TeenHelp - Easy and inexpensive Halloween costumes

Easy and inexpensive Halloween costumes
By Cassie (cynefin)

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While Halloween is a fun (and spooky!) holiday, it can sometimes be difficult or expensive to find or create a fun costume for yourself or the children in your life. This article will suggest a few inexpensive costumes and discuss where to find the different materials you may need.

Where to purchase materials

One place you can find materials is at a dollar store. In recent years, dollar stores have really expanded their merchandise. You can find crafty items that might be useful in a costume such as beads, paints, popsicle sticks, pom-poms, felt, and more. If you shop at the dollar store when they have Halloween merchandise you can also find pieces that can be perfect for a costume like a wand, butterfly wings, or hats. Many also have three piece sets for various costumes, such as a black cat, unicorn, or devil.

Another place you can find materials is at a thrift store. Thrift stores often have fabrics (or old clothes that can be re-purposed), shoes, and other accessories. Shopping at a thrift store can be beneficial because you can freely alter different clothes or shoes without having to worry about using them again or paying a higher price.

Lastly, you can look at a fabric store. Fabric stores or big box stores with a fabric selection (e.g. Walmart in the United States) often have a discounted section for pieces that are out of season or are at the end of their roll.

You may also need

Other items that you may need include scissors, tape, fabric glue, hot glue, hand sewing items, or a sewing machine.

Halloween costumes

A black cat: Get an outfit that is composed of all black items. You can be flexible with what you choose. You could choose a black dress, black pants, a skirt, or leggings. Purchase a cat headband or make a cat ear headband on your own by gluing some black felt onto a headband. Optional: Purchase a tail or cat finger-less gloves for your hands. You can also use black makeup to create a nose and whiskers.

A crazy cat lady: You'll need an oversized, fluffy robe and some slippers. You will also need several stuffed cats (the more the merrier!). If you do not have these items, go to a thrift store and see what you can find. There will most likely be some stuffed cats in the toy section. Put a few in your pockets, hold a few in your hands, and hand sew a few onto your robe. Mess up your hair to make it look like you just got out of bed and you're good to go!

A witch: A witch is a classic Halloween costume. When choosing an outfit, choose something that feels right for you. Flashy colors such as pink, purple, or especially green can do. Keep an eye out for pointy shoes and purchase a cauldron - many stores have plastic cauldrons to hold candy. Consider bringing a broom or create your own. To do this, get a decent sized stick and then find a few dozen smaller ones. Use twine to tie the smaller sticks to the base of the larger one to give you an authentic looking broom. You can use face paint or other makeup on your face as well.

A thief: Wear a pair of black pants and a black and white striped shirt. You can also wear black gloves, a black knit hat, and an eye mask. If you don't have an eye mask, try a ski mask or create your own out of a wide fabric headband. You can also use makeup or face paint for a thief's mask. Lastly, find a light colored knit tote bag and use paint or a permanent marker to put the "$" on it.

A bat: Bats are spooky yet fun creatures. Wear an outfit that is all black and find or create a headband similar to the headband used for a black cat. To create the wings, use felt or an inexpensive black umbrella. Open the umbrella completely, then carefully cut it so it looks like a set of wings. Also cut off the umbrella's handle - you won't be needing that anymore. Alternatively, try crafting the wings out of some black trash bags as this may be easier than breaking down an umbrella.

A pumpkin: Wear an orange outfit. Orange pants or leggings may be difficult to find, so you can dye some thrift store pants or use a pair of black or green pants as an alternative. If your hair is long, put it up in a bun and tie some green ribbon or twine around the bun to resemble the tip of the pumpkin. You can also use makeup to paint your face orange or do a jack-o-lantern's face.

A scarecrow, farmer, or cowboy: Choose an outfit that includes a plaid shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and boots. If you want to be a cowboy, find a hat. Use makeup to create a scarecrow's face or get a stuffed barn animal for a farmer.

An angel: Wear an outfit that includes white items. Fashion a halo out of a pipe cleaner and headband. Consider purchasing wings or making them out of a white umbrella or some felt.

A devil: Wear a red outfit and purchase or create the devil horns out of a headband and some red felt. To make a pitchfork, use a balloon stick or an outdoor stick and wrap it with red ribbon. You can also spray paint it red. Next, draw the top of the pitchfork in some cardboard or posterboard, cut it out, decorate it, and attach it to the stick.

A mummy: Choose a white outfit or a dress that you will not need to use again. Select different white fabrics (such as lace, sheer, sparkly, etc) and cut them into strips. Partially sew them onto your outfit so that they hang down when you move. You can also wrap the fabric (or toilet paper) around your face so long as you can see.

A ghost: Wear a black outfit and find a large white sheet or other piece of fabric that you can cut into. Cut eyes into the fabric and put it over your head but make sure you can see out of the eye holes. Your black outfit should show through the sheet.