Posted by Sian Rowlands on October 24, 2019

Green Halloween

Green Halloween

Halloween is now one of the most wasteful 'holidays' (excuse some of the Americanisms included in this blog post - it seems Halloween is heavily influenced by American terms and words) of our modern calendar filled with throw away / one time costumes, TONNES and TONNES of plastic decorations, and MILLIONS of individually wrapped candy and sweets.⁠ Every time I head out at this time of year, I am overwhelmed by all the wasteful plastic (and quite frankly tacky if you ask me!) decorations I see in shops and restaurants - all of which are purchased and used for only a couple of weeks. And it seems that Halloween ‘celebrations’ are happening earlier and earlier each year.

But don’t get me wrong - I LOVE any festivities that are basically an excuse to get dressed up in fancy dress and eat chocolate and sweets! SOOO, I’ve been looking into various ways that we can all make our Halloweens a little bit GREENER.

But today - I am going to talk about COSTUMES… because, well - we are a fashion brand after all! And what better place to bag an environmentally-friendly costume, especially one that you can use again and again, than RETOLD.

I’ve put together some VERY simple ideas of easily ‘homemade’ / ‘DIY’ / ‘thrifted’ / ‘last minute’ costume that are basically made up from (mostly) regular clothing, so they can be easily integrated into your wardrobe after October 31st.

Stay classy

We will always love the classic option of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, simply put together by grabbing: a classic black shift dress (the longer the better), black heels, and two or three layered pearl necklaces, all of which are available in abundance at RETOLD. Additional accessories to really make it work are long black gloves, a cigarette holder (what about painting a wooden chopstick - because honestly, who still actually smokes?!), and a small tiara.

Audrey Hepburn

Frida Khalo

For a more ARTY look - we love famous Mexican surrealist artist and painter Frida Khalo.

Frida Khalo - The House that Lars Built

This incredible breakdown of how to create the perfect Frida costume is courtesy of the team from The House that Lars Built, and the full link can be found here:

What you need: Any black or navy mid-calf A-line skirt, and a bright pastel blouse. Either or both items can have Mexican inspired prints or even a subtle floral pattern. Alternatively, just a Mexican shawl over a simple yet brightly coloured shift dress (as long as your accessories are bold enough). Team this with brightly coloured tights, and contrasting block sandal heels, and layers of bright bead necklaces. Finish the look with the all important Flower Crown, and pencilled on monobrow.

As a side note - for the Flower Crown, if you don’t have time to make one yourself - we suggest grabbing a readymade one from our friends at Dot Your Tea’s

Like this one:

Perfect no?

The Handmaid’s Tale

Want to make a bit more of a political statement? Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few years you will have read (ok ok, or seen) Margret Atwood’s heavily acclaimed The Handmaid’s Tale, and this one is also super simple.

What you need: A long red dress that covers your shoulders and upper arms at least, although long sleeved would be ideal - also a blouse and long skirt would do, and the costume-defining ‘bonnet’ - which can be easily fashioned from some thick white paper / card. This bonnet needs to be oversized, so make sure you don’t skimp on the paper size!

Typically this costume would work best with a full length cape as well, but they are harder to find, especially here in Dubai!

Handmaid's Tale Costume