


Fifth Avenue will be hopping with dogs, not bunnies, this Easter.
Pet couturier and fashion designer Anthony Rubio created $300 costumes, including top hats, for each of his twin chihuahuas, Bogie and Kimba to wear at the Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival.
“Every year, I create a whole new outfit, a new concept for us to wear,” he said. “I want to bring joy and smiles to people and I want to dress the boys up.”
The Big Apple tradition dates back to the 1870s and runs along Fifth Avenue from East 49th to East 57th Street, near St. Patrick’s Cathedral, beginning at 10 am on Easter Sunday.
The Bronx native, who will wear a yellow linen suit and purple tie, said he’s always dressed to impress on Easter since he was a child.
“I always remember my mom taking us out shopping for little suits,” he said. “She would dress us up for Easter Sunday and take us to church and eventually she stumbled upon the parade.”
He’s brought Bogie and Kimba, who he adopted at 4 months old and is now 11, along since 2012.
“I love seeing the babies and the dogs dressed up,” said makeup artist Michelle Coursey. “It’s really fun.”
The Park Slope resident, 43, who has participated in the parade since 2009, is wearing a $75 vintage hat to which she added silk flowers.
“It’s great to see the creativity and the time and the effort that people have put into their creations, which range from the sublime to the ridiculous,” she said.
“I’m always amazed; I’m always enchanted; I always laugh.”
Professional sword swallower and burlesque dancer Gin Minsky will be donning a $600 felt hat, on loan from her friend Gretchen Fenston, a milliner.
It’s ’40s-inspired and made of black and cream houndstooth wool, bordered by a black ribbon.
The Bed-Stuy resident, 38, joins the festivities with a group of friends, who all dress in vintage clothing.
“Back in the day, it used to be everyone went out in their Easter suits and hats from church,” she said. “So we are kind of tipping our hats to that tradition.”