Halloween is a favorite holiday for all of us in the collegiate era of our lives. People dress up, throw parties, go out and almost always make the most of the day. However, there is something I have noticed about female collegiate tendencies on Halloween that frankly, has me turned off to the holiday all together.
In college and possibly in the entire nation, women are encouraged to dress scantily for this celebration and are not typically given many other options. When Chelsea Peterson (CAS ’11) was asked if she thought women our age had a good selection of costumes to go by she replied, “No one tells a college-aged girl to look respectable on Halloween night, it’s just not talked about.” Halloween should be a day for us to use all of the knowledge we have gained in our classes and be creative!
To gain information to share with my fellow young women, I found myself at Dorothy’s Boutique at 190 Mass Ave in Back Bay. This lovely little shop has a plethora of costumes to choose from as well as a great and helpful staff including a wig specialist! Who doesn’t want to pull off a great wig for Halloween? Dorothy’s is a family-owned business that has been open on Mass. Ave since 1947 so it is clear that the staff knows their Halloween stuff! Just ask current owner Jon Diamond, son of the famous Dorothy who is currently enjoying her retirement in sunny Florida.
Brian McCook, an employee at Dorothy’s, expressed his concern for his college age customers as he explained that girls mostly came in a bought the same five or six “sexy” outfits. Brian encouraged creativity in putting together a look for Halloween explaining how easy it can be to, “turn simple sexy into something cool” with the right accessories.
Dorothy’s offers as many Halloween accessories as costumes and with so many to choose from, it can be a simple task to have the most fun and creative costume at the party without breaking the minuscule college bank account. Girls have the option to turn away from generic costumes-in-a-bag and stock up on wigs, makeup, boas, sunglasses, bling, leggings, shoes, and masks to create their own unique look. According to the staff at Dorothy’s, Lady Gaga is one of the most popular costumes this year! Girls are buying wigs, sunglasses, and body suits all to mimic the controversial singer when they could be varying their purchases and not all dressing as the same person!
Just a quick look around Dorothy’s shop gave me a few great Halloween ideas that are simple and still somewhat sexy alternatives to the typical slutty Halloween ensemble. For example, using a hat shaped to look like an old scuba helmet you can be a Sexy Scuba Girl! Just wear the hat, a black turtleneck or t-shirt, and black leggings and you are good to go! Your costume will be funny and, with the tight black clothing, still form-fitting and flattering. If you really want to commit to your costume you can carry around a pair of flippers! Doing something simple and creative like this will not only draw attention to your body, but also will make you the funniest girl at the party, which is better for catching a guy that you won’t have to end up throwing back at the end of the night. Plus, it will result in Facebook pictures that you won’t have to block from your families and coworkers. All in all, it’ll make for a much more enjoyable night than drunk frat boys ogling at your goodies.
So ladies, I am hereby issuing you a challenge! Be the most creatively costumed girl and send your picture into me at scox@buquad.com.I will post your picture and shout out your greatness in a blog post dedicated only to you! And remember ladies: sex-in-a-bag is NOT your only option for this Halloween!
I appreciate this article, but one look at the Dorothy’s Costume Boutique homepage shows that this very store promotes the same old same old, or at least doesn’t make an effort to diverge from the mainstream. . .
http://www.dorothysboutique.biz/
Why don’t you like fun?