Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 28, 1995 TAG: 9509280002
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
With the addition of an old feather, some sequins, odd buttons or other found treasures, Lipes might transform the discarded dispenser into an elaborate helmet, an exotic headdress, or who knows what?
"If you've got some poster board, some duct tape and a magic marker, you've got a costume," she says. "You just have to add imagination and a pair of scissors."
Lipes calls her eclectic costumes "Gizmonics." She'll teach the technique during the Roanoke Valley's 20th annual science fiction convention, starting Friday and running through Sunday at Glenvar High School.
Rising Star 4, formerly known as RoVaCon, will include guest appearances by actors Richard Biggs of TV's "Babylon 5"; Patty Yasutake of "Star Trek: The Next Generation; Grace Lee Whitney of various "Star Trek" appearances and Spice Williams, Joyce Meadows and Terry Moore of assorted science-fiction films. There'll be dinner with the celebrities, an art auction, movie screenings and several discussion panels. Other workshops will cover acting, makeup, writing, video making and model building. For information, call 389-9400.
Regardless of whether you're a sci-fier, Lipes can help you whip up a creative Halloween costume - especially if you want to keep that costume cheap.
"If you look in some of the costume catalogs, the white Power Ranger will run you about 70 bucks," Lipes says. "They run you anywhere from about $25 up - and that's for an infant. That's ridiculous. The kid will wear it maybe one year if you're lucky. Or you buy it and they go, `But I wanted to be the black ranger.'
"Get yourself a primary-color body suit - say, bright red - and pin some white stuff on it. Go to Piece Goods and get a hunk of felt to finish it off."
Lipes figures costs then would run $6 to $7 tops for a pre-teen's costume; maybe as much as $15 for a costume acceptable to a teen-ager.
It's not that Lipes objects to catalogs. She often buys from them for the children of her friends and relatives, since she has no offspring of her own. But her practical streak keeps harkening back to her youth when she says a cool costume could be created, "from an el-cheapo plastic mask - a buck ninety-eight at the drugstore - an old pillowcase with holes cut out for the neck and arms, and a handful of magic markers."
Lipes has been involved in theatrical productions since her attendance at North Cross High School in the mid-1970s. She's learned from experience that in costuming, simplicity can work well. She remembers seeing one competition wherein the entrant re-created a harlequin by simply slipping three very different masks over each other. The way they were combined - and the drama as each mask was removed - won best-in-show honors.
Lipes herself says she once donned adult-size footed pajamas, pulled her hair into pigtails, painted freckles on her face, clutched a teddy bear and became a toddler.
Most arts and crafts stores carry a pliable putty called Sculpey, Lipes says. It costs about $1.50 and up, comes in various colors and can easily be shaped into horns. Run a shoelace the color of your hair through the horns and bake them at 250,F; they'll be rock hard in 20 minutes.
Tie the horns to your head and presto: instant demon.
More elaborate efforts Lipes has seen include a friend who outfitted herself as her lamp and nightstand, and a threesome who - for a sci-fi competition in Chicago - recreated Marie Antoinette, her dressing table and a French tri-fold mirror.
Lipes took her first sewing lesson at age 9 in the now-defunct Todwin's fabric store. She didn't want to do it, but her mother insisted. Now she's glad she did, because she can always have clothes that fit properly; plus she thoroughly enjoys her costuming hobby.
Lipes also is a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism, which does re-creations and re-enactments from Europe and Asia of the Renaissance and Middle Ages. She has claimed a fair share of awards since the late 1980s, when she started participating in science fiction and period costuming competitions.
She specializes in Renaissance, late Norman, High Tudor and Elizabethan period pieces. The gown and headdress that she'll wear during this weekend's convention required nine yards of fabric - at $12 a yard - and took about three weeks to make. If the pattern had not already been cut and altered, it probably would have taken twice as long to complete.
Lipes says some costumers spend upwards of $1,000 on their creations, not including upkeep. But she refuses to take her costuming too seriously, and says most of the evidence of her honors "lives in the attic."
As for creating that Halloween costume masterpiece - your own or your child's - Lipes says you probably should at least be committed to a concept by the first of October. After figuring out what you want to do, look to see what's already around that might be useful. Raid a discount store or drugstore for cheap, nontoxic makeup and maybe a wig if necessary, but do it soon..
"Inspiration is everywhere," she insists. "If you're into literature, it might be a favorite character. If you're a Christian, you might look at the Bible."
She recalls a couple who went to a party as Sampson and Delilah. The woman wore a sort of genie/belly-dancer getup; the man wore a sheet toga-style and a wig on his naturally bald head. Every so often, Delilah would pull off Sampson's wig and he'd fall down as though shorn of his strength along with his tresses.
"It was simple, but it worked, and that's what really counts," Lipes says.
Lipes uses practical criteria in competitive costuming: "Does it look good? Is it comfortable to wear? If you've got raw seams rubbing you, it's going to show from the stage. You can't do a good presentation if your costume is having your skin for lunch.
"Can you see out of it? Can you breathe out of it?"
Especially for kids' costumes, she advises standard safety precautions:
Make sure the child can see out of the costume clearly, including full peripheral vision.
Make sure they can clearly be seen by others; enhance their visibility with reflective tape on the costume, if necessary.
Make sure they can walk and move easily in the costume; capes and other drapings should end six inches above the ankle or higher.
Beware of ties and strings around the neck that could cause strangulation. Make sure the fabric is flame retardent and that it won't give the child an allergic reaction.
Make sure the outfit is easy to get out of in case the child needs to make a potty stop.
And, most importantly of all, have fun with it.
by CNB