Halloween costumes that won't reveal all, or leave you cold

Twirling around in front of the mirror in one of the sexy pirate costumes plucked from the rack at Red Light in Seattle's University District, Chelsea Backus isn't so sure. This one might be a little too short.

"Oh wow, it makes my butt hang out!"

It's the dressing room cry heard 'round Seattle as women shop a sea of sexy Halloween costumes.

No matter how many times you watch "The Wizard of Oz," you'll never see Dorothy walking the yellow-brick road in a low-cut, lace-up bustier top with a 6-inch skirt. But thumb through the racks of women's Halloween costumes at shops around the city, and this is the kind of look you're likely to find: a sexed-up version of an otherwise innocent character. Vixen pirate, sexy cop or naughty nurse, complete with rip-away pleather dress and medical equipment strapped into a garter belt.

Halloween is all about embracing your inner whatever and becoming something or someone else for a day. For some women, it's a chance to be scandalous and sexy. But if your alter ego is less streetwalker and more "Pretty Woman" post-Richard Gere, don't worry. There are plenty of costumes for you out there — just harness your creativity and be prepared to search.

"I probably will be one of the only girls at my party without a slutty costume," University of Washington senior Nicole Diedrich said. This year she's going as Cinderella. With a full-length skirt.

She wanted to "change it up" a little bit and dress differently from last year's costume: a short-skirted Queen of Hearts.

It wasn't easy to find a classy costume, Diedrich said. After scouring shops and looking online, she found her perfect costume on eBay. The Cinderella ensemble cost her $165, but it was worth it. It's her senior year, and she wanted to go all out.

Diedrich said she's the minority in her age group.

Many teenage girls and young women come in looking for costumes that show as much skin as possible, said Lori Hillard, costume-department manager at Party @ Display & Costume in the Northgate area.

At Red Light's U-District store, where they sell a lot of sexy costumes, retail sales quadruple in October, said manager Jeremy Baird. Sometimes sororities set a theme, and they'll buy out an entire rack of one costume, Baird said. While both stores agree that sexy costumes sell, not everyone wants to look like a tart on Halloween — and if you don't, there are plenty of choices.

"There's definitely a variety or flavor — it's not just sexy," said Bill Case, Party @ Display & Costume store manager.

Case said many people come to his store to make their own costumes. He's heard almost every idea (one of the most unusual and ambitious: a one-person washer/dryer). Party @ Display & Costume sells materials, from foam board to fake blood. In the stage-makeup aisle, they supply instructional sheets on how to make your face look like it's been badly scarred.

"It's amazing to see the things that people pull together," said Hillard.

Alana Sasaki can't decide whether she'll be one of the women from "Charlie's Angels" or Chrissy from "Three's Company." The blonde Farrah Fawcett wig she found at Party @ Display & Costume will work for either character. Her next stop is a vintage store to find clothes.

At Red Light, they sell a cache of vintage wear. You can find a polyester suit that John Travolta would envy, pieces for a "Flashdance" outfit or something reminiscent of Jackie O.

Browsing through the costumes at Red Light on a recent afternoon, UW juniors Faith Dascenzo and Jessica Cropley offered a practical reason for not wearing a skimpy outfit on Halloween:

It's usually cold, and a tiny costume won't do anything to protect you from the elements.