Cheap Fancy Dress Costumes – Ideal for Charity

Posted on March 22, 2012 by admin

Yesterday we mentioned those who, despite their enthusiasm to take part in the Sport Relief Mile (other worthwhile fund-raising events are also available) do not feel they can afford a fancy dress costume, for the very good reason that they would like all the money they raise to go to the charity. Obviously we can see the argument: In the wider context we do regularly get calls from people hoping we can give them cheap costumes or free costumes for charity events. Leaving aside the point that no matter how good the cause, the costumes still have to cleaned and processed after being worn, if people are wearing our costumes we want them (both the people and the costumes) to look good, as their quality reflects on us. The way forward here is a second line of fund-raising in which you get sponsored to wear a particular costume – the sponsor(s) gets to see you dress-up in a costume (perhaps of their choosing) and whilst the cost of hiring a good-quality outfit is covered by the sponsorship, you have a financial incentive to look good (and perhaps even gain some press-coverage if you stand out from the crowd).

Props & Frocks however does give the option of donating a free hire costume in exchange for some of our leaflets being handed out, this is not always possible as it depends on what the person is doing and if the charity allows this, but it is an option that can be considered by both parties.

It is also worth looking at our range of ex-hire costumes that are sold off all the time from our Essex base. To be honest, we’d recommend a visit to the shop to have a look.

And, don’t forget the items that are being discontinued and are available for sale at some really cheap prices, check out our range of sale items and grab yourself a fancy dress bargain

Other Fancy Dress Options For Sports Relief

Posted on March 21, 2012 by admin

For those who do not want to go to the expense of a full fancy dress outfit or are on a low budget, here at Props and Frocks we have a range of suitable accessories for you to choose from. Our fantastic array of fancy dress wigs in different colours and styles are particularly popular for those running as a group. Although we have a wide assortment of wigs in different styles, those that tend to be purchased most are the curly pop wigs, which are available in a range of funky colours. Some groups may choose to team wigs with matching tutus, wands and fairy wings, whilst others will look at adopting a wig and funny glasses approach. If your aim is not to be recognised, why not have a look at our selection of quality card masks, based on famous people? The Royal Family masks are by far our most popular set at present, although the new TOWIE masks that were launched last month are being much requested. Whatever your requirements or ideas come and have a look at how we can help. Don’t forget we also offer an online service for those not based in Essex.

Don’t forget to check out our range of sale items, you can get lots of cheap fancy dress items at brilliant prices

Novelty Costumes

Posted on March 20, 2012 by admin

Yesterday, we discussed the two-person animal fancy dress costumes. Today, we thought we would take a look at some of the innovative, but “slightly” more practical costumes, which can also make a strong visual statement, i.e. the novelty costume.

Novelty costumes can basically be divided into two different areas. Firstly, there are the instantly recognisable outfits, which aside from the fun animal-style fancy dress, also includes items such as drinks, in the form of bottles of champagne, vodka or beer; food stuffs such as bananas, hot dogs, chilli peppers, and characters from video games or off the telly.

The second type of novelty costume is the joke costume. There are some jokes where everybody ‘gets’ the joke, but it is important to remember that there are some jokes which in the wrong environment do not go down well. Bearing in mind that the sport relief mile is directed at individuals, friends and families, ‘jokes’ such as males dressing up as female characters, or going as a whoopee cushion may be perfectly acceptable. What is probably not suitable for “family viewing” is the rather more risqué joke fancy dress, such as the groping granny or some of the other rude novelty costumes. Although these might be suitable for a private gathering or a stag weekend if used for to run a mile in, you can be sure that not everybody will appreciate the joke.

We have good stocks of both types of Novelty costumes, all available for next working day delivery.

Sports Relief Costumes

Posted on March 19, 2012 by admin

According to the BBC, fancy dress is optional for this Sunday’s run a mile for Sport Relief. But, here at Props and Frocks, fancy dress plays an extremely important role in our business (after all it’s the reason why we are here). Not only do we offer a superb range of costumes and accessories, both for hire and sale, but we also cater for all ages, sizes and shapes. Over the next few days we are going to take a look at the types of costumes and accessories in which you might like to run your mile, starting with the practicalities of the two-person animal as depicted in the adverts (sorry, “promotion” – we forgot for a moment which TV channel we were talking about).

Whenever you are dressing up for charity, do think practically, a full mascot type costume may look fantastic, but have you ever tried running in one! We are often asked to assist in charity dress up days, and if you are local, we are often able to help by donating one costume in return for some leaflets being handed out for us. However, it does depend on what the costume will be used for. We are reluctant to hire costumes for hairdressers, due to the chance that the costumes could be ruined by hair dye and in this case purchasing a costume may be more practical.

Wearing a fancy dress costume is proven to raise more money, so dressing up is great.

We have a number of animal costumes at our shop, some of which are made for one person, whilst others are built for two. The two-person animal might seem a great idea, but in terms of practicality, it can be a bit of a nightmare. Take the horse for example. First of all there is the problem of who gets to be the back end. Unlike the two-humped camel (where at least you can actually stand up in the humps) in a two-person horse, cow or similar creature, one person will need to be bending their back and keeping pace with the other, whilst not being able to see where they are going. Refreshments might also not be that practical and if it is a hot day, the materials they are made of (many are based on fur fabric) could be rather warm. A mile may not seem like a particularly arduous task, but if you are the back end of a horse for that mile, you will certainly know it. The other point to bear in mind is how the animal is constructed. Not all pantomime animals tear apart in the middle as shown on the TV. In fact, the majority will be an all-in-one body, with separate trousers for each participant. At Props and Frocks we don’t like to get in the way of a good idea, so if you have considered all the down-sides discussed above and still want to go ahead and book an animal fancy dress costume, be it four-legged or two-legged, we have a number of options for you to choose from.

2 Man Costumes

Posted on March 12, 2012 by admin

So who wants to be the back end of a horse? Not the most desirable place to be to be honest, but quite a laugh if you are part of a 2 man costume.

If you are thinking about wearing a 2 man costume, it is probably worth agreeing to change over the front, and back end, rolls, as the person at the back will need to bend over, which is not the most comfortable place to be for a long period of time!

We stock the following 2 man hire costumes:

Cow (2 types)
Camel
Horse (2 types)

Ideal for pantomimes and great for fund raising!

We also now stock a great 1 man horse that stops the problem of having to find the back end!

2 man costumes are great for a laugh, and are brilliant fun for mascot racing (read on for more information)

A good week for those into horse racing or being Irish (or both) as the Cheltenham Racing Festival culminates with St Patrick’s Day. Here in Essex, lacking any major race courses, only the latter of these two features of the week will be of major interest. That said, we do occasionally get requests for jockey-style outfits for various events, and ever since the BBC started running that promo with a pantomime horse for Sport Relief (which is running/walking at the end of next week), we have had some interest in those as well. Even so, mascot costuming and horse-racing are not total strangers – for several years now, famous race courses have taken turns to host panto-horse racing. For obvious reasons, it tends to be a ‘flat’ race, but there is still all the usual excitement and even some betting – though how you work the form-book we don’t know. As a spin-off of that, there is also a Mascot Grand National every year in which the larger-than-life characters from football clubs and, latterly, other organisations compete over hurdles (smaller ones than the proper horses have). Although traditionally held at Huntingdon, this year the action moves to Kempton Race-course on May 7^th, so that will be another addition to the already crowded sporting calendar this year (but probably lacking the same television coverage).