It seems that many of us are in this situation every year; you get so caught up in school and work and everything else that Halloween sneaks up on you and all of a sudden you are getting invitations to parties and other opportunities. You check your bank account and it is… not looking stellar. You’re in the middle of midterms and think, “oh great, one more thing I have to worry about checking off my to-do list.” Well, never fear because there are almost endless possibilities for cheap, easy and/or do-it-yourself Halloween costumes for last minute festivities.

For girls:

There are a lot of easy costumes that you can create with simple items from your closet and a simple trip to Target, Walgreens, Safeway or even the dollar store.

Snowman
What you need: White top, black leggings, boots, scarf, elastic, tulle, top hat

The only part of this costume you’ll need to put together is the tutu snowman skirt. Just cut off a length of the elastic to fit around your waist, cut strips of the tulle, and tie them around. If you want, you can add a ribbon to the top hat.

Rosie the Riveter
What you need: Red handkerchief, jeans, denim top

Hopefully, most of these items you already have. A red handkerchief can be bought at Hobby Lobby or Target for a couple dollars. Just roll up the sleeves and show off your muscles. You can do it.

The Sky
What you need: Blue dress or shirt (a simple long sleeve from Walmart would work perfect), cotton balls, sunglasses, yellow construction paper to make a paper crown, glue.

This one takes a tiny bit more assembly. Glue the cotton balls onto the blue shirt in the shapes of clouds. Cut zigzags in the yellow paper and glue the ends together to make a crown in the shape of sun rays.

Pumpkin Spice Latte
What you need: White top, white scarf, cotton balls, long green (preferably unused) Starbucks straw, printout of Starbucks logo, glue, elastic and whatever pants you want to wear—something white or khaki would work best (a khaki skirt would tie it together nicely).

The only part of this one that requires assembly is the headpiece. Glue the cotton balls together, with the straw coming out of the middle. Glue it all to the elastic, to fit around your head. Glue the Starbucks label to your white shirt and you are good to go.

For guys:

The costumes shown here, and just in general, for guys require a little less assembly (sorry girls). All of these are easy to just throw on and you’ll be unmistakeable at your next Halloween party.

Brawny man
What you need: Jeans, red flannel and a roll of Brawny paper towels.    

Mario/ Luigi
What you need: Overalls, red or green shirt depending on which you want to be, red or green hat. You could buy a mustache at the costume store or just marker one on if you wanted to.            

The Most Interesting Man in the World
What you need: Suit, white shirt, red silk handkerchief (if you really want to get into it) and white hair chalk. It also would be a good idea to grow out your beard a little bit for this one.                   

Tyler Durden from Fight Club
What you need: Ugly retro button up, red leather jacket, tinted sunglasses.

This one will probably require a trip to your nearest thrift store, but you can definitely make it a one-stop shopping for the ‘90s style clothes.

Forrest Gump
What you need: Khaki suit, blue button up shirt, red baseball cap. Everyone knows who Forrest Gump is, but it is a unique costume that no one sees around that often and super easy to put together.

Finding a Halloween costume doesn’t have to break the bank or cause unnecessary stress. You could make it a group event with your friends, picking out DIY costume materials and frolicking at the thrift shop. With the anxiety of finding a costume out of the way, enjoy your festivities, Pios.