Fancy Dress Costumes

Fancy dress costumes for adults and children, covering the themes that actually come up: film and TV characters, decades nights, superheroes, Christmas parties and Halloween. Whole outfits rather than a hat and good intentions, so you can turn up looking like you meant it.

Most people are shopping against a deadline. If the party is this week, pick a costume that reads instantly from across a room - a recognisable character beats a clever concept nobody gets. If you've got time, think about the photographs: bold colours and clear silhouettes always look better than fiddly detail that disappears in low light.

Buying for a group? Agreeing a theme first saves the usual arguments, and one person co-ordinating sizes saves the rest. Finish the look with a fancy dress mask, and read our fancy dress party themes or last-minute ideas if you're still deciding.