The annual ritual of scouring the costume stores and niche boutiques for a dazzling or spooky ensemble is here, and the top contenders for hottest options are once again inspired by pop culture. Pirate attire is flying off the shelves at the Conroe Spirit Halloween store, assistant manager Shari Wade said.
Following closely behind is zombie and vampire apparel, which Wade said could have a lot to do with the “Twilight” saga movies, of which the fourth movie is scheduled for release in November. The pirate demand has been slower at Dance Fantastic in Conroe, which has an increased demand for zombie outfits. “The hot topic is zombies, zombies, zombies,” Dance Fantastic Owner Cheryl Hutchins said. Michael Jackson’s movie “This Is It” is responsible for the zombie mania, Hutchins said. The movie features several zombie scenes from the song “Thriller” that has a Halloween theme.
A major popular item is a morph suit, a colored body suit that is a one piece, Hutchins said. A woman bought a tuxedo morph suit the other day and bought a top hat and glove to accompany her outfit, she said, making it a popular item to buy and customize an outfit. Morph suits are popular among the younger crowd, but sizes are available for all ages in skeleton, tuxedo, witch and race car driver patterns, Hutchins said. Newsworthy events and actions by stars and celebrities have encouraged a Charlie Sheen section at stores, complete with options for men and women to pay a humorous tribute to Sheen’s notorious drinking and womanizing.
“It’s more popular with the young kids (teens), not the adults so much,” Wade said. “We have shirts, hats, flasks and wigs and shirts that say ‘Charlie’s Goddess’ on them.”The up tick on the Sheen attire is slower at Dance Fantastic, but Hutchins said the popularity with celebrities has been focused on Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, but this weekend marks the mad rush for people to finally pick a costume before Halloween weekend. While sexy outfits are always on the minds of women for Halloween, Wade said they are popular again, with Amanda Knox and her sex scandal murder trial inspiring women to dress sexy as Knox. Sheen and Knox top Yahoo! Search controversial costume searches, following Casey Anthony, Osama Bin Laden and Chaz Bone, according to Yahoo! search data.
Online Halloween costume searches are up 351 percent this month and include the traditional witch and pumpkin outfits to newly inspired Pan Am stewardesses and other TV-inspired getups. Pop culture icons Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Justin Bieber and Snooki are top choices for people hoping to sport celebrity costumes. Political icons President Barack Obama and Sarah Palin are popular items in Spirit Halloween, Wade said.
Adorable little trick-or-treaters may be knocking on doors dressed as Angry Birds or characters from Disney’s “Up,” according to baby costumes search history, while many kids may sport Harry Potter Hogwarts uniforms, Michael Jackson outfits or various Disney creatures.