It seems like every Halloween the holiday comes out of nowhere and sneaks up on us. Every year many of us find ourselves in the situation of being invited to multiple costume parties and waiting until the last moment to think of what we’re going to be, let alone actually getting the costume. You would think that last year’s Halloween would teach us a lesson but it never does. This year, instead of running to the local costume store or one of those Halloween pop-up shops and getting the lame costumes no one picked, you could try out one of these simple, clever, and cheap do-it-yourself costumes.

“Bread Winner”

Okay, a lot of costumes on this list are going to be puns but who doesn’t like a good pun? Trust us, going as a clever pun is way more interesting and funny than going as like a cat or something lame like that. This costume is called the “bread winner”, you know the person in the family that brings home the bacon as they say. First, put on some your athletic clothes like you’re about to run a marathon. If you don’t have athletic clothes, hopefully you have some active friends you can borrow from or pick up some cheap ones from Walmart. You could also get away with just a headband if you can’t be bothered to put more effort into it. But you will need to go to a costume shop or party store and pick up some of those fake olympic medals. If you have the time you could get them on Amazon I’m sure. You could get just 1 or you could get 5, it’s your choice. You’ll also need to get at least one loaf of bread, but two or three would be better. Get it? You’re a bread winner?

“Holy Guacamole”

Here’s a funny costume inspired by an old saying, “Holy Guacamole”. You’ve probably heard someone say it before. If you’re a Batman fan then you definitely heard Robin say it to Batman in one of those old corny but awesome movies. First, get a shirt you can glue or tape stuff onto. A green shirt is ideal but a white, black, or just a single color with no graphic would do. Go online and find the image of the avocado emoji and print out several of them. Cut them out and glue or tape them to your shirt. You could also print out a picture of a bowl of guacamole and tape it to your shirt or or put it on some cardboard and hang it around your neck. Then make it yourself or go out and buy a halo and set of angel wings. Now you are “holy guacamole.” If you wanted to go really cheap just make yourself a homemade halo. It still gets the point across.

“It’s Raining Men”

One of the best karaoke songs ever is “It’s Raining Men” by The Weather Girls. Ladies, or gentlemen, you can turn the classic song into a funny costume if you want. All you need is an umbrella, string, cardboard, a computer and a printer. First, go online and print out several pictures of ‘hot’ guys. Celebrities like Justin Bieber, George Clooney and Brad Pitt would be good because everyone knows who they are. Cut them out and glue them to pieces of cardboard. It looks the best if the pictures are just the heads of the dudes. Attach the pictures to string and then attach the other end of the string to the umbrella. Space them out so when you hold the umbrella over your head it looks like it’s raining men. If you have a rain coat then definitely wear it. It’s pretty much guaranteed that everyone at the Halloween party will absolutely love your costume. If someone doesn’t get the reference then don’t speak to them anymore.

Ceiling Fan

The Ceiling Fan costume is another hilarious play-on-words costume. Don’t worry, you don’t have to go out and buy a ceiling fan from Home Depot and somehow find a way to wear the parts. All you need to get are pom poms, or a foam finger, like what people have at sports events, and a poster board plus a marker to make a sign with. First, write on the poster board like you’re going to see your favorite sports team play. Write something like “Go Celing!” or “Ceiling is #1.” You’re going as a ceiling fan. Not a fan like the thing that’s used to cool off a room, a fan like a sports fan. Carry around the pom poms or wear the foam finger. A bonus could be getting an undershirt and writing the word “ceiling” on it in big bold letters.

Hawaiian Punch

Remember drinking Hawaiian Punch as a kid? I don’t know about you but I still drink it. It’s freaking delicious. You can go as “Hawaiian Punch” for Halloween this year if you want. All you would need is a Hawaiian shirt and a pair of boxing gloves you could get at your local Sporting Goods store, or Amazon if you have enough time to get it shipped. Other props to make the costume better is wearing a Lei, a hula grass skirt, a coconut bra and one of those Hawaiian straw hats. They have all that stuff online or at a costume shop. You could just go as a Hula girl but adding the boxing gloves to become Hawaiian Punch is way funnier in my opinion. It could get a little annoying drinking with boxing gloves on but it would be worth it for all the compliments.

The Bachelor/Bachelorette

The Bachelor and Bachelorette shows are extremely popular nowadays. Probably because there’s like six different versions on tv throughout the year. People love that cringey drama. So why not go as the Bachelor or Bachelorette this halloween? Or both? You and your significant other can wear them as a couple’s costume. It’s super simple, just dress up in a nice dress or suit and carry around a rose. Alternately, you could carry around several roses and tell people to try to win your affection in order to get one.

“Green with Envy”

Another great idea for a couple’s costume is “green with envy,” based on the old saying. The common phrase dates back to the mid 1800’s. It means someone is extremely jealous and covetous of someone else’s possessions or advantages. You and your lover, or a friend, or both if you have one “friends with benefits” situations (that never works out) could go as “green with envy” for relatively cheap. Have one of you wear a green shirt, a blank one with no graphics is preferred, and have the other partner wear a sign around their neck the reads “envy.” Or you could get a blank white undershirt and write the word in big bold ink, whatever you want. When you go to the costume party and people ask you who you guys are suppose to be, have the person in the green shirt say “I’m green” *then point to other person* “with envy.” You have to stand next to each other for it to make sense.

“Smarty Pants”

Have you ever called someone a “smarty pants” before? Or has someone called you it? It’s usually a childish insult kids throw around to accuse people of being a “know-it-all.” If you need a really simple last-minute Halloween costume then this one is it. All you have to do is glue a bunch of Smarties candies to an old pair of pants. If you don’t have an old pair of pants then buy some from a local thrift shop. If you don’t know what Smarties candy are then you probably had a horrible childhood. It’s the small circular colored candies that come rolled up in their their wrappers. It says “Smarties” on it so you can’t miss it, unless you can’t read, then you definitely had a horrible childhood. An added feature to the costume is also getting some thick “nerd” glasses to wear. If you wanted to go all out, wear a short-sleeved white button down shirt, throw some pens in your front pocket and carry around a graphing calculator too.

“Formal Apology”

Another very cheap idea for a costume, is to wear your most formal clothes you own. If you don’t have any and need to go out and buy some then this costume could get very expensive. Then buy a sash, the thing that Miss America wears, they sell them online and at costume shops. Get the blank ones that you can write on and write the word “apology” in big letters across it. You’re now officially a “formal apology.” It’s also a good litmus test for your group of friends. If some of them don’t get it right away then you know who the slower ones are.

50 Shades of Grey

Everyone and their mother has heard of the 50 Shades of Grey novels and movies. Let’s just pray that our mothers have only heard about them and not read or watched them (*shuddering at the thought). I don’t know if the books are any good, (I swear) but the title makes a great Halloween costume. All you need is a single colored shirt (black or white would be ideal), a computer and a printer. First, print out multiple images of shades of grey from online. Google “grey paint samples” and cover your shirt with them. You could tape them on or find that crafty girl you know and borrow her hot glue gun. Bam! You’re 50 shades of grey, literally.

Featured