Halloween’s almost here! Costume ideas for wheelchair-users

As a way of coping through the years, or maybe I’m just obsessed, but costuming – all cleverly worn from my wheelchair – has become a big time passion of mine. Over the years I’ve dressed-up from everything from a landlocked mermaid (who had no choice but to use a wheelchair, fins = can’t walk, which was a clever way I worked the wheelchair into the costume) to “Pris” from Blade Runner.

A costume is a great way for wheelchair-users to level the playing field. A costume can help able-bodied folks, who may have been uncomfortable around your disability otherwise, to open up and talk with you. Costumes can even make your disability go away, with people focusing on your costume (and awesomeness!) instead of your disability. I’ve witnessed this several times and it’s awesome!

Not sure what to wear this year? Maybe some of my past costumes will help inspire you, and hasten you to make a costume afterall.

Jessica Rabbit: Everyone loves the sexy redhead from Roger Rabbit. When my hair was red one year, I decided to borrow my sister’s old homecoming dress and live out my girlhood dream of mimicking Miss Jessica R. I went online to buy her signature purple gloves and that topped off the costume. A relative easy costume to put together in retrospect. Wearing this dress was a bit tricky as I was wearing heels and, due to my ankles turning in, I had to have my legs crossed all night to prevent my legs from splaying open. If I ever did this costume again, I would definitely wear flats. I’d also buy a stuffed Roger Rabbit doll and tote it around with me too.

Renaissance Noblewomen: I bought my “noble” dress on eBay after deciding I simply must have a proper gown for the Minnesota Renaissance Festival a few years ago. Now while this costume wasn’t actually worn/concocted for Halloween itself, it would still easily work for the holiday. This dress was by far the hardest get-up I’ve ever had my PCA help me into. Renaissance-era upper class gowns are traditionally in four parts (bodice, skirt, left sleeve, right sleeve). I bought a royal blue jacquard with gold accents gown for $70.

I also had to buy a full-length chemise (think Laura Ingall’s pajama’s from Little House on the Prairie). When wearing a long, full gown like this in a wheelchair you need to be hyper aware of the skirt and make sure it doesn’t get caught in your wheels. Tuck it under your thighs (as far as you can without it looking bulky) to help keep the skirt hemmed up. Or better yet, use safety pins. I also bought a peacock feather for my hair and an uber-long pearl necklace (and a separate cross necklace) to wear along with the dress. Remember, accessories are everything when costuming!

Nihilist: If you’re a fan of the Big Lebowski you’ll surely remember the Nihilists. They pretty much don’t care about anyone or anything. They wear black and carry scissors (at least in the movie they do) J My friends had a Big Lebowski theme party last Winter, so I threw together a Nihilist costume the day of the party. It was super easy to do. If you have any clothes that are falling apart (ripped jeans) wear that, and then pair it with lots of other black clothes. I chose a black turtleneck and black beret, as well as my fake black eyeglasses from Hot Topic. And I unloaded one of the side pockets on my wheelchair and used that as a place to store my scissors, since if I simply had them on my lap all night I would’ve surely lost them.

And to really get into the character, I Googled some of the most popular catchphrases that the Nihilists used and said them randomly throughout the night to entertain my friends. This was a really comfortable costume, and great for wc-users out there who don’t want to struggle to get dressed-up.

She-Ra: This costume is what I’ll be wearing for Halloween this year. Like the Renaissance dress, I actually got this costume for another event (a sci-fi convention) last July, but also like the other event, this costume most obviously would work great for Halloween. Everyone loves a super hero. It’s a crowd-pleaser costume and received a boatload of compliments.

The costume itself was a hodgepodge of store-bought and homemade items. I made the headdress (catheter box cardboard, cut, embossed, and then spray-painted it gold), I bought the dress on eBay (it came with the headband, necklace, and red cape). I made the arm bracers from leather fabric I bought from the fabric store. I used an old shoe lace to tie them together and then painted those gold too. The dress itself was a bit too short for my comfort level, so I decided to buy some red fabric to match the cape and mimicked an underskirt with it, covering up that dreaded under-thigh SCI induced cellulite.

I also spray painted my black leather boots white to fully pull the outfit together. Most costumers advise against using spray paint on footwear, as it’ll crack and chip away as you wear it, but that’s only apropos if you walk. I wore my spray-painted boots for several hours straight and didn’t run into a single problem with my boots looking less than awesome. And even though She-Ra is known for her big ‘ol sword, I opted out of carrying it as it would’ve totally been annoying to carry all night.

As for other costumes, I’ve seen dozens of other amazing get-ups from wheelers through the years. My quad friend in Madison dressed-up as Indiana Jones last year, making a cardboard version of Indy’s jeep (outfitted with cardboard cut-outs of Short Round and Willie), then putting it over his chair so it looked like he was driving the jeep with his cohorts next to him. It was BRILLIANT. And my friend in Elk River, MN, a para, took the “guy route,” making his chair a mammogram machine. Classy? Nope. But was it hysterical and totally memorable? You better believe it.

Halloween is just weeks away. Don’t let a lack of funds, or the recession bumming you out (thrift stores and homemade costumes are just as great, if not better), stop you from a fun-filled evening of costume fun. Also, don’t forget that Halloween is on a Saturday this year, making the holiday an even bigger, fun-filled night than it usually is (with hopefully tons of parties in your world to choose from).