The Top 3 Halloween Stores in St. Louis, Missouri
You know the feeling. You wake up one morning and change is in the air. The heat of summer is gone. It’s cooler, quieter. The kids are back in school, and you hurry to find that blanket you put away last spring and close the bedroom window. Autumn has arrived. Someone calls you and invites you to a Halloween party. You wonder what kind of costume you’ll wear. The kids started asking you about theirs over two weeks ago, as soon as the candy and novelties started appearing on the shelves of your local Walgreens. Should I stick with the traditional? Maybe something more topicalâÂ?¦a president Bush mask? That certainly would be scary.
Halloween has its roots, like a lot of other holidays, in pagan ritual. In ancient Celtic times it was called Samhain. (pronounced sow-en) It marked the start of the Celtic New Year. The beginning of winter and the dark half of the year. A time when the veil that separated the worlds of the living and the dead was the thinnest. Three days of no-time when anything was possible. It was a time when strange things sometimes happened : horses were let out of their stalls, milk jugs overturned, and pranks played. These activities were sometimes blamed on either the spirits of the dead or mischievous nature spirits. It was also a time when the dead were feasted and honored. A good time for divination and looking ahead into the future. Those folks took their Halloween seriously and some still do, but for most it’s a time for celebrating the changing of the season and going out to have some fun.
Halloween is becoming more and more popular every year. No more is it just a time to walk through the neighborhood with the kids, getting candy from strangers. Just too dangerous. More and more communities are throwing Halloween celebrations for the children as well as the adults. So, you have decided to pull out all of the stops this year. You got the plastic hollow jack-o-lantern and Spider-man outfits for the kids at Wal-Mart, but where do you go to get all decked out? Here are the top 3 places to shop for Halloween in St. Louis:
Johnnie Brock’s Dungeon has 7 locations throughout the St. Louis area. Their main (and best) location is in Hampton Village on the corner of Hampton and Chippewa. Johnnie Brock’s started out as a greeting card shop and they still carry a full line of Hallmark greeting cards and decorations for all of the other holidays, but over the years their Halloween business grew and grew. All of the other six locations as well as a haunted house that they sponsor are exclusively for Halloween. The dungeon is huge and you can pretty well find anything mainstream at any of their locations. Prices range from $15.00 to $75.00 for costumes and they also do rentals.
For something a little more original, check out the Vintage Haberdashery on South Grand Avenue about two blocks south of Arsenal. This boutique is open all year and has rack after rack of unique, if not a little pricey, vintage clothing. Head into the back room and you’ll find a large selection of costumes that are perfect for a Halloween dress up. Some of them are for sale, but if you’re only going to wear the thing once a year, it’s much cheaper to rent. Wigs for rent are in the $20.00 to $45.00 price range and costumes run from $25.00 to $200.00 for a lime green 1920’s zoot suit. Me? I would prefer the cheaper black and white stripped pimp suit from the sixties complete with top hat. It’s cheaper and goes better with the pink Cadillac. They also have authentic poodle skirts, French maid outfits, and some disco polyester from the 70’s that would attract glitter like a magnet.
Now if you really want to go all out, head over the river to Edwardsville, Illinois to a little shop called Halloween Town. It’s a good idea to call ahead for an appointment. The reason is, they get a little busy this time of year. The shop is owned by a guy named Jeff Lewis. Jeff is one of those Hollywood make up artist types and he’ll do you up real good for Halloween. You see, he’s done work for Star Trek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Angel, and got nominated for 6 Emmy awards in the process. It takes about 30-60 minutes to apply all of the make up, but you are sure to be the life (or death) of the party. Jeff plans on expanding by opening a second Halloween Town in St. Louis next fall.
