Inside a weird and wonderful costume geek's paradise

LONDON -- Sure, you could stick on sexy cat ears or a white sheet with eye holes and call it a day.

Or you could hire a magnificent period costume made by the finest designers in the theatre world.

Britain's National Theatre is one of the world's premiere theatre companies -- known for its period dramas, Shakespeare productions and contemporary plays. As such, they go through a lot of costumes -- which go on to live second lives in a rather magnificent warehouse space in south London.

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Astoundingly, they're all available for anyone to hire for a week.

A spooky display greets visitors.Credit: liza hearon/mashable

Holly Hobbs, deputy manager of the costume hire department, gave Mashablea closer look at the endless rails of wonderfully made costumes.

"The costumes are custom-made for the actors and they can go back 20 to 30 years," she said.

Every costume has sewn inside it the number of the production and the name of the actor who wore it.

"So there's the occasional B. Cumberbatch," Hobbs said.

A jacket from "Wind and the Willows."Credit: liza hearon/mashableThe inside of a skirt.Credit: liza hearon/mashable

No such Cumberbatch luck on this visit. But it's easy to lose track of time in this magical place, imagining what it would be like if you were just more creative.

For Halloween, people often already have their makeup in mind, and they want to be some sort of zombie. That means the period costumes are hot items.

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Other popular trends are 18th century, voodoo and Day of the Dead. "Classic gothic looks are always popular, " Hobbs said.

Voodoo: Hot in 2016.Credit: Liza Hearon/mashable

Sadly the theatre isn't well kitted out for one big trend this year -- astronauts.

"We get lots of requests for astronauts," Hobbs said. Space fans, time to submit your scripts to the National Theatre!

At the warehouse, the racks are organised decade by decade, starting with Medieval -- perfect for your Game of Thronesreenactment club. They go through the 1990s ('90s prom, anyone?) and various other categories.

But our favourite "category" was the area for the costumes that just didn't belong anywhere else.

You'll certainly turn heads (and take up space) with these Tweedledum and Tweedledee costumes.Credit: liza hearon/mashableWhen it's cool to be square.Credit: liza hearon/mashableSadly, this guy was hired out already.Credit: liza hearon/mashable

To hire these costumes, just get in touch with the National Theatre's costume department and set up an appointment. You can either browse on your own and select a costume, or for an extra fee one of their experts can help you.

The hire prices are determined by item. A full outfit will cost about £80-£100 ($98-$123), plus VAT. You can also hire individual pieces, or just headgear. The minimum spend is £15.

As the costumes are custom-made for the actor, there's not much choice when it comes to size, unfortunately. For men the costumes can go up to about a 42/44 chest and for women about a size 12-14.

"Fake blood is our nemesis!"

There are fees if you do irreversible damage to the costume, but for superficial stuff, the wizards in the costume shop can probably fix it for a reasonable fee. Just be careful with the fake blood.

"Fake blood doesn't come out, no matter what the package says!" Hobbs said.

"Fake blood is our nemesis!"

Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?Credit: liza hearon/mashableBetter than a Snapchat filter.Credit: liza hearon/mashablePerhaps a Rorschach test of sorts.Credit: liza hearon/mashableWerk werk werk werk werk.Credit: liza hearon/mashable

The Costume Shop generally needs about a week to organise the hire and prepare the costume for you. So if you want to smash it at the Halloween party this year, get your order in by Oct. 24.

For inspiration we leave you with some more photos of this amazing place.

Gotta have those period-accurate foundation garments.Credit: Liza Hearon/MashableThink beyond the cat.Credit: liza hearon/mashableHope you weren't planning on fitting through any doorways.Credit: Liza Hearon/MashableLet's just face the facts -- these are seriously spooky.Credit: liza hearon/mashableBe the best Left Shark at the party....Credit: liza hearon/mashable... or whatever this is.Credit: liza hearon/mashableBoo!Credit: liza hearon/mashableGive 'em a ring! If you dare...Credit: liza hearon/mashable

BONUS: D.I.Y. Stormtrooper costume

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