Cost of a Gangnam Style Costume

What should you pay for a costume?  Not much really.  The average price at the costume store for any jacket is $50.00 minimum.  Then there are the pre-packaged costumes.  They'll range from $90.00 to $150.00.  Yikes!  These are for generic costumes.  But that's for mass produced stuff where they have warehouses full of these things; like Sexy This-n-That Costumes by the Genre.  What about the hot ticket costumes?  Are those really expensive?  What about Gangnam Style Costumes?!

If you already haven't had the chance yet, use a search engine and shop around.  Don't just settle for the first thing you see.  Make an informed purchase. Even Loki's Wardrobe refers people to other websites for their Gangnam Style apparel.   Loki's availability to make hand made Gangnam Style Blue jackets went fast and sold out, but it doesn't mean that they need to string people along.  Incidentally, check out www.gogangnam.com if you're still looking for a Gangnam Style costume.  Their website is pretty original and and compared to other sites, won't charge you an arm and a leg for mass produced clothing.  Also the color of the jacket looks close to what Loki uses at least.  It's definitely not an overly-bright, neon blue, hidden by shadowy pictures.

It's like Miracle on 34th street.  Santa takes the time to tell parents to go to 'other' stores to find the toys their children want.  Santa doesn't shill out just because he's working at Macy's.  So why should any other Gangnam Style costume maker?  If you're out, you're out.  Help people out and be a decent human being.

So if you search enough on Google, you'll find articles on how to make a Gangnam Style costume for $15.00, or put one together from the store for $30.00.  That is simply awesome!  Shop around and find what's best for you.  Just don't get suckered by big claims.  Honestly, it's common sense to think before you purchase.

Ever watch an infomercial?  The kind where an obviously paid actor says something "honest" and "candid" with the viewing audience?

"But I know what I'm talking about.  I visited Gangnam once."

Good for you.  The song is a satire on pompous attitudes and ideals found in Gangnam.  Hence, "Gangnam Style".


In all honesty, I believe that with cheap, no lining, one time wear Halloween costume, and the combination of being an awesome human being, that anyone can pull off the real Gangnam Style.

Wait... What's the real Gangnam Style?  Here's two articles that explain it better than I do.

Gangnam Style Dissected

Gangnam Style Social Commentary

It's about appearances, right?  It's not the clothes that make the man. The man makes the clothes.  Does PSY look like your typical music industry robot?  Then why should you?  Add your own flair.  Make it rock and call it your own!

Besides, do you really want to be suckered into buying a costume for an extra $60.00 on top of the regular price for $2.00 worth in lining?  It's a costume!  Wear it once or wear it until it wears down.  Don't be constricted from enjoying a full on Gangnam Style good time because you're worried about staining a new overpriced jacket.  That's the satirical message that PSY makes in Gangnam Style!

Charging extra and calling it "classy" is honestly a bit much considering it goes with cheap plastic sunglasses.  Nice try though.

So get out there, get dirty.  Get spilled on, get other people's make up on it.  Get it ripped up dancing the night away.

Have a good time and enjoy Halloween!

Gangnam Style Trumps Swag

Remember all those crappy swag pics out there?

Yes. Those are the memes and adverts that annoy me yet make me want to click on links to see if they've been lynched yet.  *Eye twitch!*

So don't associate Gangnam Style with swag.  It feels like Gangnam Style gets sullied being associated with the word.  It's like YOLO.  Just as mindless and annoying.  At least Gangnam Style is just plain silly and cartoon like.  Because that's what PSY is.  He's like a cartoon character.  Have you seen all the awesome cover art he has?  I some of his stage performances, you can even see caricatures of PSY as Superman, a Mermaid, or even a romantic Fabio type.

PSY doesn't take himself seriously.  Gangnam Style doesn't even take itself seriously.

Here's the way I look at it:  Posers use "swag" like it's the new age "je ne sais quoi." but are too lazy to say it.  Some kind of intangible coolness that only they can purchase with their allowance and no one else can.  They also use "YOLO" as an excuse to do stupid things that may get them killed.  "Man, I got so much swag drinking my greygoose and driving really fast.  #YOLO"  I don't think I'm the only one hoping that survival of the fittest kicks in.

Remember: Gangnam Style beats swag everyday.

Gangnam Style Bow Tie

So let's examine the choices of bow ties out there to go with the Gangnam Style Costume.

PSY wears two types of bow ties in his Gangnam Style music video.  

Black Bow Tie

White Bow Tie

Whether the bow tie is black or white, it is obviously a classic bow tie.  One that requires a bow tie knot to wear.

How can I tell?  Well he's obviously wearing it down around his neck in sequences during the video.

Loose black bow tie while screaming at butts!

There's a variety of styles out there for the Gangnam Style costume, but at this point, I'm going to have to go with the class bow tie.

Why wouldn't I choose from other varieties?

Snap on metal clasp bow tie: It falls off and I'm not noticing, my costume is ruined until I find another one

Velcro bow tie: If I undo it and let it hang around my neck, it'll be unbalanced. Again it'll fall off.  Remember: Gravity.

Elastic bow tie: Ever had a bow tie pulled on you really far and then let go of?  Don't remember that as a child?  Then lucky you!  It hurts.  Especially if it's one of those heavy crumpled pieces of fabric, shot at your throat like a sling shot.  Oh, it'll hit it's mark and it... Will... Hurt!

Tuxedo T-Shirt bow tie:  Up to you really.  I prefer a little bit more authenticity.

Overall:  If I want to transition from PSY in the Blue Tuxedo jacket to Screaming-Yet-Relaxed-Look PSY, I'm going to have to go with the classic bow tie and knot.  Then I'll be able to let it hand and get that bit of authenticity I'm looking for.

So that means that I have to...

1) Get my hands on a classic cut bow tie

2) Learn how to tie a bow tie knot

3) Profit!

Learning how to tie a bow tie at first was frustrating.  I expected instant results to go with my outfit to make it complete.  Here's the image I learned it from.

This image drove me nuts.  It was rather annoying because my neck it huuuuuge.  *Incidentally, my cranium is massive.*  The tie I got from the suit store wasn't the right size for me!  Whaaaaaaaaat? I figured that out on the third try as I realized I was going to choke myself if I didn't cease.

So my friend at Loki's Wardobe (Found on Etsy) made me the correct sized tie.  Really?  A size 20? Yikes! I better stop going to Korean BBQ so often.

So I finally got the bow tie knot done proper.  Awesome!  Here's a video below to help you tie a classic bow tie knot.  Learn from my mistakes!

Remember to fit the middle of your bow tie so it's not all messed up when you're done.  It gives it that clean look.

So to everyone, find what's best for you and what you're comfortable with.  As long as you enjoy yourself this Halloween and have fun the Gangnam Style way!

Also, Bow Ties are COOL!

First Pictures of Me in my Costume

Gangnam Style Success

The smash hit from Korean pop artist Psy whose real name is Park Jae-Sang  is taking over The United States. Move over LMFAO, because Gangnam Style’s got both the crazy video AND the contagious dance. Shufflin’ so last year, and “Call Me Maybe” you left at summer camp. This Korean singer and his video has Global Appeal! But why?

Fans love him because Psy is just having fun expressing himself in his videos, on stage, interviews, and even at the US baseball games. He seems like a humble and lovable person that is enjoying his global fame that he never intended to be.

It’s definitely amazing to think that PSY managed to even beat out social media giant Justin Bieber, whose manager, Scooter Braun, just signed PSY onto his Schoolboy Records label, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

After Psy’s first debuting on Sept. 6 at the American MTV Video Music Awards, he made an appearance on the 10th on “Ellen”, a TV variety show, as host Ellen DeGeneres invited him to make a surprise visit to teach the night’s guest Britney Spears his “Gangnam Style” dance, the “horse dance.” Ever since, his popularity in the US has been on the rise.

The music video on YouTube has reached over 200 million hits and it continues to be number one on the iTunes music video chart since the 22nd of August.

Gangnam Style Hipster Scene

If it's not the dance moves or the video people are talking about, it's about when they saw it first.  that's right.  Hipsters everywhere are arguing who was first to be exposed to the awesome rays of Gangnam Style first, but what will that prove?

Gangnam Style: The Reaction

The world has fallen completely in love with Psy and his hit single, Gangnam Style. 

The South Korean rapper who's been in the business for a decade has exploded onto the scene and is making up for some lost time.

This time, the whole world will hear his message, whether they entirely understand it or not.  That's the beauty of Gangnam Style.  Psy is breaking down the language barrier that most musical artists hit.  Something that might be a hit in the U.S. might do well in Canada, but might not translate well into another language, say Russian.

Meanwhile, there's Psy.  He's created such a catchy beat, coupled with outlandish dance moves and colorful imagery, that it translate well across the board.  You don't need to understand the words to know that it's high energy.  You don't have to get the meaning or the subtle satirical overtones in this musical piece.  You just got to bob your head and grin.

Even in the behind the scenes footage of Psy, in making the Gangnam Style video shows him having the time of his life.  He did things because it was fun or plain funny to him.  He was living in the now and it translated well.

The song has made it to No.1 in the US iTunes Top Songs chart, andin 18 other countries including Canada, Argentina, Czech Republic, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Lithuania, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand.