Last Minute Nerdy Halloween Costumes

October 30, 2013 by ceceliaisgray 4 Comments

Happy Halloween Eve, everyone! If you’re not feeling in the Halloween spirit because you don’t have a costume and it’s the day before Halloween, don’t fret. Here is our guide to the last minute Halloween scramble, you don’t have to settle for some cheap store bought leftover and you don’t have to spend more than 30 minutes of your dwindling time to look great.

For those looking for maximum impact with minimum effort, taping a bunch of painted or paper wrapped boxes around your (and hopefully your friend’s) body and having everyone recognize you seems like a pretty good deal. Simply purchase a number of square boxes large enough to fit around your body, arrange in the desired shape making sure to cut holes wherever a body part will need to go, glue or tape together, cover visible surfaces with the appropriate paint or poster board color, and put electrical tape around all edges of each visible cube.

There’s never a situation in which I don’t want to be Daenerys, so on Halloween why wouldn’t I want to be dressed up as her? Her white dress is probably her simplest costume and lends itself to Scarlet O’Hara style dressmaking (ripping the curtains off the windows and looking fabulous in them). Cut off the rings, fold your curtain in half (top edge to bottom edge), and bring the curtain around your body open edge at the front. Loop the two top corners under the necklace and pull until the curtain fits to your liking (meaning it’s not so loose in the back that your underwear are hanging out) and pin close to the edge. Take your second curtain (after also removing the rings), fold it in half in the same direction you folded the other sheet but this time make a kind of rope out of the fabric so that you can grab a loop at the top of the fold. Slip the loop under the necklace, pull the rest of the fabric through, and pull to secure. Pin at any points you feel are necessary for modesty/public decency.

All hail you. Much like our little Glow Cloud, this big Glow Cloud requires little skill and time and will either be impressive or confusing depending on who you’re hanging out with on Halloween. Just hot glue fiberfill to an umbrella, wrap battery powered Christmas lights (LED and color changing would be best, but whatever you can find in your basement that works is also great) underneath and tape to secure, string little plastic animals on some fishing line or clear plastic thread and hang from the little tips on the umbrella. Underneath you can dress however you like, a character or just completely in white. Also, you can get everything for this costume in one stop at Michaels so it’s efficient shopping as well as making.

And speaking of efficient shopping (very professional transition, Cecelia), if you’re not in the mood to do any crafting this Halloween eve but have time to stop by one store, you have the ability to put together a costume.

1. Princess Leia on Hoth- If you have a UniQlo near you, you’re in luck. Just pick up a white turtleneck, white pants, and a white down vest. Do your hair and off you go! Old Navy usually has similar vests, so if you don’t have a UniQlo check there.
2. Marty McFly- UniQlo has vests, Marty McFly has a vest. You see where this is going. You probably have the appropriate plaid shirt, denim jacket, and jeans already. Once again, you can check Old Navy for vests as well.
3. Black Widow- Though I dislike American Apparel on many levels, they’re pretty much a one stop shop for any superhero costume in need of spandex or bodysuits. Buy their pleather leggings and pleather zip up leotard, throw on some combat boots and a leather jacket, and appear bored by even the most intense of situations.
4. Sailor Jupiter- I continue to hate American Apparel, but you can throw together a decent Sailor Senshi costume there. Get a group of friends and go buy pleated skirts, white leotards, hair bows, and scarves together.
5. Arthur Dent- Any Marshall’s, Target, Walmart, or T.J. Maxx will have an appropriate robe, undershirt, pajama bottoms, and towel. Cover a book with a piece of paper that says “Don’t Panic” in big friendly letters and make as many Martin Freeman unamused faces as possible.

So do you have a costume now? Great. Take an awesome printable fandom treat bag, heck take another, terrorize your neighborhood/local bar for candy and have a very happy Halloween!

What will you be doing this Halloween? Thinking about throwing any of these ideas together? Tell us in the comments or tweet us at @ThreeChicGeeks!