Halloween costumes involve three main things: Originality, creativity and, of course, fun.

Whether you are buying your costume as a whole, or piecing it together bit by bit, standing out in a crowd and having that wow-factor is exactly what Halloween calls for. Here are some categories and ideas to get you in the spooky Halloween spirit – and get your creative juices flowing.

Like any other Halloween costume, there is usually a theme which people like to stick to especially when dressed in large groups. Ideally, the theme should be loud and clear and easily recognizable; for example, ‘70s disco or a sports team. Think outside the box and try something new and creative. An eco-friendly superhero perhaps?

Pop Culture

Always a hit when it comes to Halloween, pop culture screams ideas galore for your upcoming Halloween event. Through television, movies, music, magazines and the media in general, the pop-culture industry can concoct quite the ensemble. What’s great about pop culture is that most people are in the know about current events happening and can easily identify your costume. Since these events or people are currently in the media, it makes it more exciting when you are recognized as your character. The pop-culture genre has limitless ideas that you can take in your own direction and, like anything, put your own unique spin on it.

Suggestions: Lady Gaga, Kate Gosselin, characters from the Twilight series, Jabbawockeez dance crew, paparazzi, Michael Jackson ... to name a few.

Classic

Although pop culture seems to always be a hit come Halloween time, each year the traditional scary costumes seem less common. Halloween is about having fun with plenty of sweet treats, but what happened to the scary part of it? This year why not pull out that old witch’s hat or vampire cape?

Along with the scary classics are the (hopefully) less frightening classic costumes. The infamous Disney characters always seem to resurface and, when done right, can be just as classic as the stories they belong to. The great thing about traditional Halloween character costumes is that you can usually buy them in one set and then hand them down or reuse them the coming year.

Suggestions: Mummy, Dracula, zombie, witch, monster, devil, queen or king, crayon, pumpkin, genie, pirate

Things to look out for to ensure the best costume possible are:

Quality – Ensuring your costume looks how your character is supposed to is the whole point of dressing up. Nobody wants to walk around in a costume that lacks effort and that no one can identify.

Versatility – It’s great to have pieces you can use for the upcoming year so that you don’t end up being a cheerleader, firefighter or ghost ... again. Also, versatile clothing and accessories mean that you can DIY parts of your old costume into another one.

Cost – Thrift shops are the place to be as you gear up this Halloween because you can create your own look. Rummage through your old clothes and you’ll be surprised at what you may find – there’s nothing better than a creative costume for free!
Creativity – Adding your own unique touch to a costume can work wonders, especially if you see someone else with the same character. Creativity can make or break a costume, as even the simplest costume with a creative spin can make the best costume.

Make a statement or send a message without muttering a word this Halloween!

Published in Volume 64, Number 8 of The Uniter (October 22, 2009)