Behind the Scenes of my “Black Swan” Costume

I am still coming down from the fun I had dressing as the Black Swan for Halloween. It is, by far, the best costume I’ve worn in my life (so far). I put way more effort into this than I ever have for pretty much anything like this before. It wasn’t from a bag. I bought separate pieces and visited craft stores (I largely dislike craft stores). I thought I’d share some pictures from the “making of” process, which involved lots of feathers, fabric and hot glues, and Brad’s ability to sew.

I can’t thank The Sorry Girls on YouTube enough. If I hadn’t found their how-to videos, this costume probably wouldn’t have had a chance. Before I found it, I was staring at a leotard and a bag of feathers, utterly overwhelmed and confused. My favorite part might be the crown, which I also learned about from their channel. Instead of settling for an (expensive) tiara I’d never use again, I got to utilize hot glue sticks I already had and it looked so much like the actual crown in the movie. Loved it.

The makeup was another favorite part. There were LOTS of tutorials on YouTube to choose from, but I found this one from Dezired Beauty to be the most helpful and beautiful. I’ve done it so many times that I don’t need to refer to the video anymore.
I so wish I could do my makeup like that everyday…le sigh.

As appreciative as I am for the YouTube videos, I couldn’t have done it without Brad.
He tolerated the feathers that ended up everywhere, the tulle wrapped around everything, the hot glue melting away on paper plates, and the fact that I have no idea how to sew at all.
Without him, I probably wouldn’t have been able to get it done without having a minor nervous breakdown.

Happy Hallo-weekend!!!

I’ve been planning my Halloween costume for a while, so I am super-excited that the Halloween weekend has arrived! This is honestly the most effort I’ve put into something in a long time (maybe ever…I’m really not very crafty), but I’m so happy with it.

In case you aren’t familiar, my costume is the Black Swan, from the Darren Aronofsky film. If you may remember, I absolutely love this movie, Natalie Portman, ballet….I have been wanting to do this costume since I first saw the movie. I purchased the easy parts (ballet slippers, a tutu, tights…)over time, but it was this last week that I finally sat down and designed the top portion and my crown (huge thanks to The Sorry Girls on YouTube for their post…I was overwhelmed before I watched their videos!). What a relief to have it done!

The makeup is definitely one of the best parts of this costume. Again, as a not-so-crafty person, I was overwhelmed by the idea of doing it myself. But I sat down and watched this video on YouTube, and it seemed like a piece of cake! (Sorta…it takes a while for me…) One great thing to consider about this costume/makeup is that it’s kind of supposed to be…ugly and frightening a little. So it’s not perfect.
And I’m okay with imperfections…less pressure!

Just a couple of little details…the painted hands and, my favorite, her scratch marks with a little sprouting feather! Brad did an amazing job with my back. And he helped a lot with the costume (he can actually sew!! I can’t even sew…).

Maybe I shouldn’t be showing off already, when I’m not sure what I’ll be doing for Halloween. But I was just so darn excited!

I hope, whatever you do for Halloween, you have tons of fun and stay safe! Enjoy, everyone!