Halloween is coming.

Yes, already.

I love Halloween.  I love its origins, I love the insane amount of candy, I love the costumes, and I especially love that it allows otherwise-uncomfortable people the freedom to be something else.

Little Leather Eye Mask: $40

Etsy is a labyrinth, especially when your search term is “Halloween.”  The results are worth your patience, though.  This mask was handmade in Bucks County, PA, and costs less than anything of quality in a party store.

Vintage Playing Cards – double set: $7.50

I don’t plan on having a large party this year, so I won’t need numbered table cards, but if I did, these would be my choice.  They’re beautifully vintage, and I’d snap them up mid-party so I could reuse them.  (So tacky.  So don’t care.)

Masquerade – Tatted Sequin Lace Mask: $425

This one of a kind mask is TotusMel‘s inspiration.  The best tatting artist I’ve ever seen on Etsy (hands down), TotusMel really outdid herself with this piece.  If you’ve got the cash, and plans to attend a masquerade ball or two, this mask is a must.  I’d love to see it paired with a feather headdress, corsets and lace, or even a sexy burlesque-style getup.

Flapper Fringe Dress: $105

The fit of this dress is surprisingly inclusive (see the size chart), but I’d most love to see it on someone with an hourglass figure.  It’s so rare that a flapper dress fits a busty, hippy girl well (see the elastic at the waist) and the cut of each layer makes this costume sexy, not skanky.

Steampunk Rose Handmade Leather Mask: $65

I was supposed to attend a steampunk-themed wedding last weekend.  (The boyfriend’s jaw issues made that an impossibility.)  If I’d gone, this is what I would have wanted to wear.

Da Vinci Skull Study on Book Page: $8.50

This is a good “entry way” piece that can be used year after year without too much expense.   Get a gaudy, baroque frame on the cheap (garage sales are good for this) and you’ll have spent less than $15 on a good decoration.  (And then you can look all worldly by explaining that the image is “Da Vinci’s skull study.”  How classy are you?)

White Leather Mask: $74.  Brown Leather Mask: $50.

More animalistic than the above masks, I can see these making up a more refined version of the “sexy kitty/fox/bunny” Halloween costume.  No felt headband required.

Tags: Awakened Options: Vintage, cards, cheap leather masks, costume party, costumes, day of the dead, dresses, flapper, halloween, handmade, handmade masks, leather, leather masks, masks, masquerade, parties, skulls, tatting, vintage cards