October 19, 2015

Of Halloween Costumes Past


Earlier this year, on my 31st birthday to be exact, I shared a handful of early childhood photos of myself with all you in a post called When I Wore a Younger Woman's Clothes. Though I had occasionally included a picture of that nature in other posts here over the years, that was the first time I rounded up several that pertained to the same theme (in that case, my birthday) in one entry.

The response to that post was truly lovely and very heartwarming, with numerous readers expressing interest in seeing more photos from when I was a youngster (which was really touching to me), so I thought that I'd do just that today in the spirit of my favourite holiday.

I'm fortunate that my mom absolutely adores Halloween, too, and was always keen to dress us children up in festive attire from our first All Hallows' Eves onward. This means that, while I don't have photos from each and every one of my childhood Halloweens, I do have them from a fair number and enjoyed such a great trip down memory lane as I poured through my files gathering up the following selection of Halloween photos of myself from the ages of 1 - 12 years old.

Nearly all of the childhood pictures that I have are scans from old, completely non-archivally safe albums, which accounts for their less than stellar image quality in many cases - still, the fact that I have them at all is wonderful, please don't get me wrong.

Most of these costumes were handmade (by my mom) or pieced together from items we had to hand already (the pirate outfit, for example), which was still completely commonplace when I was little. Of course scores of people still do the same these days, but it's safe to say that the pre-made costume industry has really exploded in the last couple of decades.

There's nothing wrong with this of course, and I avail of it frequently these days myself, but's there's something very sweet and endearingly special about knowing that a lot of the Halloween costumes here were indeed handmade.








I was hooked instantly on Halloween and though I don't have any memories of wearing this adorable handmade kitty outfit when I was just a little over a year old, I'm sure that I enjoyed it and that it helped to set the stage of a lifetime passion for Halloween costumes.








We experienced many an icy cold - and at least a couple of snowy – Halloweens when I was a child (this is Canada after all! :)), so I'm not surprised to see a bulky white sweater nestled under the uber cute ghost costume that I wore for my second Halloween celebration. Love the teased 80s hair that my beautiful mom is rocking in the photo of the two of us together. She made this ghost costume, which my little sister would go on to sport herself several years later as a small child.




My third Halloween and the first that I have a few vague actual memories of , including the crinkly sound that my orange cape – ingeniously made from a plastic trash bag - created as I walked through the nippy autumn air that exceedingly fun evening.








I think this these two photos are from my 5th Halloween. I remember that pretty pink princess costume so well, because it was my first store bought one - and by pure coincidence, it was purchased on the same day that I went to an Ikea store for the first time (the things we remember, eh!). We often hosted Halloween parties at our house, which is where the second photo comes from. I scarcely recall the names of any of the kids in this photo, but the general scene itself is still surprisingly fresh in my mind over 25 years later.




Does that witch costume look familiar? If so, that's because it's the very same one that I wore when I was just three years old. It still fit, though it was of course shorter on me then, so it made a second appearance and was every bit as fun the second time around. How adorable does my little sister look in her pumpkin costume here? She was only two weeks old, when this image was taken. Awww!!!!!








My seventh Halloween, for which I sported my cute handmade pink and white gingham poodle skirt (I was already wildly obsessed with all things vintage back then and this was a way for me to dress in the spirit of the mid-twentieth century). I love these photos so much because, especially because of how young my little sister was (she's just a year old here).




Shiver me timbers, it's Halloween number eight! Those rainbow rubber boots might not have been historically accurate, but they were a must for the epic amount of rain our town had that particular October 31st.








This was either my 10th or 11th Halloween, I'm leaning towards 11th based on how old my sister looks here - decked out in that familiar witches costume that I'd worn myself for two previous Halloween. For much of my childhood, I wanted to be a nurse or a doctor when I grew up and had a particular passion for Florence Nightingale, so this handmade costume was a node to the older styles of nurse's uniforms. If memory serves me right, I was intentionally trying to make a "scary face" in the first photo - I was not possessed, as my wide-eyed expression might otherwise convey! :D Plus, just look at us with our Unicef donation boxes. They were an integral part of my childhood Halloweens and I would always put some coins into mine from my own piggy bank to help raise even more for that important charity.




Halloween aged 12 and the last of my childhood All Hallows' Eves that I believe I have photos from. I was rocking a witch costume with a handmade skirt (I may have made it myself actually, but don't quote me there) and my little sister is decked out in my old princess costume, while my brother looks frighteningly festive part as a vampire.

Note the pillow case in my hand - that was the usual method for bringing home our sweet loot as I got older and could easily handle the weight of something heavier than a plastic jack-o-lantern container. If you look closely at this photo, you can see some of the Halloween decorations that my family had at the time lined up on the roll top desk behind us. I'm very fortunate to now have a few of those very items in my own personal collection and delight in putting them out each and every year. They're priceless to me, much like the very memories that all of these old Halloween photos house.






What was your favourite Halloween costume when you were a child? I love, and can vividly remember wearing, so many of the ones highlighted here that it's honestly hard for me to pick. Perhaps because it foreshadowed the fact that I would go on to wear mid-century clothes on the daily as an adult, the pink gingham poodle skirt ensemble does have an especially dear place in my heart (as discussed in this post last year).

Truth be told, for an array of different reasons (including my camera shyness and self-consciousness alike), I don't have many photos of myself as as a teenager or young adult, and have shared most of those that I do have from recent Halloweens in posts here over the years. Thankfully, since reaching a point where I was more comfortable in front of the lens in my late 20s, most of my Halloween ensembles of late have been, and will continue to be, posted about – this year's very much included!

I'm not spilling the beans as to what I'll be wearing in just eight days time, but I can assure you that it is thoroughly festive and that my younger self would have swooned up a storm at the mere idea of this eerily fun costume!

In terms of themed posts of childhood photos, there aren't many occasions that I have multiple images from different years for beyond two topics that I’ve covered this year (Christmas would be an exception to that statement). You just never when a theme might form organically though and in general, I will certainly continue to look for apt occasions for which to hop in the ol' time machine via the wonder that is photography and share these kinds of charming photos from my childhood with all of you here.

Then, as now, nothing, and I really do mean nothing, gets me more excited on the holiday front like Halloween and even at the age of 31, I know that I'll have a challenging time falling asleep the night before October 31st.

Years may pass, costumes might change, and we certainly grow up, but for those who adore Halloween, the spirit of youthful fun that it is embedded within will always reside in our hearts no matter how old we get. Three giant cheers for that fact!!!

54 comments:

  1. These photos are again so adorable, Jessica! I love how little you wore a vintage outfit costume one year, that's too cute. I wish I had photos of costumes from when I was younger, but Halloween just wasn't a part of my childhood... Such a missed opportunity! I'm struggling to think of a single costume I wore as a child apart from one I distinctly remember of a black cat. My mum made me a tail out of tights and I had cardboard cat ears... I couldn't tell you for a moment how old I was or why I had a cat costume, but the costume itself I remember quite well! x

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    1. Awww, that sounds so sweet! It's great that you have that memory, even if there are no photos of it. Thankfully now thanks to digital cameras and smart phones, we can easily record our festive ensembles no matter what age we are. :)

      Big hugs & tons of happy Halloween countdown wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  2. OMG, Jessica -- these are adorable! Super-cute. And your mom was beautiful.

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    1. Thank you very much, dear Ally. Wasn't she though? She's still stunning and doesn't look her age at all. We're so far apart in terms of how we look. We share much in common all the same though, including a love of thrifting and also of Halloween, and are blessed to have a fantastic (super close) relationship.

      Many thanks for your lovely comment. Have a wonderful countdown to Halloween!
      ♥ Jessica

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  3. I was always the more difficult child at Halloween. I tended to take my costume inspiration from my prolific reading, asking to be Artemis, goddess of the hunt, one year. But my mother had a rule: we had to decide on our costumes by October 1st, and then we would go to the remnants section of the fabric store to buy fabric and she would sew them on the sewing machine that I really only ever remember seeing her use for our costumes. I think my favorite would have to be the cavegirl costume she made out of some leopard-print velour, complete with a barrette made with a bone she cleaned off after we had roast chicken one night for dinner.

    Of course, I also had my poodle skirt year as well! Happy Halloween, darling.

    ~Elizabeth

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet Elizabeth. I loved that you opted for more obscure Halloween costumes. As I got older, there were times when I did as well (alas though, I don't have photos of those ones). I really enjoyed hearing about your own childhood Halloween memories and appreciate that you shared these ones with me. Your cavegirl costume sounds like it was awesome!

      Big hugs & happy Halloween countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  4. I still can't get over how super blonde you were! Are you still blonde or have you darkened up to a light brown?

    Your family sure got a lot of mileage out of Halloween costumes. Did I miss who the boy is? Is he your brother?

    I remember collecting for UNICEF back in the 60s. I don't remember much about my costumes though. I remember being a gypsy one year and that's about it.

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    1. Hi lovely Dawn, thank you very much for your great comment and question (it's nice to know that I'm not alone in remembering what it was like to trek out each Halloween night with a Unicef box around my neck :)).

      I stayed pale blonde until about the age of 12 - 13. By 14 my hair was this dull, horrid mousy light brown colour that I loathed and I started colouring at the age of 16. Save for one brief period in my early 20s, I did so continually, until my ongoing hair loss turned me into a wig wearer back in 2012. As I'm not a natural auburn haired gal, I'm still "faking" my colour with my wig, as most blondes are a train wreck on me as an adult (dark brunettes and most reds/auburns suit me best).

      This, the little chap in these photos is my brother. He's about three years younger than me. I'm the oldest of my siblings, with my sister being another three years younger than my brother (my parents intentionally spaced us out this way).

      Wishing you a stellar Halloween season!
      ♥ Jessica

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  5. Wow I can see why you love Halloween so much ! You've been doing it forever…. I think I've dressed up 8 times max.

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    1. Guilty as charged! :D Yes, indeedy, I've dressed up every year (best I can recall), even when I was going through especially rough times on the health front. It's such an incredibly important tradition to me and I know my whole year would feel off kilter if I didn't don a Halloween costume.

      Are you planning to dress up this year yourself, too?

      Big hugs & happy Halloween countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  6. Jessica! What an emotion! First of all, your mom, I love the 80s and she looks fabulous! You look great together, even your brothers! And these photos are really beautiful! You with this costume cat are so tender! I love that skirt patterned pink gingham, and the pirate costume (I like to get dressed for Halloween as well!), And then the vampire ?! How scary! Congratulations for this post, I have nothing like that. I only have photos of carnival (only three costumes in my entire life: flamenco dancer, Fairy and Smurfette)! A kiss and thanks for your comments, it is wonderful that you're there!

    Serena

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    1. Thank you very much, darling gal! I adore the 80s, too! After the 1940s and 50s, they're my favourite decade of the last century and I've even penned some posts over the years here devoted to them (with more to follow in the future, I would imagine).

      It's cool that you have carnival in Italy! Tony has told me about it and how he dressed up for it sometimes. We don't have that in Canada, so now he gets his costume on for Halloween with me. :)

      Tons of hugs & happy All Hallows' Eve season wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  7. That's great that you have photos of your costumes they were cute! The 50's poodle skirt is very fitting!
    I only have one from one I was 5 I was a pencil and could barely walk and another from when I was 12 and was cleopatra other than that I have no pictures or even remember if I dressed up! These types of posts are quite lovely to look through:)

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    1. Thank you so much, sweet Daphne. They're such a special, nostalgia walk back through time for me and I do hope that I can continue to share more childhood snaps here from time-to-time as the years roll onward. Perhaps a Christmas one next? :)

      Wishing you a fabulous Halloween season!
      ♥ Jessica

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  8. So cute! I'm all for home-made costumes too, there's just so much room for creativity. Thank you for sharing these endearing pix with us.

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    1. My absolutely pleasure, dear Jen - I just wish I had more snaps from the other years, too. I can recall pictures being taken for some of them at least, but I fear they've long since been lost to the hands of time. Thankfully these days that's rarely an issue with digital cameras and smart phones always at the ready.

      Wishing you a fantastic Halloween season!
      ♥ Jessica

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  9. Cute photos! I wore a poodle skirt at least a couple of Halloweens. I also liked being a nurse because my mom is an RN and she let me wear some of her nurse stuff.

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    1. That's such a lovely memory! No nurses in my immediate family, but I did have an elderly neighbour, whom I was very close with as a child, who had been one. She even passed along some antique medical books to me when I was young that I still have to this day.

      Wishing you a marvelous Halloween, my dear friend!

      ♥ Jessica

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  10. Thank you for sharing these awesome photos with us! Isn't it amazing how quickly the years go by? What an adorable trio, and your mom is so pretty. If my memory serves me correctly, Halloween 1978 was when I wore my favorite costume, Princess Leia from Star Wars. Halloween 1982 I was a Gibson Girl and I really enjoyed that too!

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    1. What awesome Halloween costumes!!! I would have loved to have been a Gibson Girl when I was younger (still would, come to think of it). Thank you for sharing some of your own special Halloween costume memories with us here, dear April.

      I hope that you have a fun filled, fantastic All Hallows' Eve this year!

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  11. Denise @BuyRVintageJunkOctober 19, 2015 at 6:39 PM

    Treat! The pictures from your childhood Halloween's are such a treat! I love the home made costumes too, because when we were growing up that was all we had. It was actually very fun to dig around and see what clothing and accessories we had around the house--and ironically enough a lot of them were vintage. Vintage coats (fall in the midwest tends to be chilly) and dresses, hats and more...it was exciting. Sadly enough Mom wouldn't let me wear any of her jewelry. :( And many times we took pillow cases for the candy just like you did Jessica!
    A lady in town made the best popcorn balls. We always went to her house early. And when us kids got home we'd dump the candy on the floor and starting trading what we didn't like. It was a magical time because we didn't get much candy. Oh, the memories!

    And thank you for sharing your memories, too, Jessica! Take care and Happy Halloween-which is fast approaching.

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    1. It really was a blast to put your own costume together. We had a "costume truck" (a sturdy chipboard toy trunk) that we would pull costume components from for Halloween, in addition to those that were homemade or store bought. A lot of my friends did the same, too, and I love that there was still that element of hands-on involvement with children's costumes back in the day.

      Thank you very much for sharing some of your own wonderful childhood Halloween memories here with us, dear Denise. Those popcorn balls sound fantastic!!! I too can recall getting homemade treats from neighbours and are parents having no qualms with us eating them. Simpler times, I tell you, simpler times. :)

      Big hugs & joyful Halloween countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  12. We didn't really do Halloween in this country when I was a kid - I remember being completely baffled when some trick-or-treaters turned up at the door - and I think my 'earliest' costume was the Bride of Frankenstein one I mocked up at university.

    Those kitty costumes on you and your tiny sister are adorable. Did your mum save your original costume, or did she make an identical one for your sister later on?

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    1. I can imagine how strange that would be, if one wasn't used to it. Do you get many trick-or-treaters 'round your home nowadays?

      It was the very same costume. My mom held onto all of our costumes when we were little and my sister and I shared a fair number of them over the years. I'll have to ask her if she still has any of them. For many years I'd thought that the poodle skirt shown here was long lost to the hands of time, but my my still had it in fact and she gave it to me for safe keeping. It would be so awesome if I a child or niece of my own to pass it along to one day.

      Big hugs & joyful Halloween countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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    2. How nice that they were passed down!

      My husband really isn't into small children, and gets wound up if we have trick or treaters at the house, so I usually put all my efforts into spoiling my workmates with sweets and a special cake. I'm planning to make a mummy-head carrot cake this year.

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    3. Too cute that sounds seriously cool - and very, very delicious. I'm a huge carrot cake fan and think it suits fall every bit as nicely as does springtime.

      Happy celebrating, my lovely friend!

      ♥ Jessica

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  13. priceless memories!!!
    you and your siblings look so very cool and sweet in your costumes!!! that baby costumes - squee!
    we had carnival - in february. mom always made the costumes herself - only accessories like cowboy pistols or a princess crown were bought. since 11 or so i "made" my costumes myself - mostly vagabound style at this times - torn clothes, different stripey socks, wild hair or an old hat and big painted on freckles :-) last costume i remember was a black cat in fishnet tights with 16. my boyfriend was a gray stray cat!
    around here carnival - fastnacht - is still big - but hubby don´t like it. although he would look gorgeous in a bumblebee costume ;-P
    hugs&kisses for you my dear! xxxxxxx

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    1. That they most certainly are, my dear friend. Your February carnival celebration sounds fabulous! I love that your natural talents for fashion and sewing came through at such a young age. You are, and have always been, such a creative, resourceful woman, dear Beate.

      Tons of hugs & festive October wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  14. Oooh how fun photos and so cute costumes! :)
    When I was a child, we didn't celebrate Halloween because It was not a common thing in Finland, but I remember I organized spooky costume party when I was about 10 or 11 years old, I was a ghost :D Nowadays Halloween has stranded here too, markets are selling costumes and decorations and this is my 4th Halloween I celebrate. But here children don't go door to door to ask for tricks or treats on Halloween, it's just dressing up to a costume in here.

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    1. Way to go on taking the lead when it came to introducing Halloween to your friends, dear Sara. That's awesome!!! Perhaps as more time goes on, kids will start trick-or-treating in Finland as well. It seems to be spreading quite quickly to many parts of the world (which is a good thing, in my books!).

      Wishing you a super fun Halloween celebration this year!
      ♥ Jessica

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  15. These photos are all so adorable! I really love the poodle skirt costume; ever since the first time I saw Grease I wanted one of those! ^____^ Halloween wasn't a big thing in Australia while I was growing up (it still isn't really, but it's getting there!) so Book Week was when I got to bust out the costumes ^___^ I was Little Red Riding Hood at lot, but my favourite was when I wore a flower girl dress originally worn by my mum and went as Cinderella - at the ball, of course!

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    1. That's awesome!!! I looked for any excuse to dress up when I was a kid, too - and still do. :) How lovely that you were able to go as some of your favourite fairy tale characters for Book Week.

      Do you dress up for and/or otherwise celebrate Halloween now that you're older?

      Big hugs & happy October wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  16. I love that you had so many images from you from Halloweens when you were younger!! And how adorable you are!

    It's hard for me to pick a favorite over the years, I think each was very representative of who I was at that time. I will say though, that while I don't remember it, my second Halloween means a great deal to me, as I went as Batgirl, and my dad as Batman, complete with silver tights. So it meant a lot to me that he did that.

    Looking forward to your costume from this year!

    xoxo
    -Janey

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    1. That sounds like such a sweet, fantastic costume. I love that you and your dad went in coordinating costumes. If that doesn't warm one's heart, I don't know what does.

      Big hugs & joyful Halloween countdown wishes, my dear friend!

      ♥ Jessica

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  17. Love this post. The costumes have such a charm to them, that the new shinier ones of today don't seem to have. I really wish Halloween was bigger here in Oz, but ah well in time ;)

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    1. Agreed completely!!! There is something so sweet, wholesome, and Charlie Brown approved about the costumes of our youth. :)

      Wishing you a stellar Halloween season!
      ♥ Jessica

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  18. Ahhh, look at little Jessica! Thanks so so so much for sharing your childhood Halloween photos! I only know of a small handful of my photos that still exist. I should look for them!

    Carla, Tiny Angry Crafts

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    1. My pleasure, sweet Carla. I was delighted to see just how many I had. Yes, some years (all of my teens included) are missing, but having this handful is deeply special and it was a real treat for me to be able to share them here with everyone this year.

      Have an awesome Halloween!
      ♥ Jessica

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  19. Awww..
    You look like yourself in all images, and I love the honest smile you're having. Honest smile is what you still have in the present.
    Unlike you, every time my dress-up picture was taken (we usually got a mask-wearing New Year party), my face was red, my eyes swollen and I'm crying my lungs out.
    Unfortunately, there is just a few "smiling faces", almost all taken only in our back yard.
    ...so, you're way better "model" than me.

    Hugs...

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    1. Oh dear, it sounds like those were anything but happy holidays for you, my sweet friend. I'm sorry that such was the case and hope that your New Year's parties are a lot more enjoyable these days.

      Big hugs & happy tail end of October wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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    2. Actually,
      Those were happy times, it's just the fact that I've had an "issue" with Santa Clause. Once I saw him enter the room, the fake beard and his face, out came the tears & screams..

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    3. Ahh, I totally understand. I didn't have any similar experiences, but I picked up early on that Santa was just a man in a costume and just kept up the fun charade for the sake of my parents and, far more so, my two younger siblings.

      I hope you're having a great week, my lovely friend.

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  20. Oh, you made me so happy remembering Halloweens gone by! My costume experiences were much like yours, and I miss the sweetness of homemade costumes. I understand why my girls' eyes get huge when they see the ready mades and I would never deny them, but I still secretly think they are missing out. My favorite homemade costume ever is one my husband wore as an adult before we were actually dating. He was a Viking warrior! (Swoon)

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    1. Same here! (With today's youth in general, I mean.) There was an extra degree of excitement to Halloween back when we were kids and we knew that making our costumes - or at least constructing them mostly from pieces we already had to hand - was part of the festive equation.

      That sounds like such a cool costume - I sort of want to be a viking year now myself. Maybe I could talk Tony into both going as such. :)

      Wishing you and your family a truly fantastic Halloween season!

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  21. So cute! I definitely have photos from my Halloween's past hiding in old albums, which is a good thing because I have a pretty terrible memory when it comes to specifics before the age of thirteen or so. One of the reasons I learned to sew was because my mom was tired of having to sew me a custom costume every year so she thought I should learn to do it myself!

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    1. Oh wow, what a neat prompt to (help) launch your own passion for sewing. That is so cool!!! It's wonderful, too, that you had your mom to help teach you to sew when you were younger. Mine knew (knows) the basics, but claims that that's about it (though I think she's more skilled on that front than she gives herself credit for). I truly wish I'd been shown the ropes properly early on in life.

      Just ten days now to go until our beloved Halloween returns. I can hardly wait and am getting giddier by the hour! :D

      Tons of hugs & festive countdown wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  22. These are all super adorable and I'm so glad you chose to share them with us. I love that your mum dressed you and your sister up from the get-go, and I think those very young ones are my favourites! Your little cat outfit is so sweet, and your newborn sister as the jack o lantern - I could just squeal! Now I definitely have to dress Teacup up for Halloween!

    My own childhood favourite was a black cat costume. My own poor harassed mother, as well as putting up with my ridiculous demands, felt the force of my childhood wrath when she gave that costume away! I ended up making it for myself again years later!

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    1. Aww, you definitely have to dress her up! That will be beyond cute!!! :)

      Isn't it amazing how powerfully attached we are to some of our childhood items and the memories they hold. I have, on occasion, purchased toys, books, dishware and sundry other items that I had as a child, but which were long since lost to the hands of time. Sometimes things are more than just that to us and there's nothing wrong with that fact, if you ask me.

      Tons of hugs & happy Halloween countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  23. This was very charming, thank you for making this post. I love handmade costumes, those cheap, Chinese made nylon costumes are disgusting. I also love that your siblings wore your costumes later on. We did so when I was a child, not that we had Halloween to dress up for, but we had something alike it in February, where we dress in funny costumes and sang at the doors for money. We didn't have much money when I was a child, so we made costumes of what we had. I've been a dirty mechanic, a punker, a rocker, a nurse (or something like) and a witch. The witch was really good, it took me 1,5 hours to do my makeup and I sewed the dress and made the hat myself. I also made a simple broom and a necklace of chickenbones which my dog ate later. My sister were the same witch a year after and I did her makeup again. I'll find a photo and scan and send you some day. When son was little we (mostly me) made his costumes too, they are at my website, I'll send you a link. The best was a matchbox and he had a large match in his hand. It won first price many times, because we gave it to my friend's children and they also won. This was a really cute post, perhaps you could make something like it with summer memories? Have a lovely day, dear. :) XOXO

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    1. That sounds very, very sweet, dear Sanne. Aww! Going door-to-door at times other than Halloween reminds me of the summer that my siblings and I dressed up as though it were Oct. 31st and, just for a lark, went around our neighbourhood to houses where we knew the occupants and knocked on their doors trick-or-treat style. We were all very young at the time (I would have been 9 or 10 at most) and they thought it was adorable and all gave us something or another (I remember cookies and peanuts in the shell, for sure). Simpler times for sure!

      Your and your sister's witch costume and makeup sounds fabulous. I'd love to see a snap anytime if you do find one.

      Way to go on making your son's costumes when he was little. I'm not much a sewer, but if I had kids, I'd give making theirs a real stab, especially when they were quite young.

      The matchbox one you made him is a brilliant idea. I would totally go as that! :)

      Wishing you a super fantastic countdown to our favourite holiday!

      Big hugs & happy weekend wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

      *PS* Thank you for the lovely suggestion of a summer memory post of this nature. That's a really good idea!

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  24. It was such fun to see all of these costumes and to see your siblings costumes too. I love the one of you and your sister when she is dressed as a tiny pumpkin! The poodle skirt is like a sign of things to come! Looking forward to seeing this year's costume!

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    1. It definitely was!!! I was already madly in love with the past (especially the 40s and 50s - some things never change :D) and practically begged my mom to make that poodle skirt for me. Later on my paternal grandma made me one when I was about 8 years old that was dark pink with a black record applique on it. I wore that for Halloween a couple of times, too (with the last being when I was 14), but couldn't find any pictures of it.

      Many thanks for your wonderfully nice comment. It's such a treat to be able to open up my past, so to speak, like this.

      Tons of hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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    2. Oh how wonderful! It's so brilliant to look back on your Halloween photos and enjoy all your fantastic costumes. I like that you and your sister shared costumes on several occasions. Even though Halloween isn't really celebrated in Australia (well, it's slowly becoming more popular, but when I was a little girl it was practically unheard of) I was always interested in it because I read a lot of American books. My mother was very accommodating and made excellent costumes for my brother and I on several occasions and took us trick-or-treating to our neighbors houses. (Mum always called ahead to make sure that it was OK for us to come by, as people here aren't used to having youngsters trick-or-treating). She made it such a special and fun time for us, and it certainly looks as though your mum did the same.

      I also squealed out aloud when I saw your fantastic rainbow gumboots. I had an identical pair when I was little, and I was utterly heartbroken when I grew out of them.

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    3. That is soooo cool!!! I love that we had matching gumboots. I would so rock a pair of those now, too, if I could find an adult version that worked for my hard to fit feet (for which, incidentally, rain boots are amongst the hardest types of shoes for me to find comfy pairs of - they tend to really pinch my super high arches usually).

      I love that you developed a passion for Halloween very early on, even though it wasn't yet a particularly widespread celebration yet in Australia. Major props to your mom on supporting that passion early on, including taking you guys trick-or-treating. That's awesome!

      Big hugs & joyful start of November wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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