The Scary Story of the Collegiate Halloween Costume

As October rolls round and stores fill with mountains of candy buckets and ripe pumpkins, so come the collection of Halloween parties. Suddenly, all the vampire and werewolf costumes hit the shelves, glow in the dark fangs that leave your gums bloody and spray about spider webs thick enough to stick in your hair for days after. Halloween on campus is go big or go home – one minute Walter White’s busting some Beyonce on the dancefloor, batmen and zombies twerking side by side, a pumpkin punch bowl. Much like snowflakes, no two costumes are the same – although some are incredibly, incredibly similar. There’s just one problem: the issue of picking a costume that suits you. “In regular world, Kids dress up and beg for candy” in University as well as ‘The Plastics’ Inner Circle, Halloween can mean something quite a bit different. Finding a costume that suits you can leave you feeling a little frustrated… 

From a Snow White costume comprised of little more than a blue frilly bikini top, stockings and a lingerie skirt, to a nurse’s outfit that you might not recognise from Grey’s Anatomy – a lot of costumes marketed for women can prove controversial. Talking to fellow collegiates about the issue, it’s clear that it’s divisive – whether you’re shopping online or in-store, most of the mass-produced costumes are often directly labelled as ‘slutty’ or ‘sexy’, whereas those marketed to men don’t always have those same connotations. They aren’t even always that recognisable – “Duh, I’m a Mouse” or even…

Collegiates across campus, guys and girls, feel that too much emphasis is placed on “sexy/slutty” outfits. The problem, one second year explained, is that mostly these costumes “only refer to women” and that since the term has negative implications already, the fact that it’s so difficult to find normal costumes means it’s a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation”. While it can be daunting, finding an outfit doesn’t have to be a real-life nightmare. Really, it doesn’t matter what outfit you go for, as long as you’re happy with it.

Joe, Second Year : “Halloween costumes should be about fun. Judging someone based on what they wear isn’t cool.” 

Halloween should be all about options – what’s the trick without the treat after all? While sexy costumes can give people self confidence – maybe John Stamos will think you’re pretty on a plane – scary costumes can work better for others. Firebolt or regular old broomstick, so long as you can fly around in style, it’s no problem.

However, Brides of Frankenstein may find it a bit hard to work with limited supplies, particularly on the highstreet. Online DIY costumes are either quite complex or too expensive – with some punching happily above the £100 mark. On a student budget, you’re better off going down the route of doing it yourself, whether it means buying cheap clothing, some scissors and dyes, or getting creative with masks and face paint – sometimes creative costumes are the funniest, sure to be one of a kind and memorable. There are loads of ideas out there, particularly on sites like Pinterest. Having a brainstorm beforehand means that you can prepare the perfect outfit for a Halloween night out. 

At the end of the day, whatever outfit works for you is a winner!