Lycanthrope & Jackalope Costumes

If you read last year's Hallowe'en post, you know that I don't mess around when it comes to costumes... especially on the best night of the year.

This year, after considering various concepts and ideas, Cor and I decided to go as mythological* taxidermy: Cor as the beloved Jackalope (a jack rabbit with antlers), and me as a Lycanthrope (a shapeshifter; in this case, a sort of werewolf-troll-ogre-man-thing). This concept is well-known in Germany as a Wolpertinger.

In case you suck at mythology or your imagination just isn't working, here are some reference images:

Based on this reference material, I used cardboard, box tape, acrylic paint, white glue, patience, finishing nails, pipe insulation and a box knife to construct the crests and plaques.

If you've forgotten about Roman Numerals, MMXIV = 2014.

The antlers were made from bent coat hangers, wrapped in tinfoil and box tape, painted and dry-brushed with acrylic. The bottom of the antlers looped into a hairband, and the tips were spray-painted rose-gold/copper. Rabbit ears made of wire and fabric were later added to the hairband, completing the Jackalope headpiece.

Like the Jackalope antlers, the Lycanthrope horns were also made from bent coat hangers. They were then padded with paper and wrapped with a 1.5'' wide, 6' long strip of cardboard + box tape, ending in another set of loops that fit into a hairband. Again, like the antlers, the horns were painted and dry-brushed with acrylic paint, and the tips were spray-painted gold.

I purchased false beast teeth and yellow contacts from a Hallowe'en costume store here in Berlin, and tested the combination with some makeup and photoshop the week before.

Cor and I then traveled to Cologne for a friend's Hallowe'en houseparty, put on our makeup, scared the hell out of some kids and danced the night away at a club whose name I can't pronounce.

Whoever said Christmas was the most wonderful time of the year was almost certainly drunk on 'nog.