I'm looking for an easy costume (Halloween snuck up on me and I still have school). Low-budget. Ideas?

Question

Also, I can't go out and buy one. Stores generally carry costumes for little kids, and it's a high school costume party I'm going to. And I can't afford the rent fee at my local costume supplier.

If anyone knows a good home-crafted costume idea, I'd love to hear it. My available supplies include the usual household items, plus a plastic reaper's scythe, a few yards of wire mesh, dark blue curtains (I'll seriously use those if I have to, I'm not against old-fashioned improvisation), a 5' 6" length of black fabric cord, and an old red dragon's tail that I used last year.

The scarier the better (excluding overly-gorey ideas), but I don't mind just plain funny, beautiful, or whatever you can think of ideas. Any answer is better than none.

I was thinking of pulling down the curtains and fashioning a Grim Reaper outfit, but I'm not allowed to dye them black, and I'm not tall or gaunt enough for the act. If you have ideas that would make me look taller, though, I'd love to hear them.

Thanks for the quick answers, everyone. My mom ended up helping me out with the costume thing, so now I've got a pitch-black grim reaper outfit that actually fits rather nicely.

I really like the roller blades idea. Nevermind that I'm not the most graceful creature on the planet. Adding wheels actually gives me a few ideas for future costumes. I like the one here, though, (the devil reaper outfit) because it was extremely low-budget and made the best use of the items listed in my question.

Again, thank you for the quick responses! I already know what I'm going to be next year, but if I forget, I'll have to come to you guys again.

Answer 1

Depending on how long your curtians are, you can take and use platform shoes if you have them to make you taller. If not, take the curtians, and make a robe out of them, use the fabric cord as your sash/belt and let it loop and hang off to one side. take the dragon tail and depending on if it is the type that you fasten to your oufit or wear it and let it hang out, put that on. You can fasten it to the curtians with just a few simple stitches that are removeable later so they dont damage the curtians. Next take some white face paint, fairly cheap at your local dept store or any place that sells halloween makeup, and put that all over your face and neck.

depending on the color of your hair, if dark no worries, if not then make sure you use part of the curtians as a hood to help hide your hair or use some of that temp wash in hair color that usually comes out in a day or so, it is made by revlon and comes in a bottle down the haircolor aisle and has a pink top. (most little old ladies use this as it is not permanant and you just put it in while in the shower)

Next use eyeliner to make dark circles around your eyes to give you the look of death. You can even pick up some cheap devil horns at the same place you get your white makeup. or go with out them and carry the reaper scythe and be a devil reaper.

Just a thought, nothing fancy but also little to no cost to you.

Hope this helps to give you an idea. Good luck.

Answer 2

It would have helped to know it you are a girl or guy, but here goes. Hippie is a great standby, so is a gypsy and it can be converted to pirate. Toga, as Jim Belushi says! It can also be a Roman, a Pharaoh, or an angel. I used it to go out as Cleopatra. Use a dish towel as a head band.

Grim reaper? Roller blades would add height plus give you that "floaty" effect. You could also do the Phantom of the Opera or your average old vampire.

Hope this helps!

Answer 3

You could dress as the opposite sex...not too terribly difficult with borrowed clothing.

Or put a piece of cloth over a piece of cardboard with a hole in the middle for your head. Glue a plastic type disposable plate with a hole in the middle big enough for your head to fit through....go as a TABLE!

Hope you have fun!

Answer 4

You could always dress in all black and pin on a tail and buy kitty ears and be a cat. or there's always the old using a white sheet cutting holes in it and being a ghost..a baby, a hippie, a hobo are all easy to put together.

Answer 5

Go to a Goodwill store or another secondhand store. You can purchase odds and ends to make a good cheap costume

Answer 6

you sould be a spa girl (i did this a couple years ago) i no it sounds kinda stupid but its not that bad. just were a tee shirt, pj paints, slippers, a bath robe, and hair curlers if u have them. take green eye shadow, or halloween make up or w/e to make your face green so it looks like you have an avacado mask (sry i cant spell) hope i helped

Answer 7

ok.....go as hurricane katrina....wrap grey netting all around you and doll houses and miniature cows and saxaphones etc on thread to the netting..flash a flash light inside on and off and spin around so the cows and houses will fly out from the netting LOL Come on.ya gotta love it an you will win money in contests !

Answer 8

dress up cute and get one of those renaissance ball masks and go as one of Casanova's many mistresses...... thats what im doing any way....