There should be a weight limit for the purchase of leotards.

Every contestant should first see themselves from the rear.

Craig Miller's Corollary: Short is better than long; funny is better than non-funny; short and funny is Best.

Select costumes and characters suited to your personality and/or body type.

No name tags on costumes.

Thy shoes shall match thy costume.

Parts of your costume should not be edible or smell. Parts of your costume should not fall off accidentally, brush off against other contestants, or be left lying around on the stage.

Kathleen Sky's Corollary: Multiply any discomfort you have wearing the costume by the number of hours you are going to be in it.

Consider carefully showing a lot of flesh. What looks good in the bedroom or bath may not be spectacular on stage.

Numbers alone do not make a coherent group.

Bjo Trimble's Corollary: A group is only as good as its weakest costume.

No fire, explosives, loud noises or weapons.

Marjii Ellers' Corollary: Effect is everything.

Carry a repair kit with appropriate tools and materials.

Whether prince or pauper act like it. Stay in character.

The quantity of labor has nothing to do with art.

If you are going to try a costume cliche, you must either do it better than ever before, or have a good variation, preferably comic.

Hand in a legible entry sheet, even to the point of writing out phonetically any difficult or unusual words. Do not assume either the narrator, the judges or the audience know all these words.

Do not commit the one unforgivable sin: Do Not Be Boring.

Give the judges sufficient time to examine your costume from all angles, giving special time to any particularly interesting aspect or design or construction.

Rehearse! REHEARSE! REHEARSE!

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