Happy belated Halloween everyone! I hope everyone had a spooktacular time, I know I did! For some reason, this Halloween was a tough one for me. I couldn't decide what I wanted to be. People would ask me, "So Fatima, what are you planning on being this Halloween?" and I simply didn't know. I remember I had told my boyfriend one day that I wanted to be Batgirl and then the following day I told him that I had decided to be Selena... oh, the struggle (nah just kidding!).
But seeing how I'm learning to live on a budget and didn't wanna spend a ton of money on a costume that I probably wouldn't wear until next Halloween, I decided to search through my closet and on Google to see what I could put together. And without a doubt, Frida Kahlo was my inspiration! :)
You're probably asking yourself, Who is Frida Kahlo and why is she important to know?
Here are a few fun facts about her:
- Frida Kahlo is remembered for her self-portraits, pain and passion, and bold, vibrant colors. She is celebrated in Mexico for her attention to Mexican and indigenous culture(s) and by feminists for her depiction of the female experience and form.
- At the age of 6, Frida contracted polio which affected the use of her right leg. It made it weaker and smaller than her left so she wore long skirts to cover it. She was also involved in a tragic accident while on the bus where she suffered serious injuries and had to be in a full body cast for three months.
- While her recovery, Frida began to paint as a way to cope with the pain and immobility. This is where she began to paint her first series of self-portraits.
- In total, Frida Kahlo has made about 143 paintings, 55 which are self-portraits.
- Frida is the wife of Mexican painter and muralist, Diego Rivera.
I didn't choose to dress up as Frida Kahlo because it was an easy costume to put together, I chose Frida because of the beauty she portrayed through her paintings and drawings. A few of the things that caught my attention as I skimmed through Frida's self-portraits were the different types of clothing and outfits she wore in order to hide her surgical scars. She wore a variety of finely embroidered Tehuana blouses and dresses to show her appreciation and influences in la cultura indigena (Indigenous Mexican culture). She also wore long skirts, corset-style tops, boots, bold-colored jewelry, and of course her signature flowers in her hair.
Below are some of the items I was able to find and put together!
Outfit: For the outfit I had wore a Tehuana dress that I found at Goodwill a few months ago. I paired it with a pair of army green jeans and black booties from H&M.
Accessories: I wore my black and gold tassel earrings that I bought at a local store in Lincoln, Nebraska called The Black Market Clothing and combined it with a black and gold necklace. Since I didn't have time to make a flower crown I made a quick trip to Walgreens and bought one for $2.00. But if you want to make a flower crown, there are a lot of neat tutorials on Youtube or Pinterest to check out. And as for the scarf and the red flowered necklace, those I had for a while. One of my friend's let me borrow the book and paint brush.
I wore this costume to work on Thursday and everyone loved it! One of my co-workers had nominated me to be part of the company costume contest and guess what!? I won!!
I had a great time putting this costume together and learning more about Frida Kahlo!
Who is your costume inspiration!?
*Frida Kahlo facts courtesy of Fridakahlo.org
From LA, With Luv
Fati <3
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