The Mummers Parade is the longest-running continuous folk parade in the United States. It originated in 1901 and is held each New Year’s Day in Philadelphia. ETERESHOP has been active in this parade as a creator of unique costumes since 2016.
It was in early 2017 that we first saw our outfits at this event. We made a number of standard and custom mirror man costumes (“Wizards” with long beards and fantasy-style caps), but we had no idea where these costumes would end up. This was a complete surprise to us. Over the years, we have made more than 100 costumes for the various bands that participate in this event.
Here is the list of costumes the ETERESHOP team was created for Mummers Parade in Philadelphia over the years:
- 2016: 16 silver mirror men costumes (“Wizards” and standard costumes with hats)
- 2017: 40 custom LED suits (marine theme) and 6 non-LED peacock tails with custom print patterns
- 2018: 5 LED suits on black EVA foam and LED mesh on the client’s raincoat
- 2019: 8 LED cage “Alien” vests
- 2021: 7 Beetlejuice mirror costumes
- 2023: 10 gold mirror Christmas tree baubles
- 2024: 10 mirror pirate costumes & 10 broken bottles mirror costumes
All in all 114 custom costumes + 1 client’s costume modification as of now (the beginning of 2025).
2016
In 2016, ETERESHOP received two major custom orders for the Mummers Parade: 8 Mirror Man costumes for South Philly Vikings and another 8 for Fralinger String Band. We modernized our production technology, attaching mirrored tiles to breathable fabric with removable, washable linings for added convenience. The South Philly Vikings used our suits in their award-winning “It’s All In Your Mime” performance. They took 1st place in 2017, showing us how well the costumes could handle dancing. Fralinger String Band tailored the suits for their “Spellbinding” performance, adding mirrored beards and mouth cutouts for their trumpeters. These collaborations marked the beginning of our work with the Mummers Parade teams and showcased the versatility of our designs.
“Its All In Your Mime” performance by South Philly Vikings in 2017
You can watch the performance HERE.
“Spellbinding” Performance by Fralinger String Band in 2017
You can watch the performance HERE.
2017
In 2017, ETERESHOP received a large custom order from the South Philly Vikings for 40 LED suits and 6 peacock tails for their performance at the Mummers Parade. Following the client’s sketches and nautical theme, we created costumes in specific color schemes featuring coral patterns, LED fans, and skirts. Despite limited experience with festival costumes at the time, we successfully produced the order, including the peacock tails, which later became one of our signature designs. The intricate process required significant time and effort as our workshop was smaller then, but the results exceeded expectations. The South Philly Vikings’ 2018 performance, “King Neptune’s Return to the Reef,” earned 2nd place, showcasing the impact of our designs. This order marked a milestone in our growth and collaboration with the Mummers Parade teams.
“King Neptune’s Return To The Reef” Performance by South Philly Vikings Fancy Brigade in the Mummers Parade 2018
You can watch the performance HERE.
2018
In 2018, ETERESHOP collaborated once again with the South Philly Vikings on a custom order for 5 LED suits and a unique LED raincoat for their performance at the 2019 Mummers Parade. Using EVA foam reinforced with regilin, we integrated pre-programmed LED strips into the suits, allowing synchronized light effects during the performance. For the captain’s raincoat, we designed and soldered an LED mesh capable of displaying effects and text, adding a striking visual element. The project, themed “The Galactic Circus: Coming To A Planet Near You,” showcased innovative use of materials and technology, highlighting our ability to bring creative concepts to life.
“The Galactic Circus: Coming To A Planet Near You” Performance by South Philly Vikings in the Mummers Parade 2019
You can watch the performance HERE.
2019
In 2019, the Fralinger String Band approached ETERESHOP after being inspired by our designs at the Avantgardista exhibition. They commissioned eight custom LED vests for their “Lunar Effect” performance at the 2020 Mummers Parade. The vests, crafted from LED strips secured with regilin, featured large central LEDs for added impact. The order showcased our ability to adapt designs to clients’ visions and marked another successful collaboration with the Mummers Parade teams.
‘Lunar Effect’ Performance by Fralinger String Band in the Mummers Parade 2020
You can watch the performance HERE.
2021
In 2021, ETERESHOP collaborated with the South Philly Vikings to create 7 custom Beetlejuice-inspired mirror costumes for their “It’s Showtime!” performance at the 2022 Mummers Parade. Following an approved sketch and budget, we crafted striking designs featuring intricate mirror work to align with the performance’s theatrical theme. The South Philly Vikings took 1st place that year, showcasing the impact of our costumes and strengthening our ongoing partnership with the team.
The costumes were decorated with lots of feathers and had an exaggerated silhouette with huge shoulders and flared pants with fringes. Performers’ personalities were to be completely disguised under mirror balaclava masks, just like it’s common for Mirror Parade participants. They just needed to add Beetlejuice’s acid green wigs to complete the look.
“It’s Showtime!” Performance by South Philly Vikings in the Mummers Parade 2022
You can watch the performance HERE.
2023
In 2023, ETERESHOP created twelve custom gold mirror costumes for the South Philadelphia String Band’s “Christmas Bizarre” performance at the 2024 Mummers Parade. Inspired by Christmas tree decorations, these dazzling costumes featured reflective golden tiles, spherical ornaments resembling baubles, and intricate detailing to capture the festive theme. The standout designs helped the band secure 1st place at the parade. These costumes combined elegance with whimsy, cementing their success in the Mummers tradition.
“Christmas Bizarre” Performance by South Philadelphia String Band the Mummers Parade 2024
2024
This year (2025) was the 124th Mummers Parade in Center City Philadelphia. Two bands ordered 20 custom mirror costumes from ETERESHOP last year to perform on the 1st of January. The South Philadelphia String Band tied for 1st place with ‘Castlevania’ theme, while the Fralinger String Band secured 3rd place with ‘Junkyard Jam’ theme.
Costumes of Mirror Pirates for the South Philadelphia String Band
The order and start of the work
Colorful mirror costumes of pirates were to become part of the performance with the theme called “Castlevania” for the South Philadelphia String Band.
The original design has been worked out by Sean Graser on his sketch we got as a starting point for the costume. Later we generated designs with AI to choose the final variant. We’ve discussed several versions of design, including the darker and the brighter one with lots of alterations based on peculiarities of materials and the overall idea of the look. Moreover, we needed to take into account the use of costumes: not just posing or parading, but active movement and playing musical instruments during the show.
Each costume included a frock coat of a complex cut decorated with hundreds of mirror tiles and it also included a cloak. Those costumes were really colourful (7 colors of mirror tiles!) It was the first time we used so many colours in one costume at once) and just like all mirror costumes, were to produce a disco ball effect in natural lighting. To maintain its shape, the frock coat had an additional layer of regilin, reinforced with metal inserts.
The costume had to be voluminous and hold its shape, like the costumes of anime or computer game characters, with exaggeratedly massive shoulders, sharp angles on the frock coat, tails, boots and hat.
Alterations in the design and construction
Although we decorated the costume with plumes, clients decided to perform without them. Other alterations concerned mouth holes and gloves. Since our clients are real performers, they perform tests before performing and may suggest some changes in our costumes for more convenient usage.
Costumes with Broken Bottles for the Fralinger String Band
The order and start of the work
10 costumes of broken bottles decorated with silver and green mirror tiles were designed for the Fralinger String Band for their performance with the theme “Junkyard Jam”.
Just like with other costumes for the Mummers Parade, the design of costumes with Broken Champagne Bottles was based on a clients’ sketch. Then we rendered it in Clo3D to visualize the details and see how it would fit. This helped us make some corrections in the design and choose the materials and techniques necessary for production of the mirror outfit.
Challenges and alterations
One of the main difficulties was to create broken bottles for the costume. They needed to look like real bottles, but to be lightweight as they were the main decoration of the costume. Eight of them were placed on the hat, looking like a giant bottle cap. After tests and lots of calculation, it has been decided to make bottles out of EVA foam and decorate it with mirror tiles with broken mirror effect. This material is lightweight and we have lots of experience in creating different forms with it.
At first we tried to partially cover the face of a performer with a glittery cloth according to the original sketch. But after tests it has been decided to remove it and keep just a mirror mask as it would be difficult to move with limited vision. Clients added protective knee pads, green bags and green & silver shoes for the show.
Apart from production challenges, the costume was rather complicated in its construction. So it needed to be collapsible to transport it. The Broken Bottles costume consisted of many parts: tights, feathers, leg and arm pads, a cape with long sleeves, voluminous shoulder pads, a balaclava, a mirror mask and a large mirror hat in the shape of a bottle cap with bottles on top.
Conclusion
We are looking forward to upcoming collaboration with the Mummers Parade in future as well as with other festivals and venues. Every time it’s a wonderful journey and a great test for creativity and skills of the team.
