On a crisp fall day in mid-October, Shannon Fraleigh sat in front of a sewing machine and some curtains, transforming the fabric into a pile of men’s knickers as Cleopatra lounged across the room and a mermaid began to take shape nearby.
It’s a typical day in the costume shop.
Fraleigh owns and operates In Disguise, a costume rental business in Kalispell, along with Dawn and Curt Lembke. They reopened their doors for this Halloween season after taking eight years off, though the process of creating disguises never really stopped.
In Disguise started renting outfits in 1993 and did so every fall for about 10 years. Then, eight years ago the shop went on the backburner as the focus shifted from sewing costumes to raising kids; both families have four children.
“We were pregnant and trying to sew and put the baby in the car seat,” Dawn Lembke said last week. “Now they’re all in school.”
With the kids out of the house for the day, Lembke and Fraleigh were freed up to get back to costuming. They pulled their rental collection out of storage, spruced it up and moved everything into their current location on the 300 block of Center Street East.
The shop is filled with racks of homemade outfits, most of which are organized in chronological order based on era and decade. The 1950s seem to be popular this year, the owners said. Every costume is unique, though there are usually variations of the same theme.
Perennial favorites for women include belly dancers and genies, while the guys usually opt for Robin Hood or Braveheart. It’s an overarching theme both Lembke and Fraleigh have noticed over the years.
“The guys usually want to be scary or funny and the girls want to be pretty or sexy,” Lembke said.
There are also masks and other accessories available. Most of the accessories are for purchase only, but there are various jewelry options to rent for those who would prefer to spend $2 on a necklace and return it the next day.
Customers can typically rent a full costume for $25 a night, while the more intricate costumes such as the Renaissance dresses cost $35 to cover the extra dry-cleaning costs.
All of the outfits are washed and pressed after each use, Fraleigh said, and the owners pay special attention to wear and tear. If something is especially beat up or looks dirty, it is either repurposed as a zombie or discarded.
It can be difficult to anticipate each year’s popular trends, so the costumers stock up on their most popular items throughout the year and can make custom outfits in a week.
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Using her sewing machine, Shannon Fraleigh creates new knickers for In Disguise Costume Rentals in Kalispell. |
Another part of the job is helping customers find exactly what they would like to be. While most people have “no idea” what they want when they walk in, Lembke said others are dedicated to finding the pieces that will perfect their Halloween ensemble.
“Once they have something in their mind, that’s what they want to be and we help them with that,” Lembke said.
The idea for the spooky sartorial business sparked after a purchased costume fell apart. The disappointment about the flimsy garment turned into opportunity as they realized the pattern would not be difficult recreate with more durable fabric.
“We said, ‘We could do that,’” Fraleigh said.
Fraleigh and Lembke have been friends since their days at Flathead High School 25 years ago, and have always had a penchant for dressing up on Halloween. With piles of homemade costumes sitting unworn, the women combined their collections and went to yard sales to find more treasures before opening up their rental shop.
The beginnings were humble. Both women laughed as they recalled their first setup in a storage container with no heat. Their location is now more permanent. The plan is to keep the shop set up and open by appointment or request, Fraleigh said, since the Flathead has other costume opportunities throughout the year. Eventually, they would like to stock novelty shirts and other items to keep the doors open everyday.
Lembke and Fraleigh keep an eye out all year for potential costume pieces or accessories during summer garage and estate sales. Thrift store prom dresses hold plenty of promise, such as the one currently being transformed into a mermaid.
“This is really fun,” Lembke said. “It doesn’t seem like work.”
Fraleigh added: “We just create all day.”
Family help is important too, they said, with husbands and kids pitching in to make the shop successful.
After perusing the Renaissance section with a potential customer, Lembke checked her watch. It was an early out school day and their kids would need a ride soon; they take turns shuttling each other’s children wherever they need to go.
Lembke decided it was her turn.
“Now you can sew and I’ll pick up the kids,” Lembke said, as Fraleigh continued to make her way through the pile of knickers.
In Disguise is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. everyday through Oct. 31.