It would appear, my friends, that All Hallows’ Eve is just around the corner. For you who haven’t seen the movie “Hocus Pocus,” first of all, shame on you. Second, I mean Halloween. But never mind Sarah Jessica Parker playing a ridiculously ditzy witch or Bette Midler singing “I Put a Spell On You.” This isn’t a movie column.

            Every year, I have the same problem. I know I can’t be the only one who does. Around the middle of September, I think “Hmm, what should I be for Halloween?” Then, come October 1, it turns into “I should really decide what to be for Halloween.” By about this time, I’m panicking. “What the heck am I going to be, and do I even have a party to go to anyway?”

            I look through the seasonal Halloween stores and dig through the chaos that is the costume sections in Wal-Mart and Target, but I never find anything I really like, or that fits well. Last year I tried on what was supposed to be Daphne from Scooby-Doo, but the dress just looked like a purple sack with a highlighter-orange wig. Gross. And I’m not really up to wearing the sexy police girl outfit or the French maid, although I’m sure they would be cute.

            So, for the rest of you who have trouble engaging the “Mean Girls” version of costume rules, don’t want to spend your life savings on the overpriced Lady Gaga getup from Party City, or just have trouble finding something you like, there are other ways to dress up for Halloween and look fantastic. Guys, this goes for you, too.

1. 1.     Check out the thrift stores. I know this doesn’t seem like such a revolutionary tip, but I’m sure a lot of people don’t think about it. There are plenty of places in town to get second-hand items that might be perfect for your October soiree needs. Just a couple of weeks ago I helped a friend pick through Twice as Nice for things she could use as a Victorian-era zombie for a dance she performed in. We found everything we needed.
2. 2.     Raid your closet. Usually, this is how I get by on Halloween. Last year, my entire costume came from things I already had. I went as Harley Quinn, Joker’s sidekick of sorts from the Batman cartoons. Red pants, black tank, boots and gloves. I gave myself some temporary tattoos with magic marker and added diamond cutouts made of construction paper to my outfit. Easy peasy and a hit at the party I went to, if I do say so myself.
3. 3.     Wear what you like. Now, I’m an avid supporter of this theory at all times. Spooktacular is no exception. So, I caught up with Kelsey Claire Yates, a freshman in computer science and Japanese who definitely follows the wear-what-you-like mantra. You might have seen her around campus, decked out in Lolita, a Japanese-inspired style which combines Victorian and Rococo-period clothing with a sweet, sometimes animé twist.

“I guess it’s pretty Japan-inspired, but I really just wear what time permits and what I like,” Yates said. “Some days I am completely lazy and look pretty scruffy, but when I have time I like to dress cutesy (in Lolita) or I guess in sort of a ‘school girl’ style with plaid skirts and the like.”

So if this is on a semi-regular basis, what about Halloween? “I am considering being Misty from Pokémon,” she said. No doubt she’ll make an adorable Misty, and I commend the use of costume ideas that can’t be found at the Spirit store on McFarland.