Captain America: Arguably the most well known of the Avengers, Captain America is a long standing American icon. The costume is most known for the star spangled theme to it, with a star on the chest over blue, and the large ‘A’ on the mask for America. The most important piece of this costume is easily the shield. It is not a difficult piece, as anyone with a little ingenuity can make and paint one of their own. Fans can even do the 1940s version of the costume by including a brown leather jacket and helmet.

Iron Man: When it comes to home made costumes, Iron Man is the most difficult. From the light up piece in the chest to the individual pieces of hot rod red and gold, there is a lot of work to be done. However, it is a popular costume that is available through costume shops, which will offer both the jumpsuit itself and the plastic helmet to go with the suit.

Black Widow: The Black Widow costume epitomizes the sexy super spy. A form fitting black body suit makes up the majority of the costume, making it the easiest Avengers costume to assemble at home. The most important accessory is a set of gold ‘bracelets’ that are made up of bullets that are wrapped around the Black Widow’s wrists.

The Hulk: If the Black Widow costume is not the simplest Avengers costume to make at home, then it is The Hulk. All a good Hulk costume takes is a pair of purple shorts that have been cut to look tattered along the edges, and green body paint. If you feel like the type of person who needs a little extra muscle, a professionally made costume from a costume shop will have ‘built in’ muscles on their Hulk costumes, where fabric is used instead of body paint.

Hawkeye: The trained assassin and archer has a very straight forward costume. With a sleeveless black shirt with a red ‘v’ and a matching pair of black pants, this is an easy costume to make at home. The most difficult piece to this costume would be finding and painting a toy bow and quiver to go along with it. Throw in a pair of red tinted sunglasses, and you have a complete Hawkeye costume.

Thor: The comic book adaptation is one of the more difficult Avengers costumes. With flowing blond locks and a suit of Norse armor, Thor is not an easy to create home costume. The costume calls for a winged helmet for the God of Thunder, as well as the blue undershirt, armor plating on top of it, and dark blue pants. Most people will have to include a blond wig to match Thor’s long hair. The most important piece of a Thor costume is the hammer, which is what the God is known for. But most costume stores and warehouses will have a mass produced version of Thor’s armor for sale.

Nick Fury: The leader of SHIELD and the main secret agent in the Avengers, this is going to be a very popular costume that is not all that difficult to make at home. An eyepatch and a long leather duster with a black t-shirt and black cargo pants beneath makes this an easily home made Avengers costume for fans of the movie.

Blue Bunny costume is seen above with a luxurious chenille fur jumpsuit features blue gingham feet, tummy and ears.  Is this not the cutest costume of all time?  The Jesus Adult costume pictured below  includes a beige robe featuring bell sleeves and an attached red shoulder drape. Also includes a crown of thorns, wig and beard. A great garment for middle school plays or theatrical performances.

Here are the bunnies we suggest:

Let’s not forget the main reason for the season:

The story behind the infamous masks, shown in almost all Mardi Gras coverage, goes back centuries to a time when masquerade balls were all the rage. The lower class, and sometimes even the upper class, began wearing masks to hide their identities. Eventually the parties moved to the street and the wearing of masks continued to be a special part of the festivities, allowing even celebrities to join in the fun of the events without revealing their true identities.

Plan to wear a mask during your visit, especially if you plan to attend only on Fat Tuesday. If you want to make it yourself, decorate it with brilliant colored feathers, sequins, beads, and glitter. Make it out of plastic, plaster or leather or just wear a covering over your eyes. Be passionate about it and make people wonder who the stranger is behind the mask. If you feel unable to craft a suitable mask, purchase one from a costume shop or have one special ordered. Have fun being unknown on Bourbon Street!

Costumes are a fantastic way to blend with the crowd and they can also be purchased from costume shops, party stores or the Internet. Many dress as if they are part of the old New Orleans and are attending a fancy ball. Elaborate gowns made of velvet and dapper suits for a gentleman, complete with the white wig and cane, are both available and can cost $200 or more if purchased new. Jester and clown costumes are also prominently featured and can be fun or evil, and extremely colorful or black and white.

The French Quarter, also known as the adult section of New Orleans, tells promiscuous stories of rakish men and loose women. These stories provide interesting costumes which reveal more skin than fabric and more sequins than velvet. Women dress as sexy queens or ladies of the night and men dress as pirates or pimps.

Feather boas, high heels, beads, wigs, jester hats, and funny sunglasses are cheap, easy options to find and wear if dressing in full costume is not for you. Some people dress in a costume of their choice which may have nothing to do with Mardi Gras but are still big and bold. Think pink flamingoes and beer kegs or walking lobsters and peacocks. The important thing is to have fun during your visit and let the good times roll!

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The newest Halloween costume sure to be seen this year is “The Wall Street Protester”. This costume is easy to put together using things most people may already have. A flannel shirt, jeans, hiking boots, and a home-made poster will accomplish the look.

Dressing up as Anthony Wiener will surely stir up controversy. Anthony Wiener is the former U.S. Representative from New York who garnered a huge amount of media attention when his sexting scandal was brought to light forcing his resignation from Congress. Costume stores are actually selling Anthony Wiener masks. This outfit could easily be completed by the addition of a suit or simply by wearing a white towel which is what Wiener was wearing when he photographed himself with his iphone and forwarded the pic to his lover.

Another highly controversial costume for 2011 is the “Dead Osama Bin Laden” costume. This costume can be purchased online and in select costume stores and consists of a full Osama Bin Laden costume, complete with mask. An eye patch should also be worn for an accurate depiction. For a funny twist, a snorkel can be added to explain how Osama escaped his watery fate.

The recent passing of Steve Jobs is sure to inspire a costume this year. All you need to accomplish this look is Steve’s trademark look of jeans, a black turtleneck, and new balance 991 sneakers. To push this costume over the line into repulsive territory, add zombie make-up.

Troy Davis who was put to death recently for the murder of a policeman after the Supreme Court denied his last-minute stay of execution, inspired some hot debate within the media this year. He apparently, also inspired a costume for 2011. T-shirts that read ” I AM TROY DAVIS” across the front can be purchased online and paired with a fake syringe. To achieve a more authentic look, pair the fake syringe with an inmate jumpsuit purchased at a costume store.

For children, nothing says “over the line” like dressing them as little terrorists. A turban and some fake TNT strapped to their chest can go a long way in inspiring some second looks and behind-your-back remarks. Not only is this costume insensitive, it is also just plain wrong.

For a costume idea that is sure to repulse and anger those around you, consider dressing up as Casey Anthony’s deceased toddler. Be advised, this costume is cheap to put together but it is also way over the line and will definitely encourage some not so tasteful comments from those who see it. Residents of the Orlando, FL area should probably steer clear of this one. To achieve this look, you only need to wear a trash bag and put a strip of duct tape over your mouth, draw a small heart on the duct tape for authenticity. If this is too far for you, a Casey Anthony mask and shirt are also available.