This upcoming weekend marks the beginning of Halloween week. To some it is a one-day, optional event. Yet, here at Penn, it is that wonderful time of year when the line between classy and trashy is blurred, smeared and in some cases, erased completely. Basically, anything goes. Or does it? Still not sure what to leave hanging out? Read these tips before selecting your final getup.
While dignity levels definitely drop this time of year, try to retain a shred of it, or at least enough to cover up. Just a few inches separate sexy-slutty and trashy-slutty. As notable anthropologist Lindsay Lohan so eloquently puts it, "Halloween is the one night a year when girls can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it." Oh, the never-ending wisdom that is LiLo.
Classic costume staples may be borderline cliché, but if played right, these cornerstones are usually a safe bet. Ideas include nurse (both slutty nurse and murse fit the bill), any sort of animal that has ears, school girl (for the lazy private-school graduate crowd) and any perversion of your favorite Disney character, cartoon hero/heroine or book protagonist (slutty Hermione, anyone?) that can be coupled with some exposed cleavage and bedroom eyes.
Guys: If you are planning to dress as football or baseball players, remember: it is October in Philadelphia. and spandex usually isn't a guy's best friend on chilly nights. But if you're confident with what you're packing, Tom Brady and Derek Jeter are always a hit with the ladies.
Couples: Coordination is cute - until it gets nauseating. Dressing together can be a sweet idea, but please refrain from the following outfits: Romeo and Juliet, so played out; Adam and Eve, so done (and, unless you happen to be a very hot couple, not the most flattering). Salt-and-pepper shakers and other forms of cheesy complementing items rank pretty high on the lame scale, too.
Not looking to spend a ton of money on your costume (or have a $100 charge to The Erogenous Zone on you parent's credit card bill.)? Check out local thrift stores: American Thrift Stores at 747 Wolf Street, Decades Vintage at 615 Bainbridge and Lost + Found on 133 N. 3rd Street all have a variety of period pieces to create original costumes.
If you find yourself without a costume at 5 p.m. of October 31, there are several options you can find in your closet. Here are a few of our favorite last minute ideas:
Sumo wrestler: Wear an oversized shirt and stuff a pillow over your stomach. Then wear tighty-whities over your pants. Dress up with your friends as a mob of wrestlers and enjoy ramming into one another.
Superhero: Similarly to the sumo wrester, the costume requires oversized tighty-whities. Complete the look with brightly colored spandex (try American Apparel) and a cape made out of your sheets. Pair with rain boots and all you have to do is come up with a creative power.
Mummy: 'Borrow' some toilet paper from the bathroom and spin as a friend holds the roll.
Typical college characters: the Walk of Shame and the 'sexiled' roommate. For the Walk of Shame, wear your typical clothes for going out, throw on an oversized men's t-shirt, look disheveled and carry a pair of heels. If you are 'sexiled,' pajamas, dark circles under your eyes and a sign that reads "Roommate busy" will complete the look.
