Facebook Fairy Halloween Costume
After much brainstorming and heartache, I came up with my Halloween costume idea that I knew was THE ONE. It was a bit of an “Eureka” moment when I thought of it and I cannot wait to show you my creative journey in bringing it to life. So you may be asking me what I was. Well, I was Facebook Fairy.
“Uh what?”
Yup, that is the typical response I got when I told people what I was planning to be. Just utter confusion and skepticism, but I REFUSED to be a sexy nurse, school girl, or a cheerleader. I was going to be . . . Facebook Fairy.
As with many things, it started with a sketch. I was very inspired by Katy Perry’s outrageous but always fun and whimsical costumes that have made her so iconic. I envisioned the top of the dress to be blue resembling the Facebook logo, while the skirt would be made up of the various Facebook icons.
I went to a recommended seamstress and found the perfect two shades of blue for the bodice. I asked for the skirt to be lined with tulle to give it a more of a ballerina feel. After a couple fittings and alternations, the dress was ready to be taken home to add all the the embellishments.
Getting my wig on.
Me seen here in 'dress rehearsal.'
I combed through (no pun intended) literally ever wig shop in Hong Kong to find a blue wig that matched the Facebook blue. I did not realize how much of a challenge this would be. Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po, Central, you name it, I was there.
Getting desperate, I tried my luck and asked the lady who usually does my eyebrows if she knew of any wig shops. She, being a makeup artist and knowing many people in the beauty industry, suggested a very small wig shop that many of her hairstylist friends would go to. Luck would finally be on my side.
Initial ideas were to have a “Like” button headpiece, but that would prove to be more difficult to execute and instead I came up with the idea of a “Like” wand. After all, what fairy does not have a magic wand? Floral oasis, being soft and lightweight, was the easiest way of creating this icon. I carved away until I had the perfect silhouette and then wrapped the hand shape with blue ribbon and two print-outs of the icon. To complete the wand, I simply inserted a ribbon-wrapped stick, made from an old calendar rod.
A sea of pearls
Pearl buttons were glued onto the bust of the dress to add a wonderful textural element to the otherwise flat dress.
I spent a lot of time on these icons. Some I were able to easily find the vector versions online while others I had to draw. I never spent so much time on Facebook not stalking an old crush, but rather studying the different icons on the various pages.
Before and After
Having no mannequin, I hung the dress on my living room's curtain rod to attach the icon print-outs. As Tim Gunn would say "Make it work!"
Like!
After adding a simple white headband, white flats with blue detailing, ribbon cuffs and some blue eye shadow and nail polish my look was complete. It could not have turned out better. And Facebook Fairy put her "Like" wand to good use, gracing well-dressed Halloween goers with her wand in approval.
