Costumes for President’s Day
Tip your top hat to all of our highest elected leaders by dressing up in a costume to celebrate President’s Day. This year, President’s Day falls on February 21 and celebrates not just the big names in the American presidency, but all the men who have served our country in this extremely important capacity – there have been 42 men who have held the office since our first president, George Washington.
Some of the most popular presidents to dress up as are George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt thanks to significant and memorable contributions to the founding of the United States. A George Washington costume typically shows him in his role of General, featuring woolen knickers, a military-style jacket and a powdered white wig often worn by the upper classes of the colonial period. Fun props to carry around with this president costume would be a toy axe (chopping down the cherry tree), a colonial flag or even a date dressed up as his wife, Martha.
Abe Lincoln is another distinctive president costume. With a striking look, Lincoln is most often portrayed in dark trousers and a frock coat with a very tall top hat – the rumor is that he carried around all his legal documents inside his hat instead of carrying a briefcase. If you are dressing in a Lincoln costume, use faux sideburns and a beard to recreate his facial hair features.
Some of our recent presidents are also popular choices in President costumes. Show your support for your favorite past commander-in-chief by dressing as a modern day president. From Ronald Regan or George Bush to Bill Clinton or Barak Obama, you can find uncanny latex masks that will transform your mug into that of the president you choose. In addition to the mask, all you really need to dress as one of these more recent presidents is a dark suit and a red power tie.
Wearing a president costume is the perfect way to make your point in a school or extra-curricular activity. Many educational programs like to use reenactments of famous historical moments using “doubles” wearing costumes – maybe you can get the honor of reading the Declaration of Independence or signing and important bill wearing a president costume. Plus, who knows maybe you can get some great perks at your favorite store or restaurant when wearing a costume on President’s Day!
Commanding Costumes for Presidents’ Day
To many, Presidents’ Day is a pseudo holiday that means, if you’re lucky, you get the day off school or work and get to flip through the television channels watching the auto dealership guys wearing big Uncle Sam hats jumping up and down peddling their cars. But more historically-minded folks know that President’s Day, now celebrated the 3rd Monday of each February, is a federal holiday that originally started out in 1880 as a way to honor our nation’s first president, George Washington. Washington was born on February 22, 1732 while Abe Lincoln, our much revered 16th president, celebrated his birthday on February 12, 1809. In the 70s, Congress voted to dedicate the holiday to both men, and actually all of our past presidents regardless of what month they were born in. Interestingly, in addition to Washington and Lincoln, Ronald Regan and William Harrison were the only other two presidents born in February. The month boasting the most presidents born is actually October with six!
This year Presidents' Day falls on February 15th, celebrate in style by dressing up as one of the past leaders of the free world, excluding our current president, Barack Obama, you have 43 past presidents to choose from. Of course, because of his role in the founding of the United States, George Washington is always a top choice in president costumes. The most popular George Washington costume is designed to resemble is Colonial-era General uniform. Leather boots, a powered wig and a tricorn hat will lend you a commanding look – and that’s no lie! An Abe Lincoln costume, of course, features the tall stove pipe hat he was known for toting his legal documents around in! A beard with mutton chops finished the look off, honestly! If you are more interested in dressing up as a contemporary president, there are many latex masks that you can pair with a dark business suit – Obama, Bush, Clinton, Reagan, and Nixon are perfect choices for supporters and pundits alike!
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