Ask an Expert: Professional Costume Designer Amie Eoff

All the dirt on homemade Halloween costumes from the one and only Amie Eoff

We totally miss the Ostrander award winning designer who made a name for herself at Playhouse on the Square. She made the actors look good and feel good all the time. Plus, she has such a cool girl style that we all want to emulate. So when it came time to start focusing on Halloween costumes this year Amie was the first person we asked, obviously. Read on to see what she had to say about rummaging through closets to find the costumes you didn't know you had, gaining inspiration from thrift store shopping, and making flesh colored bodysuits your new best friends.

As adults we don't always have the kind of money to go out and get the pre-packaged costumes that cost a fortune just for one night of Halloween fun. What is the best way to costume on a budget?

I personally think that pre-packaged costumes might be useful if you are on a strict time schedule, but even if you have an hour you can come up with something fun and creative that blows those bagged costumes out of the water! Why shell out $40 on something that is made of cheap, thin polyester that will probably fall apart before the night is over anyway? Most of us have access to a thrift store of some kind. You will be amazed at the things that you can find there as long as you are patient enough to sort through the racks and piles! Think of it as a treasure hunt and, if you have an open mind, you will most likely find some piece that will pop out at you, and it will be the source of inspiration for your entire costume. Then you can fill in holes by purchasing the other pieces you need while at the thrift store, or with items from your own closet. If you are still having trouble coming up with an idea you can search through the pre-packaged costumes online and instead of purchasing said pre-packaged costume, steal the idea! Simply go to your closet or the thrift store and see if you can find something similar. In the end it will be even more fabulous, because it won’t fall apart and you might even be able to use the individual pieces in your everyday wardrobe!

What is the most creative costume you have ever come up with? What materials were used?

Halloween is my favorite holiday, and every year it seems like there are multiple parties I want to attend. Most years, I will set a goal for myself that I won’t want to wear the same costume twice, and this will lead to some pretty crafty thinking especially if I am throwing something together last minute (which, let’s be honest, is ALWAYS). One year I found a nude colored unitard at a consignment shop so I decided to be an American Gladiator straight from the 1980s. I am a small person, with absolutely zero muscle tone, so of course I had to remedy the problem by stuffing the nude body bodysuit to make “muscles.” Then I painted some scrap fabric that I had on hand with stars and stripes, and made a teeny weeny thong bikini that I wore over the bodysuit. Then I slapped on a blonde wig, some awful 80’s makeup, a horizontal headband, white sneakers and some lovely scrunch socks. Everyone thought it was hysterical and I definitely posed for for many photos that night.
 

Amie rocking the flesh colored bodysuit

What do you think is the worst mistake you can make when dressing up for Halloween?

As much fun as that costume was, I absolutely learned a few lessons from it. The party I was attending was a wild house party with over 100 people. It was cramped and unseasonably warm that night. Needless to say with all that stuffing strapped to my body, I was HOT. Luckily, I brought another shirt and some shorts in patriotic colors. So I wore the American Gladiator costume for a couple of hours, but when I could not stand it anymore, you better believe I made a costume change into something more comfortable. Make sure you check the weather before you go out and think about the venue, because as you all know Halloween weather can be very temperamental, especially here in the south. I have seen so many girls standing outside at a Halloween party wearing their skimpy, sexy costumes but so cold and shivering that they look miserable. Also, seriously consider your choice of footwear before going out. Those 6 inch stilettos might look hot at first, but nothing can compare to how gross your feet are going to look the morning after because you walked around barefoot after hour two. There is no shame in keeping a comfy pair of shoes in your car or some little flats in your bag to change into. Staph infection doesn’t look hot on anyone. My number one piece of advice would be to make sure you are going to be comfortable all night, because NOBODY can get their party on properly while wearing a costume that is holding them back. And if you ask me, having fun is the main reason this holiday exists!

How would you advise our readers to make the most of what they already have when putting together an outfit?

I think a lot of the time with Halloween Costumes, accessories are key. Do you have a white dress? Make some wings and a halo and you have an angel. Black outfit? Add a cape and some fangs and you have a vampire. Another thing to do is try to put a new twist on a famous character. I once went to my closet and put on a red polka-dot dress, some black tights, yellow shoes, put my hair in two buns, and put a black dot on my nose with liquid eyeliner and I was Minnie Mousse for zero dollars. A male friend of mine with a beard wore a robe and a tool-belt and called himself Jesus. A female friend wore one of her mom’s old white hippie dresses and attached some birds to her hair and shoulders and went as an avant-garde Snow White. And why not? Halloween is a holiday where pretty much anything goes, so you should stretch the limits of your imagination. Honestly, who is going to question you? Have fun!
 
Any specific character inspirations that you think would be fun to dress up as?

I always enjoy topical Halloween Costumes, anything spoofing current events usually makes me laugh and always shows me that the individual is very creative. This year I think it would be funny to go as Honey Boo Boo, a NFL replacement referee, or Psy. But personally, I think I am going to pull together some sort of “Big Bird with an Axe” get up and talk my boyfriend into dressing up as “Mitt Zombie.” I have only got a day to pull it together (as per usual) so we will see how it goes! Happy Halloween!

- MORGZZ