My Costume History: A Comedy of Errors

I am horrible at costumes. Really. Dreadful. It's always been that way.

Like the time in elementary school when I decided to dress up as a juke-box: I wore a big cardboard box that I'd decorated with markers by hand. By the end of the day, I had resigned myself to telling everyone that why, yes, I am a robot! Also, me and my box got stuck - literally - in the scariest part of the haunted house. Definitely a costume fail.

Or then there was the time, also in elementary school, I decided to be a painter. So I wore these overalls that were made with a splattery-patterned fabric and tucked a paintbrush in the pocket. Everyone thought I was a clown - which I totally don't blame them for, I mean, who dresses up as a painter? (Though, on second thought, who in their right mind dresses up as a clown? Now, those guys are scary!) The worst part, though, was when I tried to wear those overalls to school post-holiday. Everyone was like, "Hey, isn't that your Halloween costume?"

Oh, oh! Or that one time in junior high when I thought a simple sheet-ghost couldn't fail. Except the part about forgetting the rule about no covered faces at school. So I cut a big face-hole in the sheet, and got more-than-once mistaken for a nun.

I think my best shot ever was in college, I made myself into American McGee's Alice. It was probably my best costume execution, but the obscure game reference made it a little hard for most people to understand.

But this year - THIS year, I tell you, is going to be awesome. Why? Because my kids are much better at coming up with ideas than I am. Looking through last year's Martha Stewart Halloween magazine, we saw this costume idea for an adult:

Here's the source

And the kids thought it would be funny if their dad dressed up as a beekeeper, and then they could be little bees! Cute, huh? Now the only problem is execution - am I up for it, or am I accidentally going to make them look like a guy in a straight-jacket and a couple of tigers? And then there's the issue of me: I haven't made myself a proper costume in a long time - see examples above for a simple explanation of why. I'm thinking queen bee, but whether it comes across or I just look like an ex-con with a tiara, well that's just all part of the Halloween surprise around here!