With Halloween creeping up, it’s either a chance for you to unleash your spooky side or to totally panic and obsess over costumes until the last second. Ghost? Meh. Mummy? Boring. Werewolf? Too hairy. But if you work in a conservation lab, fear not. We have you covered!
This year, we’ve scoured the lab to create costumes that mix chilling creativity with eccentric conservation tools! Each costume has a difficulty rating, so you’ll know if it takes professional skill or just a wildly spooky imagination.
So, grab some supplies, get haunting, and remember: Conservation may be reversible, but goofy Halloween memories are forever!
Edward Scissorhands
Difficulty level – Easy
Materials and tools needed:
- Scissors, tons of scissors
- Black clothing
- Strong hands (those old scissors may refuse to work properly)
Note – Not recommended for the long-haired among us…so remember, safety first! Keep a safe distance, and beware of those “accidental” snips, unless your colleagues think that you desperately need “just a little trim off the top”.
Crime Scene Tech
Difficulty level – Medium
Materials and tools needed:
- Masking tape
- Caution tape
- Gloves
- Lab coat
- Tweezers
- Scalpel
- Thread (to mimic hair samples)
- Binder’s board to create a body/chalk outline (create a tri-fold for easy travel)
- Golden gloss/matte media (or anything that fluoresces) to create “blood” splatters
- Polyethylene bags (to collect evidence)
- UV lamp
- Protective UV goggles
- Fluorescent scale (optional)
- Camera (optional)
- Tripod (optional)
- A strong stomach, not for the faint of heart
Note – For the body outline, just kindly convince a colleague to lie on the binder’s board. Nothing says “team building” like creating a fake crime scene!
The following costumes can be done as a group effort or a solo act – dealer’s choice!
Vigo the Carpathian (Painting)
Difficulty level – Hard
Materials and tools needed:
- Print out of Vigo the Carpathian – our Lab recently switched to a 17″ wide Epson printer, so we are unable to print large scale items, so Jessica skillfully created the painting with two printouts pieced together.
- Corrugated board
- Cloth tapes (to create handles on the back of the painting)
- Gold spray paint
- Double-sided tape
- Black/dark clothing
- Strong arms and captivating eyes
Note – For that eerie stare DON’T FORGET to remove the eyes from the print out…the creepier, the better!
Sigourney Weaver (as “Paintings Conservator”)
Difficulty level – Easy
Materials and tools needed:
- Lab coat
- OptiVisor
- Acrylic paints
- Gloves
- Cotton swab
- Beaker with filtered water
- Paint brushes
- Vigo printing proof, as reference (optional)
- Must not be easily spooked by creepy eyes staring into your soul
Note – We know we aren’t a paintings conservation lab, but I think we pulled it off…or at least better than the movie, I hope!?
Ghostbuster / Bill Murray as Dr. Peter Venkman
Difficulty level – Easy
Materials and tools needed:
- Jumpsuit from your favorite brand (Dickies, Albion Fit, etc.)
- Nilfisk GD 10 Back HEPA Vacuum (Proton Pack)
- Print out of Ghostbusters logo
- Double-sided tape
- Portable fan (for special effects)
- Must be courageous yet capture the whimsy and humor of Bill Murray! Ready for anything!
Note – A portable fan can really elevate the special effects for this costume! Just check out our Instagram reel to see for yourself…
Happy haunting to you all! May the ghost tyrant and sorcerer Vigo (also known as Prince Vigo von Homburg Deutschendorf, Scourge of Carpathia, Sorrow of Moldavia, Vigo the Carpathian, Vigo the Cruel, Vigo the Torturer, Vigo the Despised, Vigo the Unholy1) protect you in all your spooky endeavors!
Catarina Figueirinhas [UCL] – Assistant Conservator
Images by Jessica Ebert [UCL] – Assistant Conservator & Social Media Coordinator