Renting a Costume is Very Green

It's Halloween day have you picked out your costume, made all your plans for a green Halloween?  If not, it's not too late to get a green costume.  If you work all day and can't get to your local thrift store to put together a costume you aren't out of luck.  Consider renting a costume at your locally owned costume shop.

On TV it seems people always rent their costumes.  It's never been something I even considered.  I always assumed renting a costume was very expensive and it was cheaper to buy one.  However, last year the parents of one of the girls in my daughter's preschool class owns the local costume shop and the kids got to go there for a field trip.  As I looked at their book of rental costumes I realized you can rent great costumes for as little as $25.  That is cheaper than buying a costume and it's more sustainable.  Rather than buying a costume you may only wear once or twice, buy renting a costume many people can use the same costume over and over until it's worn out.

The more people who use a costume, the less that need to be made and the fewer resources used.  It also means less waste in the landfill.  Most costumes today are made from synthetic fibers that will take longer to biodegrade than natural fibers.  So if you can't find or make a costume out of natural fibers, renting a costume is considerably more sustainable than buying one.

Also, when you buy or rent your costumes from your local costume shop rather than at the chain stores or the Halloween super stores that pop up for a month or two every year, you are supporting your community.  Locally owned stores keep their profits in town and are often better stewards of the community.  I know our friend's store supports many local organizations and supplies costumes to the local high school and college drama departments, theater groups and many other worthwhile organizations.   Chain stores and temporary Halloween stores take their profits out of town and other than sales tax revenue, give little support to your community.  Yes, sometimes your local costume shop may cost more than a chain store, but isn't it worth it to support your local business owner?  I think so. 

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