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10 Iconic Halloween Costume Ideas for Your Main Character Moment
Ready or not, Halloween is here again — have you given any thought to who you’ll be on the big night? Don’t dig your own grave by buying a boring costume: Buffalo Exchange is here to help with cool and classic Halloween costume ideas that’ll make you the main character at any party, pumpkin patch or haunted house you’re spiriting off to this spooky season. Ready to dive into our top Halloween costume idea picks? Keep reading, but beware of catching the creativity bug: this list is to DIY for!
This is Halloween (by Tim Burton)
We’re starting off strong at #1 with Halloween costume ideas inspired by the weird and wondrous world of Tim Burton. If you’re unfamiliar, Tim Burton is the creative force behind creepy classics like Beetlejuice The Corpse Bride and maybe most famously, The Nightmare Before Christmas. With a body of work that spans from 1979 to now, there are no shortage of Tim Burton movies to pull inspiration from: whether you’re an Edward Scissorhands fan or more of a Sweeney Todd-type of person, there are plenty of thrilling Halloween costume ideas to choose from.
Get Animated
Next up on our list of Halloween costume ideas: dress up as your favorite animated character! Whether you’re into anime, video games or traditional 2D cartoons, there are endless animated characters to be this Halloween. Whoever you choose, be sure to go all out: bring your character to life with bright colors, iconic accessories and oversized props!
Out of This World Halloween Costume Ideas
No need to book a Blue Origin trip to experience outer space — just dress up as an alien or astronaut this Halloween! To create these costumes, you’ll just need some metallic or neon pieces or an all-white jumpsuit. DIY the rest with a recycled plastic space helmet, NASA-inspired patches and extraterrestrial accessories.
The Endless Midsommar
It’s no surprise that one of the most iconic horror movies of the 21st century makes our list for main character Halloween costume ideas. To pull off this misleadingly cheery costume, all you need is a white dress or skirt, an embroidered blouse and a few faux flowers to wear as a headwreath and capelette — all hail the new May Queen!
Clownin’ Around
Love them or loathe them, clowns are mainstays in the canon of Halloween costume ideas. Play them your way as cute, creepy or somewhere in between. Polka dots are trending—that’s a plus. If you want to get specific with your clownery, call upon branded characters like The Joker from Batman or Pennywise from IT.
Dynamic Duo Halloween Costume Ideas
Whether they’re spectral siblings, an under-water crimefighting team or opposing assassins, dynamic duos are a deep well to pull from for Halloween costume ideas. Transform into The Shining’s Grady Sisters with baby blue dresses and knee socks or colorblock brilliant Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy disguises from Spongebob with casual everyday pieces (and your comfiest pair of house slippers). For fierce Black Mamba and Gogo Yubari character depictions from Kill Bill, look out for a slick yellow set and school girl uniform pieces like a blazer, white button down and pleated skirt.
Main Character Muppets
It’s time to play the music, it’s time to light the lights: Muppet costumes are next up on our list of Halloween costume ideas! Thanks to Jim Henson, there‘s no shortage of felted friends to dress up as for Halloween — Kermit and Miss Piggy are classic main characters, but don’t forget about Sesame Street cornerstones like Cookie Monster. Pro tip: get familiar with your character’s catchphrase to take this costume to the next level — hi-ho!
Fright Night
No list of Halloween costume ideas is complete without some classic creatures of the night! Take your pick from spooky scary skeletons, vicious vampires, or wicked witches. These costumes all share a fairly monochromatic black base, but mix it up with moody maroons and purples, and don’t forget to incorporate luxurious textures like velvet and lace. Make the most of your main-character moment with faux blood-dripped pearls, skeletal face makeup and iconic pointed witch hats!
Halloween Costume Ideas for the Whole Bunch
Rolling with a crew of three or more? An identical group costume is sure to cause a commotion wherever your Halloween plans take you. We’re partial to this group of Minions that can be completed with yellow tees and overalls, but putting together a monochromatic look for a handful of bananas is just as ap-peel-ing. Whatever you choose to be, multi-person Halloween costume ideas only get better with the more friends you have involved: hit up the group chat and dream up a despicably good plan to take over Halloween!
A Fairy Tale Ending
Missed out on ye olde local renfaire this year? Tap into a world of enchantment with fairy, magical mushroom and fictional forest creature Halloween costume ideas. To alchemize these otherworldly outfits, shop for satins and chiffons, vintage peasant-inspired pieces and elven ears, hats, horns and wings to finish off your fantastical look!
Now that we’ve reached the end of our Halloween costume ideas, you might be ready to embark on an adventure to procure your pieces — but first, heed this advice: skip the big box store and shop new and used Halloween costumes at all Buffalo Exchange locations! Clothing waste is seriously scary and Buffalo Exchange is a much more environmentally friendly option than buying new. During spooky season, our staff transforms into a team of expert costume stylists ready to help you turn your dream costume into reality. Plus, when you shop with us, you’ll be paying a fraction of the price you would at a traditional retailer—and that’s not even including the store credit you could make by trading in your old Halloween costumes (and any other extra clothes haunting your closet). Happy Halloween!
