I was passing through Walmart on a small grocery run last weekend and upon entering, I noticed how many prepackaged children’s costumes were hung up near the front. I’d noticed something similar when I was passing through Kohl’s not too long before that. What happened to creativity on Halloween?
As we’ve grown older, it seems to have almost disappeared, if not retreated to a mental nook or cranny in the back of our minds.
For as long as I can remember, my family never bought costumes from Halloween stores. Sure, we might’ve bought an accessory or two, or a bit of makeup, but never an entire costume. When I was probably two or three, my parents dressed me up as a Hershey Kiss and paraded me around our neighborhood. I was apparently very adorable, wrapped up in layers of aluminum foil.
I think I was five or six when I dressed up as a magician with a twirling baton as a large wand. My younger brother was dressed as the slightly-larger-than-normal rabbit I pulled out of my hat. I might’ve had a store-bought Darth Vader mask for one of my Halloweens in elementary school, but my costumes were always creative to some degree.
As I’ve grown older, I’ve tried to keep the creative juices flowing, dressing up as off-beat characters, using what I already owned as costume pieces. I went through high school as an insomniac, R. P. McMurphy, Alex DeLarge and Gregory House — completing the costume with a medical cane I borrowed from my uncle.
Meanwhile, my costumes in college have been consistently creative, except when I dressed as the Joker during my freshman year Halloween, but at least I scared a few people. Otherwise, it’s been the Tenth Doctor — a reference which I doubt many of you readers will get — but because of the history of the character, it has been my favorite costume to date.
Apart from my dressing up, I’ve seen creativity wax and wane over the years. Elementary school costumes were cute, but tended to have some influence and help from parents. High school was trademarked by groups of creative costumes, like the girls who went as Troll dolls, breakfast cereals and board games.
There were, of course, the costumes that have persisted and maintained popularity, like graphic T-shirts, inflatable animals and the infamous “sexy” costumes. But really, isn’t wearing a T-shirt with a baby in a papoose just a lazy way to dress as Alan from “The Hangover?” Doesn’t the joke of wearing an inflatable ostrich get old, quickly?
As for the “sexy” costumes: Ladies, Halloween is a great time to dress as a stereotypically risqué female — all sarcasm intended.
But for crying out loud, you’re in college, readers! You’re creative! You can come up with something better than a store-bought costume! Why not something unique, not some banal pop culture reference? Don’t just go to a party dressed as a stereotypical Jersey Shore guido and say you’re The Situation. That reeks of a lack of creativity.
Why not just think costumes out farther in advance than the week — no, the day — before? Aren’t time management, planning and creativity the most important skills for a college student to possess?
But regardless of what or who you choose to dress as, have a safe — and I mean safe — Halloween.