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Ideas For Costumes

by Helen Evans

If you are trying to come up with costume ideas, then believe it or not, your own ideas will be your greatest input. Unless you like parting with your cash, there is no need for you to buy or rent a costume. By using your imagination, maybe some lateral thinking, you can come up with a unique costume idea. Firstly, you will need to know the theme of the party. A jazzy, glitzy costume won’t suit a formal dinner. Likewise, turning up to a hip-hop party, attired in a stiff-collared formal dress will be inappropriate.

A fancy dress party is definitely a licence to let your imagination go wild. For instance, you could go as Pinocchio. Make a cardboard pencil nose and attach it with either a white or skin coloured piece of elastic, complete your costume with shirt, shorts and felt hat. If you are on the heavy side consider going as the Genie from Aladdin. Some blue body paint is all that is required. If you are going to a periodical themed ball then you can go as your favourite historical character, or maybe a character from one of Shakespeare’s plays. You can pretty much come up with a unique costume that nobody can copy.

Innovative, creative and imaginative are the key essentials to creating a fancy dress costume. Have a good look in your wardrobe for everyday clothing that you can use. A baseball themed event can have you posting a hilarious slogan on a T-shirt. You can dress up quite easy as a klutz by wearing mismatched clothes or odd socks.

Have you ever tried playing fun with your kid’s watercolour tubes? Dress them up in a casual shirt and shorts. Draw a big moustache, put a hat, a holster, and see how deeply your kids love their new looks. It is not always the funny bone that has to be tickled with your costume ideas. In fact, costumes can make greater impact on your viewers if you plan to make them aware of certain issues.

Let’s say you are trying to address the issue of eating genetically modified fruits and vegetables. You can dress in a tomato or carrot costume, this will help the viewers get more interested when you are talking about the pros and cons of genetically modified fruits and vegetables. This is a good way to make your message stick out in the minds of the viewers and less boring than reading it from somewhere.

Costume ideas can also represent how you are and what you like as a person. If you are someone who loved the Disco era then choose or make a costume that would reflect that time period. If you love the renaissance then make or choose a costume that would represent that particular look of the period. On the other hand if you are wild and crazy at heart choose a costume that reflects just how crazy you can be. You can plan costumes for all occasions. Do not go and buy any more ready-made costumes and expensive dress clothing to make an impression make your own.

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How To Pick Out The First Guitar

by Pamela Johnson

When it comes to finding an acoustic beginner guitar, there are many things to consider. It may actually be worth spending enough money for a high quality guitar, if you have it. The ease with which the guitar plays and the sound it makes really is related to the quality and price.

Two acoustic guitars stand out in the high end beginner guitar category. The Seagull S6 makes a fine acoustic beginner guitar of high quality, that plays well enough to take a novice guitar player well into advanced technique. It is priced in the $400-500 range. Also in this price range is the Washburn D10S. This instrument was ranked as #1 by Acoustic Guitar Magazine in a comparison of guitars under $500. While both guitars represent a significant investment for the starting guitarist, they are both very playable instruments of a quality that is capable of keeping pace with the new player’s ability as it grows for many years.

The Yamaha F310, Takamine G-240 and Fender DG7 are all good choices for the beginner. But in terms of price, the most affordable for the beginner is the Epiphone DR-100. Once you gain more experience you will want to trade up, but it’s a great acoustic beginner guitar at $120-$150.

When you are looking for your first guitar, avoid the very cheap ones. These are actually harder to play and can be hard for even an experienced player. A cheaper made acoustic beginner guitar is just not made well and usually have really high action, meaning there is more space between the strings and the fingerboard than the more expensive guitars. This can make a beginner just give up.

If you were planning on spending around $100 or less, a second hand acoustic beginner guitar is a good option. One of the benefits would be the guitar having some character. Take for example, two second hand Yamaha F310’s. Try them both out as they will likely have distinctly different sounds. These sounds may even give you some insight on the personality of who owned the guitar before.

Ever hear the saying, “never buy a guitar from a jerk”? Whether a guitar picks up a “personality” from it’s owner is a point to be debated, however most guitar owners treat their instruments like people. So when you look for your first acoustic beginner guitar keep this in mind. Pay attention to the guitar’s “vibe”, and even if it sounds great, but doesn’t feel right somehow, pass on it.

If you are a beginner and can’t play worth a dime, ask the store associate to play the acoustic beginner guitar you are considering buying. Any sales person at a guitar store will be able to figure out that you would like to actually hear the sound of the acoustic beginner guitar before making a purchase. Who knows, maybe they will be assisting the next great acoustic guitar player!

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