This is going to be a fun and very revealing post. Hopefully interactive as well. Halloween is a big celebration at my place of work. It’s fun and entertaining, but it’s a hell of a lot of pressure to come up with something clever, funny, and high quality, all at the same time. 

I’d have to say that last year, I’d give myself an A+. I convinced a bunch of guys from the office to dress up as WWF (World Wrestling Federation) superstars of yesteryear.

We had Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, Hacksaw Jim Duggan (the King Duggan rendition), Razor Ramon (my buddy actually cut out the word Razor and taped it to his boxers, as you can see), Paul Bearer, and myself – The Undertaker. Best group outfit, ever? Yes. The price for me? Around $70 – for something I’ll never wear again. That wasn’t very MicroFrugal of me.

So that brings up a wonderful topic.

How do you have fun, look awesome (or at least hilarious), and don’t waste a lot of money around Halloween?

Thinking back to past renditions of costumes for myself:

In college I put a cut holes in a kitchen trash bag, wore a NASCAR trucker hat and sweatpants and called myself ‘white trash’. It actually won me a $50 gift certificate for the best costume on campus. Total cost: 10 cents for the bag (don’t ask where I got the NASCAR hat and sweatpants).

In my elementary years, my mother made a costume where I was a tree. She put together paper grocery bags to make the bark and cut holes for my face and arms, then she had green streamers for the leaves. The best part? She made it so that if I pulled this string, a freaking owl would pop up out of the top of the tree. How genious is that? Total cost? Couldn’t have been more than $3 or so.

How to Make a Cheap Halloween Costume

In general, anytime where you can use some of the following items, you should be able to create a cheaper rendition of what people are spending $50, $75, $100 and more for:

• Arts & Crafts: Any time that you can make something with your own sweat and tears (and there will be plenty of those), you have the chance to save some money. Hit up a scrapbooking, fabric, or arts & crafts store for supplies.
• Makeup: Get some cheap makeup at Wal-Mart – it sure beats the $100 mask from the shady shop in the strip mall that opens up for one month out of the year.
• Thrift Shop: There is guaranteed to be some great clothing at your local thrift store that will add some nostalgia and authenticity to your outfit. It’s most likely stuff that nobody else will buy, and therefore is probably very cheap.

Let’s hear about your favorite Halloween tips!

Frugalhead Discussion:

• What is your favorite Halloween costume on the cheap?
• What is your favorite costume that you have EVER worn?
• Who (or what) are you going to be this year?

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