Figuring out a Halloween costume

It's the worst part of this season

October isn’t the cruelest month, but it has a few challenges. One of the biggies is coming up with a good Halloween costume. There are three approaches:

One, going with the tried-and-true, like wearing a witch’s hat (readily available at just about any mass-market retailer) with a black dress. Done! This is what I usually do. Zero originality, but so efficient!

The second is something topical, which can be tough to pull off but also incredibly fun when it works. When I was very pregnant, I dressed as a pregnant Courtney Love (black dress, ripped tights, work boots, aquarium tubing tied around my arm).

The third is to go with an idea floating around the Internet or that you have seen done somewhere else, putting your own spin on it. This is the synthesis between “not really trying” and “nailing it!”

If you’ve got a party to attend this year and are at a loss for a costume, and if you’re too cool to just put on a witch’s hat and be done with it, here are three places to look for ideas:

Adrienne Gunn, who writes theWHERE THE F*CK'S MY HAPPY ENDING?!Substack, is a big Halloween fan, and she has put some of her costume ideas in her newsletter.

Another newsletter, Sustainable Baddie🌸,has a list of 10 DIY costume ideas, designed to be sustainable.

If you want to assemble a costume with things you have around the house, check out the 101 Cheap Costumes list.

Still stuck? Wait until November 1 and go to Spirit or Target and buy a half-price witch hat for next year. Or just use your costume budget to buy full-size candy bars, making you the hit of the neighborhood even if you’re just wearing ordinary clothes.

Got any other costume resources?

🍫🍭🍬Remember: at a certain age, you win Halloween by handing out good treats, not by having a good costume. 🍫🍭🍬