Long gone is the belief that Halloween is an outlandish American tradition that Australians don’t care about.
Each year more people decorate their homes and welcome costumed trick or treaters enjoying this night out. The historical roots of this ominous celebration are said to have begun with Celtic origins to mark the beginning of winter and ward away ghosts, and there are similar stories about the Pagan autumn rituals to also ward off evil spirits. The theme has centred around things that go bump in the night, but that has changed with modern times.Why Halloween is good fun, and Australians now get amongst it
Australians love a good party and the chance to dress up, and Halloween has already become an anticipated celebration on Australian calendars. So why is Halloween in Australia bigger than ever in 2017?1. Celebrity influencers
Pop culture celebrities have played a very influential role in Halloween’s growth in popularity, setting a high bar for their extravagant parties and costumes over recent years, and ultimately bringing a new relevance and meaning to the tradition. Australians are fixated on Netflix series, blockbuster movies and the celebrities who star in them. Characters, heroes, villains, and from puns to products, they provide awesome material for the anything goes attitude towards Halloween costumes. Celebrities are even going dressed as other celebrities.Happy Halloween pic.twitter.com/9RmCJx3S5L
— Khloé (@khloekardashian) October 31, 2016
2. Not just zombies, witches and horror movie characters.
If you’re not into the spooky side, your costume at least doesn’t have to keep to the theme of the supernatural. By all means, stick with tradition and go ghoulish, and pick the devil or a blood sucking vampire. However, costume ideas are endless outside these dark realms. Hollywood celebrity culture, Marvel’s superhero revival, the Star Wars story, and Great Gatsby’s old world party glam coming to screen, have been huge influencers in reshaping Halloween's theme away from the celestial and gain wider appeal as a celebration.
3. Costume curation
Since anything goes, it’s your chance to dress up as your favourite hero or character! Which is another reason why Australians are loving Halloween more and more every year.- The planning - who or what am I going to be?
- Do I head to the craft shop and DIY?
- Or go online and buy something from Blossom Costumes?
- Do I want to be an individual character and steal the show?
- Or could my friends and I be a team theme?
4. Good clean fun for all ages
Okay, apart from the excessive lollies you’ll consume, but it’s one night of indulgence. But when we grow up the costume party opportunities can decrease, and those with children; well parents are left watching enviously from the sidelines while their kids enjoy the fancy dress party fun. Fancy dress lovers don’t have to wait in the hope that their next birthday, hens or bucks invitation will be a costume party. Halloween is fast approaching and Australian’s are craving another reason to dress in costume. Parents, you can host a party where you, your friends, and all the kids will have a blast.5. Tricks, treats and saying hello to your neighbours
Australians have moved on from criticising the commercial nature of Halloween and its American origins and embodied it into our culture just like Easter and Christmas, Chinese New Year and the Melbourne Cup! It's about getting your friends and family together just like the above celebrations. Parents taking their children and their friends trick or treating all dressed up as their favourite character or goon, is a super-fun way to enjoy a Spring evening in your neighbourhood. Admire the jack-o-lanterns, spider webs, skulls, bats and haunted house effects effort that people go to decorate and light up their homes.6. Costume competition is fierce
It’s become an unofficial competition of who will ‘win’ Halloween. Pop stars and pop culture have moved away from themes of the occult and hocus pocus. For them, it’s the chance to show off their imaginations (and often, their bods) in outrageous, creative and spectacular costumes. Sometimes they go all out and make themselves unrecognisable. Remember Heidi Klum as an old lady? Amazing! It’s through the likes of Heidi, Beyonce and the Kardashians carving their path and using Halloween as a reason to dress up, and host the ultimate party every year and importantly, get the internet talking about their nothing-short-of-amazing costumes. [caption id="attachment_1249" align="aligncenter" width="634"]
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