Every year as Halloween approaches I feel a slight sense of fear. Not because I suspect ghosts and monsters are real, but because I am scared of people’s bland taste in Halloween costumes.
I am haunted by previous experiences, seeing masses of men wearing sports jerseys and hordes of women wearing different colored corsets and animal ears. I remember one year when my Instagram page was filled with pictures of low-effort angel and devil costumes. I still tremble when I recall the sight of lazy costumes.
Costumes are supposed to be an opportunity to express oneself. Seeing the same minimal effort costumes makes me concerned for the personality and passion of the general population.
Thankfully, there are some costumes I see that shake this feeling. Homemade, DIY costumes are nice to see in a herd of corsets. I remember the sense of relief I felt for the world when one of my classmates showed me a picture of a Lolita-styled dress he sewed himself.
Even costumes people simply ship from Amazon can be quite inspiring. This year, a friend of mine bought a costume of Jim Carrey’s character from “The Mask,” and I’m very excited to see him wear it. Sometimes, costumes are fun simply because they mean something to the wearer.
One of my classmates last year dressed as a professional dart player. The costume consisted only of a visor, a themed shirt, and a fanny pack, but it was personal to her since one of her family members was a professional dart player.
Costumes like these are beautiful examples of how to use Halloween to be creative, show off our skills, display our sense of humor, enjoy our favorite characters, and celebrate parts of ourselves.
Even the simple, classical costumes have their merit. For example, the sheet ghost costume is almost as old as Halloween itself, yet it remains a beloved choice. The pure homage to classic Halloween imagery, such as its appearance in “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” or the title sequence of the original “Scooby-Doo,” gives the onlooker a feeling of nostalgic pleasure, yet the get-up takes only a few minutes and minimal supplies to make. Finding a fun costume does not need to be strenuous work.
It’s not the character or time spent on a costume I take issue with — it’s the way the costume is executed often offends me.
Take the “sexy witch” costume, for example. Witches are consistently one of the most popular costumes every year. In addition, the sexy phenomenon in feminine adult costumes tends to dumb down outfits to lingerie, accompanied by accessories. To dress as a sexy witch, you can simply put on a short skirt, a black corset, and a cheap pointy hat.
This costume likely required no thought, no passion, and was picked simply because the wearer previously saw other people wearing it and wanted to fit in. Now imagine if they wore the same articles of clothing, a short skirt, a black corset, and a pointy hat, but they were excited about what they were wearing.
Maybe they have a small broom they can carry around, then decide to use their talent in makeup to paint a spooky, pretty look, or find a cape online to match their corset, all of which are signs of thought in the outfit.
Asenta Oliver, member of the University of Iowa’s Culture Collective, agrees accessorizing is key to breaking free from costumes that “can often be extremely boring.”
She suggests putting on thematic makeup or cool accessories to deviate from the bland. Little personalizations and creative touches can be all that is needed to save your outfit this Halloween.
“I feel like people think costumes are worn to disguise yourself, but I believe costumes are the ultimate form of self-expression,” Oliver said.
That being so, please do not squander the wonderful opportunity you are given to express yourself without parameters. Your Halloween costumes say something about you.