Costume How-To

                As we all know, life away at college can be pretty expensive. All those nights ordering takeout, shopping online, textbooks… it adds up fast. And if you love Halloween half as much as I do, you don’t want to have to settle for a lame costume just because you’re bank account is running a little low. Marissa and I are horribly broke at the moment, so we had to find away to make incredible costumes without breaking the bank.

We decided to be zombies. Who doesn’t love flesh-eating undead beasts? (Plus, The Walking Dead is blowing up, fast.) Instead of paying $50 and up for a cheap costume, we decided to save some money and make them ourselves.

We each got two white tank tops (in case we messed up) for about $4 each. Then we went to Modell’s and bought black Sofee’s ($8 each). Finally, we went to the Halloween store and got fishnet tights ($4) and a can of spray-on blood ($6).

High on excitement, we rushed back to our dorm room and got right to work. We put a couple rips in our shirts (okay, a lot of rips) and splattered them with fake blood. The result? Two costumes that were better than anything we could find online, for about $20 each.

We opted to be attractive zombies, with smoky eyes and pale lipstick. Since we already have these supplies, it didn’t cost us a thing. But you can buy zombie makeup kits at the Halloween store for a low price.

Guys, you can do this too! Probably with items you already have. Grab some Hanes tees (Walmart, about $7 for a pack of three) and an old pair of jeans. Rip ‘em up and splatter them with blood.

Sure, it requires a little more work than just clicking the “place order” button online. But we are going to have the most original costumes on campus! We had a great time doing it, too. We put on The Nightmare Before Christmas (one of our favorites) and spent the evening snipping and chatting.

There are tons of costumes you can make yourself. You can even use clothes you already own!

·         Grecian/Roman. All you need is a bed sheet, a belt, and some safety pins. Can you say “toga?”

·         Lax Bro. Grab a pinny, some baggy shorts (Soffee’s for girls) and some eye black. Instant jock.

·         A friend! Girls, pick your best guy friend and dress up like him for the night. Borrow his favorite hat and t-shirt. Guys, have a girl friend on a sports team? Last year my friend Jeff went as a cheerleader. It was hilarious.

·         Ke$ha. All you need is some ripped fishnets and a ridiculous amount of glitter.

What have you done to cut down on costume costs? What’s the most creative thing you’ve ever been for Halloween?

I hope you all have a fun (and safe!) Halloween. Trick or treat!