Smiffy’s

Unless you can count the time until your fancy dress party in minutes, I’d advise not going to Smiffy’s. You’d be better off blacking up. At least that takes a bit of effort.
Funny glasses, fake teeth, itchy wigs and costumes so loud they’ll give you tinnitus, a vast swathe of what Smiffy’s sells is just tat. I suppose you could show up at a party with all this rubbish stuck to your face but people would see right through the guise into the very heart of laziness lying beneath. Even the man with a post-​it note stuck to his forehead and the word ‘Dracula’ scrawled across it in biro would look you up and down, shake his head and ask why you didn’t bother making an effort.
If you want quality, try Lili Bizarre. If you want cheapness, ask your mum. It’ll be like the night before the school play all over again! Yay! She’ll love that!

The one stop shops for the less imaginitive fancy dress goer, Smiffy’s will provide all the basics for creating a pre-​packeaged look for that important hen night or lads’ tour.
However when feeling particularly creative you can cerayinly find all the essentials in order to enhance your idea — either that or fall back on the selection of wigs, ill-​fitting nurses outfits and face paint that are all stocked within Smiffy’s on Bold St — why not? looking around town on Saturday nigh most other peopledo!

Marilyn Monroe or Lara Croft?
Naughty Nurse or Rodeo Girl?
Bananarama or Madonna?
Yep, Smiffy’s is another store dedicated to the art of dressing up. As their crazy window displays suggest, they sell everything from animal and classic TV and cartoon costumes to well known celebrities. There’s predictable Blues Brothers and Freddie Mercury costumes alongside George Bush, Ronald Reagan and Fred Flintstone. Hell, you can even dress up as an iPod these days!
My favourite outfits however, have got to be the Michael Jackson ones. Providing you have the King of Pop’s slim physique, you can choose between Thriller, Bad, Beat It, Billie Jean and Smooth Criminal. Just don’t expect to walk out of the store with his dance moves, right?

If your require a costume from Smiffy’s for Halloween which is the prime time for these kind of establishments then get in early otherwise you will que the length of Bold street for hours. The demand for a Smiffy’s costume is extremely high and understandably so, the costumes are of a great quality, equal too if not better than its close rival Lili Bizarre. Just as is the case with Lili Bizarre the prices at Smiffy’s are high but here the costumes are not on a loan basis once you pay your cash the cosumes are yours to keep. I believe that the fact the costumes are purchased on a permanent basis makes it better value than its’ competitors as you have a permanent memento of a great night out and one which you can use again.
There is little to choose between Smiffy’s and Lili Bizarre but if your a student who is keeping an eye on the pennies I would suggest that Smiffy’s is your place as you can re use your special night out outfit.

If it’s Halloween, 4pm and you are outfit-​less for an impending ghostly party forget Smiffy’s; it’s the perfect place to buy accessories and facepaints, wigs and full packaged costumes, but you will be queuing down the street to get in, don’t say I didn’t warn you!
Be prepared, and go early, it’s worth it, they also have a large range of those Venetian masks if you have a Phantom of the Opera-​esque do and a selection of really creepy celebrity rubber masks if you want to freak people out!
Fab for short notice hen party goodies and jokey bits and pieces, if you have a Fancy Dress dilemma then Smiffy’s is your man.

I’m sure each and every one of you have either been invited or attended a fancy dress party at some point in your lives. There are times when all of us get a bit bored of recycling the same old witch costume that you have worn every halloween since you were 10 years old and went trick or treating.
If you’re like me, you might attempt to «design» and make your own fancy dress costume, usually some cheap and cheerful idea. More often than not, people end up asking «who have you come as?». In my opinion, if they have to ask, you haven’t done a good enough job!
That’s where Smiffy’s comes in, if you can’t be bothered making your own because it’s got to the day before the dreaded party, or you’re just rubbish at making things (a bit like me), Smiffy’s have a huge range of costumes and ideas to help out.

When you walk down Bold Street, it is often hard not to notice the red shop that is Smiffy’s. It certainly does stand out and thats what it needs to do for all those planning a fun night out.
In the display window, there is usually the ‘pick of their bunch’ costumes that tend to be humerous and eccentric which is what most fancy dresses are supposed to be like! Inside the store, they have further seductive and contoversial costumes, other odd items and joke products.
Smiffy’s is a popular place with students as one would expect and I can remember a big queue on Halloween day last year. This would be the primary source to lend that ideal costume but be prepared to pay an often pricey cost.

I am a bit of a connoisseur of fancy dress, but tend to steer away from fancy dress shops, preferring to make my costumes myself. Obviously, not everyone can be bothered to do the same, and dressing up is one of those British traditions that seems particularly prevalent in Liverpool — on any given weekend you can find girls in tutus and guys in capes. Most of the time it’s either university– or stag/​hen do-​related, although some girls honestly think going out in a tutu or corset is fashionable…
Smiffy’s is ideal for last minute dressing up needs, or, in my case, if doing a stage show and you realise the costume department is somewhat lacking. However, I find it quite pricey for the mass-​produced stuff it offers. Ok, the prices vary, and maybe I’m fussy because I’m more of a DIY person, but still. Especially specialist stuff, like Snazaroo makeup, but then I guess you pay special prices for special stuff.
I don’t mean to be negative, because this really is a good shop and they have a huge variety of products. A definite life saver if in dire need of fancy dress.

Joke and costume shop that has really funny range of wigs for the head, chest and elsewhere! Fantastic for Halloween. Always really busy. Full of outfits for dressing up, sparklers and things to make a party go with a bang.