11201 Roosevelt Way NE
Seattle, WA 98125
206.362.4810
http://www.displaycostume.com
Date of visit:  February 10, 2014 and many others

All of us have a place in the city that is more than just a place, a place that may express something important about our deepest selves, a place that can pull us out of the darkest despair and back into the light.  Display & Costume is that place for me.  It was the first place I visited after getting my wheelchair.  Rolling in the doors after almost a year away, I was starving for the sight of fuchsia feather boas, hungry for a glimpse of gold glitter in a dizzying array of glitter-piece sizes, yearning for the 64-crayon box of matching paper plate and napkin colors, desperate to try on mullet wigs in blonde AND brunette, and, of course, needing to pay the appropriate homage to all things tiara.

Display & Costume has all that and more.  Need a banner for your college graduate?  You can design one at Display & Costume.  Need any kind of a costume, including a pair of red and black sequined boots with seven inch heels in men’s sizes?  Come to Display & Costume.   Need pink flamingo stickers or the pink flamingos themselves?  Yup, Display & Costume.  It is a little universe of glitz and glitter, staffed by sweet souls, and all easily accessible by wheelchair.

Parking:  There is nice-sized parking lot adjacent to the building, with wheelchair spaces right up front next to a ramp that takes you to the front door.

Entrances:  There are a few steps to the door, but a ramp for those of us who need it.  The ramp is an easy incline.  Double doors lead you into the store.  There’s no automatic opener,  but both doors push open easily, and you can prop them open if needed.  Staff in the store will come to help if they see you coming in.  The threshold into the store is raised a bit.  The height of the threshold wasn’t a serious problem for my beloved regular and substitute pushers, but for a lighter-weight pusher, the threshold has proven a little difficult.  I’m not sure how it would work for someone in a heavy electric wheelchair.

Aisles:   Aisles are spacious.  You won’t have to move displays to proceed to the holiday du jour decorations or to the life-size cardboard stand-ups of Michelle Obama and all the fellows in The Fellowship of the Ring.  

Restrooms:  The unisex bathroom is at the front of the store, on your right as you enter.  It is spacious and includes grab bars around the toilet.  I could wheel in there with 27 of my friends.

Photos of interior space online:  Yes, on Yelp

Photos of entrances online:  Yes, on Yelp

Reservations taken:  None needed!

What the wheelchair pushers have to say:   Regular pusher:  Perfect access.  Wide aisles.  Everything’s flat.  Easy to get in and out of, with a nice ramp and good parking.  Wish they were all like this!  Regular Substitute Pusher:  Thresholds on door frames are annoying, but in general the store was wide enough for easy pushing, although it is definitely not wide enough for two chairs to pass each other in side aisles.

Overall:   Five wheels for excellent access!