There's a horse in the corridor... Yes yes a horse in the corridor... In part of the Netherlands, people look forward to carnival all year long. Has this party fever got hold of you too? So what are you going to wear? Choose a durable carnival outfit! This will make the polonaise much more original and affordable. We have listed the best sustainable fancy dress outfits for you.
Sustainable carnival outfit: a fun challenge every year
As a purebred Southerner, carnival is always a nice party, but I haven't bought any new costumes for years. I often wear what I already have or I dip into the closet of one of my sisters. Fortunately, we are the same size. Even for the children (I have three boys), a second-hand costume or a borrowed one is always my first choice. That might sound like a hassle, especially if you want to go out as a group in the same theme, but it's really not that bad. By striking out on the second-hand circuit and being creative with what you already have and can make yourself, you can actually create hugely fun outfits. And extra fun: you save a lot of money, because pooh, carnival outfits don't come cheap. And not exactly good for the planet, either. Let's take a moment to think about that first. And yes, outfit inspiration I have too. Plenty!
What's wrong with carnival costumes?
Most party clothes and costume suits are made of thin, inexpensive fabrics, such as polyester or other polymers. This makes them budget-friendly to make (and buy), but they are often of poor quality and very prone to wear and tear. Also, these polyester fabrics (which are made from petroleum) release microplastics during wearing and washing. And those microplastics in nature are a mega big problem. We wrote about this earlier when we took a closer look at that yummy fleece jumper. Not to mention the conditions under which these party clothes are made, because there is often little festive about them. If you then consider that these costumes are often only worn for a few days and then disappear on the rubbish heap, you understand that party clothes are a (minor) disaster for the environment.
An adam costume then? That is sustainable and a hilarious idea, but you can save yourself this (cold) walk of shame. There really are so many great ideas for a sustainable carnival outfit. We got you!
Left: Got lots of floral prints hanging in your closet? Ideal for a hippy outfit. Right: a piece of kartion can be transformed into beautiful fairy wings in no time.
The tradition of carnival
Dutch carnival is rooted in centuries-old traditions. This colourful and festive popular feast is originally a Catholic festival. Carnival or vastelaovend(j) allowed revellers to celebrate lavishly and licentiously before the Lenten period of forty days to Easter began. Although the connection with the Catholic faith has been increasingly pushed into the background in recent years, carnival or vastelaovend remains an annual highlight of togetherness and celebration for many Dutch people.
Cheap and sustainable carnival outfit: use what you have!
If you've been to carnivals or costume parties before, chances are you can already get very far by mixing & matching with what you have left. A few ideas:
- Pull all your pink items out of your closet for a trendy Barbie or Ken outfit for carnival. For the girls: don't forget your pink nail polish, pink lipstick and high tail.
- Transform your existing green tracksuit into the perfect Squidgame look.
- Pull out a white blouse with collar and wear your ‘little black dress’ over it. With two braids and some black lipstick, you are smooth Wednesday Addams.
- Make a villain outfit out of a black and white striped shirt. Stick a belly or back number on it with tape for a wonderfully simple carnival outfit.
- Still have a vintage ski suit lying around somewhere? Wear it!
- Take a pair of black trousers or skirt and wear a white blouse on top. With a red bandana in your hair and a black (face-painted) eye patch, you will be ready as a pirate in five minutes. Want to choose make-up more durable too? Then check out our tips here.
Share your dress-up clothes
Want to be totally trendy with your costume without buying anything new? There are rental services where you rent the most gorgeous outfits that you simply return or send afterwards. And especially if you want to walk around with your whole group of friends in a theme, clothing rental is ideal. This way, an outfit is worn more than once and the environmental damage of your party outfit is much less. If you can't find a rental company nearby or don't want to spend money on it: check friends or family if they still have something in their closet or dress-up box! Perhaps they have bought the perfect hippie outfit, Pippi Longstocking suit, or bear look long before and you can borrow it without question. Or go to your grandfather and pluck all the ingredients for your trendy Peaky Blinders outfit, such as a waistcoat and flat cap from his closet!
Furthermore, there are some outfits that you can often find very easily and in abundance on Marktplaats or at the thrift store. If you start looking for these a bit in time, you will definitely find them (even for a whole group, as the supply is huge):
- Animal costumes: go (together) as a lion, panda or monkey.
- Superhero: costumes of popular superheroes are timeless and often reused. Think Batman, Superman or Wonder Woman.
- Retro ‘80s or ’90s: go vintage with neon colours, leggings or oversized jumpers! And don't skip the ski department when searching. A retro ski suit like this is not only nice and glitzy, but also nice and warm when you go on a pub crawl. Ideal!
- Faulty gold: pull all the gold outfits off the rack at the thrift store and make your carnival glitteringly perfect!
Left: a devil or angel costume is easy to make or score second-hand. Right: a white blouse with black dress over it and your Wednesday Addams outfit is ready.
Craft your own costume
Are you a bit handy yourself? Then you can also craft your own unique carnival costume, how fun?
- Buy a (gold) picture frame at the thrift store, remove the image and go as the ‘perfect picture’.
- Put on your mackintosh and take your umbrella off the coat rack. Hang wires with raindrops under the umbrella and voila: ‘From rain to rain’.
- Make a photo strip of yourself. Craft a frame of four rectangles into which you stick three pictures of yourself and stick your head through the third (DIY Photo Strip Costume - The Merrythought).
- Make a roaring 1920s costume! Sew or stick some fringe ribbon on a short black dress. With a hairband and long gloves, dance the Charleston all night long.
- Make red stripes on a white T-shirt with fabric marker and put a red (or red and white) hat on your head for a simple Where's-Wally costume!
- Make your own Venetian carnival mask out of cardboard. Adding your finest long party dress, you will steal the show as a mysterious apparition.
Clean up your mess!
And finally, you can also make a difference during and after the carnival party! There is little more fun than hosing, polonaise and singing together, but make sure you clean up your mess too. Don't throw your cups and food trays on the ground, but in the trash. Of course the street will be swept the next day, but if everyone cleans up their own mess behind their arse, we will avoid a lot of environmental damage and expensive clean-up teams.
Choose a sustainable carnival outfit
With these tips, you are sure to have, find or craft a durable outfit that steals the show. So you can have a super fun carnival or vastelaovend responsibly. We wish you lots of polonaise, hosing and mopping fun!
More green party tips from thegreenlist.nl
- Sustainable birthday: this is how to make it a green party.
- Sustainable children's party: giving second-hand presents at a children's party is how you do it.
- Sequins: glitter or horror?
Photo credits: main image: Quino Al (Unsplash), hippie: Cottonbro Studio (Pexels), fairy: Monstera Production (Pexels), Barbie: Criativa Pix Fotografia (Pexels), devil and angel: Monstera Production (Pexels), Wednesday Addams: Alina Rossoshanska (Pexels).
