A Halloween outfit without a costume. What works in a club

We've watched a lot of Halloween nights from the side of the booth over the years, and one thing happens every time. At 10 pm the guy in the inflatable dinosaur is the star of the courtyard. At 1 am he's standing at the edge, mask in hand, waiting for his friends to finish. If you go dancing on Halloween rather than to a costume party, you need something else: a Halloween outfit without a costume, one that looks like this night and that you'll want to keep on for six hours.

For Black & Blood, our Halloween night at Roomers Berlin on 31 October, we made that the dress code. Black and red, and above all, effort. We put these looks together with that courtyard in mind, but they work in any club where people actually dance on Halloween.

The black and red Halloween look

Black and red is the easiest colour rule for the night, and the reason has to do with light. Under red light a head-to-toe red outfit loses its punch, black keeps the contrast. So build the silhouette in black and place red deliberately: lips, lids, gloves, the lining of a coat. Fabrics with a sheen take the light back, velvet, satin, patent, leather, lace. Matte cotton simply disappears in a dark courtyard.

Six looks that cost little or nothing:

• Black suit, black shirt buttoned to the top, red leather gloves. Done
• Black satin slip dress with a veil of black tulle, pinned with two hairpins
• Leather trousers or a vinyl skirt, a mesh top, small horns on a headband
• Black roll neck, black trousers, black lips and a single drop of fake blood at the corner of your mouth
• A vintage dress in burgundy with a black eye mask
• A long black coat or a cape over whatever you already love wearing

If you have the time, build something of your own. The Black & Blood dress code has a line we'd sign for any Halloween party: a strong look in another colour beats a lazy one in the right one. The cover photo is from our Season Opening at The Squaire in March. The dress code there was already elegant in red and black, and you can see how good it looks when everyone plays along.

What survives six hours on the dance floor

At Black & Blood the party in the courtyard runs until 3 am. So what makes a look work is less the detail and more whether it still holds at half two.

• Shoes you've already broken in. Block-heel boots beat any brand-new stiletto
• Latex looks incredible and turns into a sauna after an hour. Latex gloves or a latex skirt give you the effect
• Pin horns, crowns and veils with hairpins and hairspray instead of just perching them on your head
• Test fake blood on a hidden bit of fabric first, some kinds never wash out. Apply it once you're fully dressed
• A small bag that stays on you. The cloakroom is packed on Halloween, and the queue for it costs you half a set

A big part of the night happens in the courtyard, at the end of October, in Berlin. A coat or a cape that belongs to the look is smarter than a jacket hanging in the cloakroom while you freeze outside.

Red eyes without contact lenses

Red and white novelty lenses are as much a part of Halloween as fake blood for many people, and eye care professionals warn about them every year. The British Contact Lens Association calls coloured lenses a medical device that should be fitted by a professional and warns explicitly against sharing them with friends. Germany's opticians' association says the same, adding that heavy colour layers let less oxygen reach the eye.

The easier way to red eyes is your lids. Red eyeshadow up to the lash line, black kohl on the waterline, and in photos it reads stronger than any lens. This is not medical advice. If you still want lenses, have them fitted by an optician or an eye doctor.

What to wear to a Halloween party in Berlin

Berlin has everything on Halloween weekend, from the three-floor costume party to the techno club with a strict door. Our picks are in the Berlin Halloween guide. For club nights, a dark look from your own wardrobe will almost always get you further than a costume.

At Black & Blood, Red Tree takes over the ground floor of Roomers on Steinplatz on 31 October, with the Red Tree standing in the middle of the courtyard. At midnight it turns blood red, our special for this night. Keep your make-up intact until then, because that's when everyone wants the photo. Everything about the night is on the event page.

Where the tree goes next, the Red Tree Family hears first.

Questions and answers