Spruce Up Your Mardi Gras Costume With Exotic Beads and Masks

When it comes to dressing up for Mardi Gras, having a wild imagination will certainly pay off. This great holiday occurs every year in New Orleans on February 16th. Also known as Fat Tuesday, is a series of carnival celebrations that end on the day before Ash Wednesday. It is a season of colorful parades, exotic masquerade balls, and delicious king cakes. It's a time to for leaving all inhibitions behind and experiencing the wild times Mardi Gras is known for.

So if you really want to feel the spirit and energy, you'll need a costume that shouts out what it's all about. To do so, you'll need to spruce up your costume with colorful beads and fancy masquerade masks. Be unique, be different, set yourself apart by adding accessories to enhance your costume. The colors of Mardi Gras are green, gold and purple so be sure to buy accessories in these colors. Glue flashy beads directly to your outfit and wear throw bead or handstrung necklaces around your neck, arms and legs. Make sure to mix different colors to make your outfit pop out. Throw bead necklaces are usually thrown from floats to parade goers and handstrung beads are generally more ornate and elaborate necklaces.

An outfit is not complete without a masquerade mask. Masks have been worn in New Orleans during masked balls for centuries. This is your opportunity to be anonymous, have some fun and transform yourself into a wild reveler. Express your desired personality and live out your fantasies, go for it, no one's peeking. You'll need your mask for all those fancy dress balls, street parades, and nightly parties. Mardi Gras masks come in an assortment of sizes, shapes and colors. They can be made out of feathers, sequins, and glitter. You can have a stick mask or a Zorro type mask. Whatever mask you chose, you'll be sure to live out your fantasy. Don't forget that the mask is the highlight of the outfit so be sure to find one that goes with the overall colors of your costume and your majestic personality.

Live it up! Long live the Parade!

Ronnie Tanner is a contributing writer at Toomeys Halloween. He writes about mardi gras beads and other industry specific topics.