Halloween 2018

Wendy Torrance from The Shining (1980) was my first ever attempt at cosplay. I grabbed my mom’s old bathrobe and the closest items I had in my closet that echoed the original costume design. The kitchen knife came straight from the kitchen, and my makeup came straight from an editing app on my phone. I enlarged my eyes, slimmed my brows, and tinted my lips. I took this photo in my mom’s bathroom before she came home from work.

Rating: 7/10

Halloween 2018

I had no budget for wigs or makeup. Not that I knew where to buy cheap wigs anyway. I dug up a crown I got for my 12th birthday and some earrings I purchased from Shein. I don’t remember where I got the dress, but I suspect it was either a hand-me-down or something I got for 6th-grade choir. I owned one foundation, a pencil eyeliner, and a few lipsticks. I believe my goal was to create a drag-inspired look, à la Trixie Mattel. I didn’t work out that way, but I tried my best. I edited this photo on my phone in one afternoon. I enhanced my brows, smoothed my skin, and used a falselash filter. Did I mention I couldn’t afford false lashes?

Rating: 5/10

Halloween 2018

Honestly, I don’t know what I was trying to accomplish with this photo. Perhaps I wanted to create a look that harkened back to anime or Shironuri makeup? Regardless, this photo has one big flaw: the egregious lightening of my skin. If I remember correctly, this photo was overexposed when I took it, but the editing didn’t help. If I were to reedit this, the first thing I would fix is the lighting. Other than that, I’m proud of this costume. I made this flower crown, and I think it looks pretty good.

Rating: 4/10

Halloween 2018

There’s not much to say about this photo. I loved the 2010s BCC Sherlock Holmes show, so I wanted to dress up as him. I put on a bathrobe my grandmother gave me for Christmas and a random button-up shirt. Funnily, I played violin back in the day. So that instrument is mine, and I still own it.

I guess the violin made me think I’m Sherlock coded?

Little to no editing was done to this photo. If I were to redo this, I would source a satin robe and build a set. I would also set up studio lights to make it less yellow.

Rating: 2/10

Halloween 2019

While preparing for my Halloween week upload schedule, I realized that I was short one photo. I arrived at this idea within an hour, quickly did my makeup, and snapped the photo in front of my childhood bookshelf. After spending a couple of hours editing the photo way past my bedtime, I posted it on Instagram the following day.

Rating: 8/10

Halloween 2019

I managed to create this using limited resources – I scraped some dust-off white chalk I was gifted as a kid, powdered my face, then dripped red watercolor paint on my fingers. With my camera ready and no plan, I started snapping pictures with my bedroom window as my main light source. I just wanted to recreate the album cover for obZen by Meshuggah. I decided to let Photoshop do the heavy lifting, and then I remembered that I had stopped using the software for two reasons. Firstly, I couldn’t afford it, and secondly, my mom wouldn’t allow me to download it on our family desktop. So, I tried using a free online software that I've been using for years. Unfortunately, I had trouble editing the background, which made it look messier compared to my current work. If I were to re-edit it, I would improve the clarity and fix the background.

Rating: 5/10

Halloween 2019

This was a filler photo. I do like the color scheme, but the editing leaves much to be desired.

Rating: 4/10

Halloween 2019

I had a clear vision for this photoshoot after I watched It (1990) the year before. After It Chapter Two (2019) came out, I knew I had to jump on the clown-mania train. To put my spin on the creepy clown concept, I decided to glue candy corn to my face. Although I lacked studio lights, I improvised by using my childhood alarm clock with its multi-color light feature. I didn’t do much editing on this photo, but I’m pleased with my costume.

Rating: 7/10

Halloween 2019

In 2019, I took my first film course, and although my professor didn't require us to watch Metropolis (1927), I decided to watch it anyway because I'm a nerd. As a 19-year-old, I found the movie to be quite perplexing and occasionally dull. However, one aspect that truly captured my attention was the character of Maria, the robot. Her outfit was out of this world, and it appeared that I wasn't the only one who felt that way. Mugler paid homage to this iconic costume in 1995 by creating the "Woman of Steel" suit. After seeing both costumes, I became determined to transform myself into a robot woman, or rather, a robotic teenager.

Rating: 6/10

Halloween 2019

This is another photo conceived and executed in the early hours of the morning. I quickly did my makeup, balanced a plastic pumpkin I bought from JOANN (R.I.P.) on my head, and wrapped a scarf around my chest. My phone was set up on a stack of books, and I took the picture in the study.

Rating: 5/10

Halloween 2020

I was really inspired by Francis Bacon's artwork when I took this photo. I was fascinated by how he distorted the human body, and I wanted to capture a similar effect in this image. I threw on my mom’s old dress from the 1980s, grabbed the umbrella my friend got for me at an anime store, and put on my creepiest face.

Rating: 6/10

Halloween 2020

This was one of my first attempts at taking a photo for my Zodiac Series. I had no plan or money, but I scraped together the resources that I had. I used what little money I had to buy a cheap wig from Shein. I did my makeup and rolled some stockings over my arms to make them shine like stars. Four years later, this photo still captures my interest. I love the makeup, and the color palette is beautiful. However, the pose is awkward, and I don’t understand why half of the image is black, but the other side is blue. I think this photo would be more successful if the entire background were black.

Rating: 5/10

Halloween 2020

I wanted to make heads roll. Pun intended. Back then, this was one of the most tedious editing tasks I had to tackle. To make things easier, I used a Styrofoam head as a stand-in for my own, allowing my hand to appear more naturally at rest. I had to reconstruct the door so that the outline of my head wasn’t too noticeable. Although I appreciate what I was attempting to do, the set is lackluster, and the lighting is terrible. If I were to re-edit this photo, I would replace the background and fix the lighting.

Rating: 4/10

Halloween 2020

I submitted multiple pictures for the Zodiac Series in my 2020 Halloween Week catalog. I guess you could call this a crossover of sorts. I tried to capture the essence of Scorpio, but the makeup ended up being a chaotic mix of irrelevant imagery. I think I was trying to make a wave effect with my eye makeup, but it looks more like a peacock. I attempted to fix it during editing, but the result looks artificial and uninspired. On the bright side, I love the hair, though; I would wear that hairstyle for a photoshoot again.

Rating: 3/10

Halloween 2021

I find this Princess Diaries-inspired photo to be incredibly endearing, but the hairline of my wig is absolutely criminal. However, I am proud of myself for creating the cute text, especially when Photoshop wasn’t available to me.

Rating: 5/10

Halloween 2021

I was itching to create a parody of Back to the Future (1985), but all I had at my disposal was my mom's car and Photoshop. The edits I made to this photo using Photoshop are outrageous, but they bring me so much joy. I'm delighted I was able to fake the street, and the text cracks me up.

Rating: 6/10

Halloween 2021

This is one of my favorite makeup looks.

Rating: 7/10

Halloween 2022

I don’t know why, but this picture caused me so much anxiety that it’s never seen the light of day until now. This is an incomplete edit that I’m finally acknowledging the existence of. I was attempting to cosplay Other Mother from Coraline (2009). When I was editing, I thought this picture was terrible, but my 2025 self doesn’t understand why my 2022 self felt that way. I like the wig I chose (I still own it, by the way), and I think the costume was pretty accurate. All I’m missing is the oven mit. I think this picture would’ve been successful if I had committed to finishing the edit.

Rating: 6/10

This is the frame I was attempting to recreate for my cosplay.

Halloween 2023

This wig gave me a run for my money, but it worked well for this project. Among the Halloween Week catalog, this picture was easier to take compared to the others. All I had to do was source a costume and pose. Luckily, the makeup and the editing do the heavy lifting for me. Looking back, I would change the background to make it more dynamic, but I still love this entry. It brings me so much joy!

Rating: 8/10

Here’s the unedited photo. I purchased the entire costume from Shein. My makeup took heavy inspiration from drag artists. I can’t point to a specific artist in particular, but this look somewhat reminds me of the fabulous Violet Chachki.

Apologies to Violet Chachki.

I did make a TikTok for this look. It’s still up, so please watch at your leisure.

Halloween 2024

My Halloween tradition is to watch at least one horror movie during the spooky season. In 2024, I chose to watch The Craft (1996). Emphasis was placed more on makeup and costuming than editing. I attempted to cater to TikTok trends with more simplistic videos.

Rating: 6/10

Halloween 2024

I did two looks in one. The Rochelle look was completed first because of its simplicity, and the Nancy look was done next.

Rating: 7/10