ordered some random thought bubble magnet thing. It was so damn heavy. Thanks to my dad, mom, and boyfriend, we figured out how to peel off the dry/erase layer, glued that to some foam board, then glued all of it to a wire hanger that we wrapped around a very tight headband. With 3 minutes left until I had to leave, it seemed pretty sturdy. I hot glued some nice demon horns on there for extra scary dragon effect.

Problem four: How to do my make-up

Maybe this isn't a problem... this is probably the most exciting part of Halloween now. It helps me feel girly even if I look ridiculous in my costume. I found this tutorial on dragon make-up, bought a dragon scale make-up stencil [turns out that's a thing, I guess], and got to work. I just held the stencil on my face and used a contour brush to put about 5 shades of teal, purple, and blue on my face. It turned out to be much easier than I imagined, and I'm obsessed with it. 

I had other problems like forgetting my wings at home and having to send the other Dragon back to get them, and my shirt constantly hanging out underneath, my other Dragon having a giant costume head that was impossible to stick the thought bubble onto, not having any good shoes, and a lack of people wanting to draw on my thought bubble, but overall- it came together and I'm good with it. Maybe not my best Halloween costume, but it'll do. 

I mean, Instagram likes aren't adding up like I'd like them to, but life isn't all about the likes... right?... 

love,
elizabethany

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eb takes europe: my london photo diary

I went to Europe. That doesn't even seem real. It's like I'm going through all these photos from somewhere else or something, I'm not sure.

It's true though. A year ago, I found out the Redskins were playing in London and laughed when someone said we should go. Then I realized the timing was perfect, and if I could convince someone to make the journey with me, I needed to make it happen.

On Halloween weekend, I headed straight to England, or Great Britain, or the UK.. or WHATEVER THE EFF THEY WANNA BE CALLED, to start a weeklong journey that would eventually end in Ireland.

Where the hell do I even begin?

The flight was 7.5 hours and so much easier than I anticipated [maybe because of the free booze and movies, I'm not sure], and once we got to the city and arrived in Brixton, where we were staying, there were people dressed up everywhere. They were more spooky than in the states, though. Make-up seems to be a bigger deal than the costume itself. It was 10:00 and the streets were rowdy... so I was quick to change into my costume.

Hi, I'm Britney's comeback. Duh. Not only did I GET TO MEET HER, but she's had such an amazing year. One side is the night she cut her hair off, one side is her Billboard Awards performance. It may not be the most well-done costume I've ever done but the fact that I got it done and got it to London is a feat within itself. [Shout out to my Mommom who helped me sew the main parts together so it would stay!]

By the time we got out, though... it was sloppy. In fact, the main impression I have of London is the first impression I had in Brixton- people smashing bottles everywhere, not being able to walk but being completely alone in the middle of the street for some reason, awkward fights, and lots of cigarettes. Unfortunately, I've since learned that it's not the best place to stay, but ya live and ya learn. 

GAME DAY!


Being in a completely different continent where they don't really love football like we do, there was no way to have expectations for how it would go... but I imagine it was kinda like being at the Super Bowl. There were all different kinds of fans there, not just people rooting for the Redskins or the Bengals. And there were a LOT of people there.

The stadium was beautiful, the people were friendly [unless they were taking extra money from me without me knowing because ya know- pounds are tough], and we had some pretty sweet seats thanks to meeting Nick Sundberg, Redskins long snapper, a few weeks before. We were a part of the popular crowd- sitting with all the players' families.

It was unfortunate that the Bengals were technically the home team, but I wouldn't say they had more fans than us... nor did they have more talent.

Oh. A freaking tie. My first NFL tie was all the way in London. I guess that just checks off one more bucketlist item, or something. We celebrated by greeting Nick and then downing a lot of pints with funny people with cool accents. Turns out- the NFL IS smart. British people really are starting to fall in love with the sport!

The fantastic Nick Sundberg!

I took the first pic when we kicked the field goal.... that wasn't good.... so.... that's awkward.

Day two in London- I learned that drinking too much of their beloved ciders while dealing with jet lag isn't smart. Migraine took over, and I didn't get out of bed until noon. THIS IS NOT OKAY. *CUE PANIC ATTACK, POP SOME PILLS, GET OUTSIDE IMMEDIATELY.*

Brixton during the day was pretty cool- a lot of markets to walk through, fun graffiti, and THE David Bowie memorial. People were stopping by with all kinds of flowers and gifts that the homeless people probably steal in honor of David.

Did you know London is a pretty big place? There's a lot to see... and not just from the top of a double decker bus or inside a telephone booth that has since been turned into a wifi hotspot/pee stall combination.

When doing my presearch for the trip, everyone kept saying to do picnics for lunch. While walking through a street market, we ordered some french food to eat in front of Buckingam Palace, which makes total sense except not really. It was neat to sit on some dirty stairs and watch people take all the selfies. It might even be my new favorite past time... just watching the possible captions cycle through in their head.

With limited time after that [damn you, Daylights Savings], a bus and quick walks over the bridges was the best option before stupidly talking politics with businessmen in an English pub. Just when I thought they'd all think we were insane for letting Trump run, they say THEY LIKE HIM. I guess that should have been my first wake up call.

The biggest shocker of London: The prettiest bridge they have.... it's NOT London Bridge! It gives you a view of the very boring London Bridge... but it's actually Tower Bridge. I forgive them for this confusion because I assume the original London Bridge that fell was extra great and because Tower Bridge was my favorite spot in London.

 As for our home in London/Brixton, it was a cute little apartment with antique pieces everywhere. It was their home that they left for a few days while we took it over, which made things a little more awkward... but with super easy access to the Underground/metro system, it was perfect. Plus, look at the keys! They actually use keys like in the movies or fantasy lands! [CLICK THEM if you wanna see more of where we stayed.

There's a lot more that I missed within the city... but it was time to move on. Traveling within the countries in Europe is ridiculously easy. It's easier to travel within their countries than it is for us to travel within states or cities. LESSON LEARNED: Don't book a train ticket last minute. Like flights, they go up in price. We got a quick train to Paris for $180, but had to sit between the cars in fold down seats. It gets better when you just go drink in the food cart the whole time, though.

The beautiful train station // Our peasant seats vs. the drink car

 As for Paris- It was so much better than I anticipated, but more on that later Mr/Miss Impatient.

Right now I wanna take the time to point out how rude it was for the beers/ciders in London to tell me I can't drink as much as the boys. How dare you.

Although.... I did say too many ciders caused me to have a migraine so maybe I should just shut up right now....

love,

elizabethany

PS... is the *we* and *us* and *our* sticking out to anyone else? It's weird, but it's true. There's an us now. I still struggle with the whole talking-about-that and sharing-too-much thing because... well.... relationships will always scare the s#!* out of me. This is a big step. That is all for now. You can stalk and learn more yourself. I feel awkward right now. okay bye.

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halloween 2015: diy my little pony costume

Halloween.... one of the holidays where I feel ALLLLLL the pressure to live up to the year before. I always put so much effort into my costumes, so I need to outdo, or at least live up to, the year before.

This year I decided to be Rarity, from My Little Pony. When I was searching for things with purple hair, there weren't many options, but I knew this one could be fun to play with when it came to my make-up and hair. It was.

*once again, be patient with me with my pics. I'm never prepared with a charged camera these days.*

-the bodysuit is from Amazon. I ordered it white so I could dye it the really pale periwinkle color. It's a lycra so it was tough, but with a heavy mix of purple AND blue, it worked out! Decided to go with shoes under the footies instead of worrying about hooves

-the ears are from a simple sheet of foam that I folded over a headband and hot glued at the tip for some shape

-the light up unicorn horn, or "light up dildohead," as it became, was a random lucky find from Target. I had to super glue it to a headband so it didn't always fall over. 

-a tail made of cheap purple yarn, hot glued onto the bodysuit finished the outfit!

I was probably MOST excited to do the hair. I bought some good blonde extensions and had Ruby dye them to match my hair, then found this tutorial for a "pull through braid" and somehow pulled it off. It's a little sloppier than I'd like but all the layers in my cut will do that. I also did it without a mirror, so, there's that. 

Also fun: The make-up

-purple eyebrows thanks to some Halloween make-up from the Spirit store
-NYX lip butter purple lipstick stayed on all night, even with the drinking
-Urban Decay was all over my eyes. I used a white pencil underneath to try and make them look bigger, and a bright blue and white on my eyelids.

Also, my parents are pretty great at Halloween. I mean, JUST LOOK AT THEM RIGHT NOW.

So beautiful.

So here's to another successful year of being something else for a night! Send me your costumes, I'll throw up a post of them later!

love,

elizabethany

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gasparilla 2015: a video and a costume

For five or more years, I've been hearing all about how fun it is to go down to Gasparilla in Tampa. The Kane Show and our iHeart station down there get a big ol' fancy float and it's like a pirate themed Mardi Gras. With my 2015 resolution being all about traveling, it was the perfect time to go down for it. 

I was hella obnoxious with a selfie stick/GoPro, and just put together a quick 15 second representation.

And some more screenshots:

That moment when Kane hijacks your camera....

A little look at my outfit

Just having a blasty up top with Kane and his wife.

Meet DJ Goofy Whitekid. The one who always told me about the epicness.

Watching a parade from a boat... Yes please!

Here's a better look at my outfit and the only other guy who got into it as much as me. [You can't see the skull fishnet, but they're legit.]

-corset from Amazon! $17, holla

-fishnet from a Halloween store when they were closing. You never know when you'll need skull fishnet!

-combat boots from Macy's on Black Friday

-skirt and bandana was made from $6 total worth of scrap fabric from JoAnn's. 

I picked out a bunch of black, white and red patterns, cut them into strips, and just tied them around a ribbon. Easy! 

And now I leave you with a gorgeous sunset in case you're stuck in a cold place like me. 

love,

elizabethany

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i spy: halloween 2014

Sigh. Another year of not having all of my Halloween pictures because of losing my precious technology, but I was still able to get soem of my fave costumes from around the 'net and friends circle! Save 'em for next year along with this CVS receipt. 

Terrifying DIY clown from American Horror Story. 

Regina George and Aaron Samuels!

Fix It Felix and Wreck It Ralph!

HOW GOOD ARE THE MUPPETS?!

But I'm pretty sure there will never be a better Darla. SO legit.

I eyerolled all the Elsa's and Anna's but this is too damn funny.

Little DEAD Riding Hood. I'm into puns.

If you're preggers- be the blueberry chic from Willy Wonka! 

YES. BOP IT YES. 

OBSESSED with this Happy Meal crew picture. 

And this would be so easy to do last minute!

They did South Park perfectly. 

One of my faves that I personally saw! That Chucky is great.  

Crazy that grown as women dress up as 7 year olds? Whatever.

Homegirl's got a good boyfriend for him to dress up like this for the Shining twins.

As for me, I spent the Friday night in Salt Lake City, UT for my first event with my station out there! Their party was hella fun! 

And after a lot of DIYing, my costume for Iggy Azalea came out pretty good I think!

How bout the hardest thing to find was a freaking wig?! I didn't find that one until 30 minutes before the party. Thank goodness. 

And yes, of course I stuffed the booty.

A solid 7 wash cloths were in that thing. 

A lot of people asked me where I got all the pieces.... well, I got a little crafty. And while they looked a bit ratchet up close, it worked!

I bought a white tummy tucker pair of granny panties, dyed them yellow, and added plaid with a black Sharpie and white puffy paint. As for the bra- I just took an old white one and made it plaid with puffy paint. VOILA!

Now I can't freaking wait to show her at Jingle Ball. I have everything in my body crossed that I get the chance to.. and that she'll find it hilarious. 

The next day, my friend and I did the tutu versions of Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse! Is it ridiculous that I already had every part for both costumes besides the white tutu?

Tights, tutus, and a t-shirt... with the ears or a bow. So easy! She spray painted her flats and put polka dots on a t-shirt to make it more legit. 

So props to another fun, creative, and DIY Halloween, friends! 

love,

elizabethany

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