Trick or Treat

By Allison Berman
October 28, 2008

We got our pumpkins from the Manno farm in Warwick (an annual tradition) which means Halloween is right around the corner. Growing up I wore one leotard three years in a row for three different Halloween costumes. (The first year it was a little big, the second year was just right, and the third year it was a little small). How did I do it? One year I wore mouse ears, one year cat ears, and one year rabbit ears. Other years I was a football player (I have older brothers), a clown (great excuse for make up), and a punk rocker (even better excuse for make up).

My costumes were simple, sweet and to the point. For the most part you could pull them together from things I already had (except for the clown wig). My daughter however is beyond creative and gives me a run for my money year after year.

Last year she wanted to be Handy Manny. I went online searching everywhere for a Handy Manny costume to help my 3 ½ year old daughter in her cross dressing effort. (She is a girl and she insisted she wanted to dress up as a boy). I eventually found a Tshirt on the Disney site with his picture on it. It was a start. I found her a kid's tool belt online (that I then had to shorten about 7 inches). But the piece de resistance was the mini tool set that I found. That is until I opened the case and realized that they were actually just smaller versions of real tools- not kiddie tools- so the saw actually cut and the ice pick, well you get the idea. After a lot of thought, I decided that the 2 screwdrivers (philly and twisty) were relatively harmless so she put those in her tool belt. She wore a pair of jeans, work boots and a hard hat that my husband, the builder, found her. That was easy compared to her costume the year before last.

Two years ago she decided she wanted to be princess big bird. I dyed a pair of white tights yellow and painted stripes on them to match big bird's legs. I found a "princess" tutu and beautiful crown. I thought I was done, but days before Halloween she announced that she wanted to be Winnie the Pooh. I thought she meant instead of being Princess Big Bird. It turns out, she meant in addition to being Princess Big Bird. A lesser woman might have panicked. I deemed it a challenge and found her a Winnie the pooh tshirt that I dyed the same yellow as the tights so the crazy mishmash of a costume would at least match.

This year she decided she is going to be Cinderella, can it really be that easy?

Allison Berman, an artist and mother of two, handpaints custom home accessories for interior designers and private customers. She works out of her home studio in Warwick, NY. See her collection at www.withlovealib.com. She can be reached at ali@withlovealib.com. Her column appears Tuesdays.