When people think of Halloween, they often think of candy, costumes, and horror. For most, costumes are an essential part of Halloween that makes it such an entertaining holiday. Despite this, some people choose to celebrate this spooky holiday without this long-lasting tradition. For some, even if they want to dress as someone or something, they may not feel inclined to spend a lot of money on an outfit that they will never wear again. Another reason one may not want to dress up is the amount of effort it requires to pull together an entire outfit. However, there is a solution to these dilemmas. To have a Halloween costume and celebrate with spirit, one can use clothes that they already own and create simple accessories to dress up as their favorite characters, animals, objects, and more.

One DIY costume idea people can consider is to dress up as an animal, like a cat or dog. All you will need are the same colored shirt and pants, a headband, felt or card stock, feather stuffing, fabric, a wire hanger, scissors, and glue. For instance, if you wanted to dress as a black cat, you can wear a black shirt and jeans. Then, use black felt or cardstock and cut out four triangles. Next, glue two triangles together onto one side of a headband and repeat on the other side. To make the tail, bend the wire hanger into a curved shape and glue it onto the feather stuffing. Then glue it onto a piece of fabric to tie around your waist.

Another simple costume is to dress as Rosie the Riveter, a cultural icon who symbolized the feminist movement during World War II. To achieve her signature look, wear a red bandanna with white polka dots and a blue denim shirt with your sleeves rolled up. After, tuck your hair up into a bun with the bandanna, similar to hers.

Two other easy characters to dress up as are Waldo and Wenda from the book, Where’s Waldo?, by Martin Handford. The only clothing items you will need to dress as Waldo are a red and white striped shirt, a red beanie, a pair of jeans, and sneakers. For Wenda’s outfit, all the items for Waldo’s costume can be used, with the exception of the jeans. They can be switched with a denim skirt and red and white striped tights.

One can also choose to dress as Wednesday Addams from the 1991 movie The Addams Family. All you will need is a black dress with a white collar, or you can create the collar by sewing white felt triangles onto the neckline of the dress. Then, braid your hair into two sections to complete her signature appearance.

With these various costume ideas, you will be able to celebrate Halloween completely. These costumes can also be reused for everyday outfits, and they will not be wasted on one occasion. They allow you to show your creativity while being effortless to make.

Graphic by ELAINE VUONG