Small reminders that Spirit Halloween occupies a building that used to be a Linens 'n Things are houseware brand names hanging above advertisements for Halloween costumes Wednesday in Manchester Township. (Daily Record/Sunday News - Kate Penn)
Seasonal Halloween stores' signs and billboards might draw crowds of customers at this time of year, but local year-round costume shops say they can compete.

DreamWrights Youth and Family Theatre in York houses a year-round costume shop full of family-oriented costumes strictly for rent, ranging from biblical, Renaissance and Colonial-era garb to fictional characters like Willie Wonka and Cinderella.

The theatre's costume coordinator, Rebecca Eastman, has a refined eye for detail, theatre executive director Ann Davis said, and can help customers piece together elaborate costumes they might not find in seasonal stores. The theatre's upper level has shelves filled with assorted shoes and ties.

Make Believin' in York Township, open for more than two decades, creates costumes upon request, owner Debbie Reck said, such as Gladys and Tyrone of Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, a 1960s-era variety show.

Make Believin' doesn't sell decorations, Reck said, a staple of seasonal Halloween stores.

"We decorate the person," she said, "not the front porch."

Customers usually go to seasonal Halloween stores for selection and quality, said Shane Louthian, manager of Halloween Adventure, a seasonal store in Springettsbury Township.

Halloween Adventure opened shortly after Labor Day, Louthian said, and plans to close Nov. 3. Customers can get 50 percent off anything in the store on Nov. 1, Louthian said, a discount that many smaller costume shops aren't usually able to offer.

"If

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you want it for next year," Louthian said, "that's the time to get it."

khoran@ydr.com; 771-2029