To costume or not to costume?

The end of October is upon us, as is the season of candy, skeletons and bad Halloween puns. But, as a young adult, assuming you celebrate Halloween, should you still be participating in the dressing up side of the holiday? Is there an age limit to the fun? 

On one hand I would say yes—as adults we sometimes have jobs and responsibilities that prevent us from donning the same capes and wigs of childhood. There is a level of professionalism expected that most Halloween costumes (especially the “adult” ones) do not meet.  So, if you have a job or other responsibility that requires a dress code, you should refrain from getting in costume, at least until after work. That’s not to say you couldn’t celebrate in a small way all day. After all, Clark Kent looked quite professional with his super suit under a tailored shirt. 

But what if the only thing you have to go to on Halloween is class? In that case, I say dress up with caution. One thing to beware of is being a distraction in class. After all, you and everyone else there wants to listen to what the professor has to say. If your costume is too revealing, makes noise or is just too epic for words, you should save it for the Halloween party. You should not be the focus of attention during class (unless you are the teacher). 

So, now we have identified the proper place for costumes (outside of work and not distracting in class) what types of costumes should you wear? Most costumes can be classified as dumb and funny, casual or epic. The first costume is the Charlie Brown ghost type of costume—its main purpose is not to impress, but to bring a laugh to everyone who sees you, or at least to make you smile. This is similar to the casual type of costume wherein you don a hat and cloak, just trying to get into the spirit of Halloween, not really trying to win a costume contest. This costume should be comfortable, inexpensive, practical (as in you don’t need to take special care in movement) and effortless. The final type of costume is the most labor intensive, and in my opinion, the most rewarding. For epic costumes, there may be weeks or even months of planning. There is attention placed on every detail of the finished outfit, especially the tiny, almost invisible or covered details. For my costume, I scoured thrift stores and even broke out the old needle and thread for some parts. For this type of costume, the idea is to make something better than you had the skills, patience or budget to make as a child. 

However you choose to celebrate, have fun with it. Chose whatever costume style suits you, whether that be a full-fledged Frodo outfit, or a simple pair of animal ears, wear it confidently and eat lots of candy.