Youth looking for an affordable and eco-friendly way to make their Halloween costume can learn how by attending a costume-making workshop at Foundry Cariboo Chilcotin.
It was Lillian Brown’s brilliant idea to spread the joy of homemade costumes, having done so for herself since she was 16. A peer support worker at Foundry and an artistic person at heart, she is always using her creative mind to engage with and inspire youth.
“I know we have pottery and crocheting groups,” she said, but “I didn’t see many people making costume groups.” Knowing how expensive costumes are and how limited options can become as you get older, Brown decided to start her own costume-making workshop and see how it goes.
The workshop is free and runs every Friday until Oct. 25 at Foundry. Brown said there’s been lots of interest so far and she’s been helping put together Strawberry Shortcake, Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater, Spider Man and Princess Mononoke costumes. She is also working on her own costume, a jellyfish, and said her partner is planning to dress up as SpongeBob SquarePants.
Brown said this is also a great opportunity to challenge fast fashion, which she said is creating unnecessary waste. “A lot of the youth I work with are very much into climate change and want to do something about it,” she said. The workshop, she explained, is a fun opportunity for youth to practice upcycling materials and to take advantage of the hand-me-downs they may be getting.
Brown said she’s always loved Halloween but could never get the costumes she wanted growing up because they were so expensive.
She remembers thinking, “what do I have here and how can I turn my dreams into reality?” With help from her elders who she describes as “handy and crafty,” she said her first costume was a success despite being a “one-wear thing.”
Over the years she’s adapted her costume styles and techniques, finding inspiration on Pinterest and Tik Tok. She’s made Wonder Woman and Medusa costumes, and she’s done makeup for her brother's pirate costume.
“I’m very much self-taught,” Brown said, and warned she doesn’t know all the answers to creating a costume from scratch but wants to help youth figure it out.
“I'm learning with you, I just know if we stay on track, we’ll get this all figured out,” Brown said. She’ll be there to help crafters develop their ideas and find the materials they need to make their dream costume.
The workshops are open to people aged 12 to 24, but also welcome parents and guardians for youth who want a familiar face there with them. Brown said there’s no strict time to attend the workshop, as long as you pop in between 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Fridays. She also said there’s no need to register nor bring any materials to work with, though it’s a great opportunity to recycle materials you may no longer need.
