10 genuinely original Halloween costume ideas
Put down the knee socks, and step away from the body glitter. Since Yahoo, Google and Amazon revealed their top Halloween costume searches – a snoresome mix of generic pirates, fairytale heroines and blockbuster movie characters – we thought it was time to stir up the imagination cauldron a bit.
You’ve still got 10 days to find an idea that the rest of the backcombed revellers on the Northern Line won’t have thought of, so try these on for size…
Best for Autumnwatch fans: Vampire Bat Morph Suit
Batwings are still on-trend, right? This terrifyingly realistic all-in-one scores points for fear factor and simplicity – plus if you take off the head part at the end of the night it’ll be great for an impromptu Stevie Nicks routine.
£35.99 from MorphCostumes
Best for punsters: Cereal Killer
Everyone loves a pun! And everyone also loves a variety pack. You could buy the ready-made version here, but eating your way through a month’s worth of Kellogg’s and getting handy with a Pritt Stick would be so much more fun.
Image: Su-May
Best for 90s nostalgics: Shakespeare’s Sister
The video that slightly terrified us all as kids, Stay is a perfect Halloween inspiration – provided you have access to plenty of eyeliner, a crown of stars and a sequinned trouser suit. Who doesn’t?
Best for 80s nostalgics: Heathers
It’s time you finally put that scrunchie you bought last year to use, and Halloween is as good a time as any. Whether you go for leather jacketed Veronica or layer up all the shoulder pads you can find as one of the ill-fated Heathers (with a croquet mallet if you can find one), it’ll make sure you stand out in a sea of identikit Tim Burtons. How very.
Best for cat fans: Dolores Umbridge
Far more sinister than anything involving a gallon of fake blood, Harry Potter’s tea-swilling, pretty in pink nemesis would make an amazing Halloween costume for many reasons – not least because it’s a chance to find out now whether you’ll be able to pull off a curly shampoo and set in your later years.
Best for sci-fi fans: Ghostbusters
When it comes to the weird, prevalent myth that Halloween means all women automatically want to dress in a small piece of dental floss with a novelty hat attached, there are few Google Image searches as telling as ‘Ghostbuster costumes’. Sure, you could wear the teeny hotpants version if that’s your thing – but as the all-female reboot of the franchise starts filming next year, it’s probably time the lady ghostbusters are allowed to keep their legs warm too.
Best for too-cool-for-a-costume people: Mummy
Is it just us, or is this bargain £15 mummy costume from Matalan actually quite… chic? Ok so it’s barely recognisable as a mummy (they have this much more raggedy version too, if authenticity is your chief priority), but we can almost imagine sporting the pencil dress and hooded cape thing out voluntarily. Almost. Ideal for those ‘Um, I thought it was a fancy dress party’ Bridget Jones moments.
£15 from Matalan
Best for glitter-lovers: Effie Trinket
Katniss Everdeen is one of the top searched-for terms this year, but (no offence J-Law) dressing up as The Hunger Games’ Effie Trinket would be so much more fun. Start by applying every eyeshadow in your make-up bag and go from there.
Best for warmth: Log Lady
Twin Peaks is returning, and now’s your chance to dig out your ugliest brown knitwear, hipster glasses and poloneck for a turn about town as the show’s unmistakeable ‘log lady’. Required: a log.
Best for literary fans and lazy people: Gone Girl
Just don’t show up.
ps. We spent a long time searching to find out if anyone had made Ross’ spud-nik costume from Friends yet. Nobody has. NOW’S YOUR CHANCE!
Want to read more? We’ve chosen our 20 favourite coats and 16 favourite ankle boots to get ready for the winter weather.
If you’re more interested in getting a new camera than new clothes this season, you might be interested in these camera accessories for your iPhone, which beg the question: Do you need a camera if you own a camera phone?
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