How to Make a Bride of Frankenstein Costume

The costume requires a white dress, but you'll look a whole lot scarier than this bride!

The Bride of Frankenstein is a classic Halloween costume for a reason. The long dress and dramatic eye makeup required make it glamourous, but it's not overly sexy. It's a somewhat scary costume, but not gruesome. And while it's a fairly traditional Halloween costume it's still original enough that you probably won't have to worry about being the fifth Bride of Frankenstein at a Halloween party. Best of all, the materials required can easily be gathered on a budget.

Things You'll Need

• Long-sleeved white dress
• Store-bought Bride of Frankenstein wig, or white shoe polish, a small-barreled curling iron, and hair spray
• White face paint or foundation
• Black eyeliner pencil
• Dark red or black lipstick
• False eyelashes

Instructions

Makeup

1. Take a pale foundation or white face paint and apply it all over your face and neck. Use a black eyeliner pencil to draw fake stitches along your neck.

2. Apply black eyeliner to your upper eyelid in a dramatic, winged manner, extending it past the outer corner of the eyes. Use it on your eyebrows to draw a dramatic arch, with the outer ends extending almost to the edge of your face. Apply false eyelashes, and your fabulous eyes are done.

3. Apply a dark red or black lipstick. To reference Elsa Lancaster in the original 1935 "Bride of Frankenstein" movie, use a lip liner in a similar color first, and pay special attention in defining the cupid's bow (the middle of the top of your upper lip).

Hair and Costume

1. Purchase a Bride of Frankenstein wig at a costume or party store. This is slightly more costly than doing your hair yourself (assuming that you already own a curling iron), but will save you lots of time in the long run, especially if your hair doesn't hold a curl well.

2. Use a crimper or small-barrelled curling iron if doing your own hair. Tease it upwards and back. If you have long hair, it might be easiest to pin it up and then tease it. Put a small amount of white shoe polish on a toothbrush, and use it to paint streaks in your hair.

3. Obtain a white dress for your costume; the most authentic choice is an old wedding dress (you can get one for cheap at a thrift store). Wrap your forearms loosely in strips of white fabric or gauze bandages. Your choice of shoes is less important -- go for delicate white heels or take the opposite route and pair your dress with combat boots. If comfort's an important factor and your dress is long enough to completey cover your feet, you can even wear sneakers.

References

• Frankenstein and His Bride Costumes - Halloween Online Magazine
• Bride of Frankenstien (1935) - IMDB