Americans hold a special place in there heart for the 1980’s. Whether it be music, board games, video games, fashion, movies of TV shows, people often really love the sense of nostalgia that comes over them when the 1980’s are mentioned. Therefore, it is no surprise that people absolutely love choosing 80’s costumes to wear of Halloween. Because there is such variety for men, women and children, it is easy for groups of friends or families to dress up as very recognizable characters to entertain other. Some people loved the 80’s so much that they wear 80’s costumes on days that aren’t Halloween.

Some popular 80’s costumes come from mimicking 80’s rock stars. Many memorable hair bands, or bands whose members have big hair, made a huge impression in pop culture. People with short hair can buy wigs and tease them to make the hair high. They can also dye the wigs any color they’d like since rainbow hair was common in the 80’s. Crimping and curling hair was popular for men and women in the 80’s. Rock starts also tended to wear very tight pants when on stage. These could be denim, polyester, silk, etc. The tighter the pants, the better. It was common to wear headbands across the forehead and wristbands. Leather was also big for 80’s rock stars.

Another popular 80’s costume is dressing up like Madonna. More of a singer than a rock star, her style has evolved so drastically in the last 30 years, but everyone still emulates her 80’s style. She often wore tights, short skirts, wacky headbands, fake pearls, heavy mascara, lingerie, finger-less gloves, sunglasses and huge jewelry. Her hair was normally crimped or curled.

Another popular 80’s costume is the 80’s prom queen. Dramatic cascading hair dos, long gloves and heavy make-up are must haves. Also, an 80’s prom dress can be found online or at a consignment shop. Make sure it is a bright color such as teal, magenta, tangerine, purple, etc, have huge shoulder pads and some kind of bugle beads, rhinestones, sequins or cutouts. More is more when it comes to the 80’s prom queen costume. You will also need a larger-than-life tiara and a bouquet of some sort. Preppy styles were also popular in the 80’s. Ralph Lauren, Perry Ellis and Bill Blass put out all kinds of cardigans, knee socks, polo shirts, headbands and crisp shirts. Tie a sweater over your shoulders for good measure.

With this Halloween fast approaching, many people are beginning to think about their Haloween costumes, and for good reason. A Halloween costume is easy to overlook and many people end up trying to find some sort of costume at the last minute, and mostly what you will find in this situation is a big headache and maybe a costume that does not quite fit. That is why thinking a little ahead – even just two weeks – can be a big help. This year, I am thinking a lot about period costumes and specifically, about 80’s costumes.

80’s costumes make sense as a Haloween costume this year (or any year) for several reasons. First of all, we are still in the midst of a general retro 80’s period where throwbacks to the 80s are very much in style. Second, 80’s costumes are a great option because so many of the clothes and fashions from the 1980’s look like they might costumes anyway; it takes only a little bit of imagination to bring it all the way to 80’s costume territory.

When I deal with period costumes, I like to think beyond the obvious. The way I do this is to come up with a list of 80’s celebrities. Celebrities are notorious for trying to follow the latest fashions, and looking back in time, you will see that the most 80’s looking people are celebrities. People like Madonna, Michael Jackson and Don Johnson epitomize in one way or another a definite 80’s look and are great ideas for 80’s costumes.

Excluding those three though, celebrities are sometimes difficult to turn into an 80’s costume. This is because, even though the celebrities are dressing at the height of fashion at the time, they still are just people dressed in clothes; many of them do not wear clothes that scream “costume”. For this reason, I like looking at specific characters the celebrities might have played in a movie. A great example of this is Tom Cruise in Top Gun. Dressing in a flight suit with “Maverick” on it is a great idea for 80’s costumes.

Whatever your approach to 80’s costumes might be, bring your own ideas and creativity to it to allow your costume idea to really pop at this Halloween costume party. Great 80’s costumes are always appreciated by those that like really clever and fun Halloween costumes.

With this Halloween fast approaching, many people are scrambling for a costume. Selecting the right Halloween costume can be difficult; there are now more choices than every before and the simple act of going to one store and picking out a costume in fifteen minutes is a thing of the past. Lately, I have been thinking more and more about period costumes as a great choice to stand out this Halloween. Mostly, I am trying to find a great 70’s costume.

There are several reasons I like period costuming for Haloween. First of all, it definitely rides that thin line between obscurity and originality. You can come up with something clever that people can still easily indentify and recognize without being obvious and lame. A 70’s costume would be no exception; even if people do not remember who exactly you are, they will usually be impressed with the original thought and attention to period detail.

When I think of a 70’s costume, I try to go beyond the obvious. It seems like every decade has one or two costumes that people immediately think of and the 70’s are no exception. For the most part, the common 70’s costume is either a disco girl or a Superfly-esque pimp. These are all well and good, but they will not win you any points for new; they are costumes you see, maybe not everywhere, but once in a while.

A good period 70’s costume, then goes a little deeper. The place I like to start is celebrities. Who was famous in the 70’s? And did they have such a distinctive look that you can pull of. Most people think of Elvis as a 50’s celebrity, but he made a huge comeback in the 70’s with his Vegas-style costumes. Elvis is not the best example, but other celebrities had distinctive looks that can make a great 70’s costume.

Even better, perhaps than dressing as a celebrity, since few of them “stand out” in terms of an unmistakable signature style, is dressing up as a famous character from the 70’s. This is my favorite option for a great 70’s costume if you can do it correctly. Personally, I think dressing up like Jack Nicholson’s character in Chinatown, complete with nose bandage would be a great choice.

However you approach your 70’s costume, I think it will be a great success. People love period costumes and if you make one that is uniquely yours, all the better. Take a little time to think outside the box and you will be sure to have a great 70’s costume!

Everything old is new again, be it in literature, cinema, sports or, yes, parties. And there’s no bigger or better party to enjoy this Halloween, the one day a year that everyone can cut loose and have fun without having to inhabit your own skin.

In that spirit, then, it’s a good idea to take a look at the best 80s halloween costumes the world has to offer, since the 80s are the new oughties. The wonderful days of Reaganomics, are all back upon our wishlist in a crashed economy.

Going as Gordon Gecco, for example, is an obscure idea for an 80s halloween costumes. Gecco, for those who don’t remember, was the antagonist in the 1987 hit film “Wall Street,” starring Charlie Sheen as an idealistic young stockbroker who is corrupted by both the process and Gecco himself, played brilliantly by Michael Douglas. Gecco cuts a stereotypical 80s figure: Slicked back hair, Armani suit, martini clutched in one hand and brick-sized cellphone in the other.

Some 80s halloween costumes that my girlfriend and I have kicked around without actually doing over the years center on two other films from that decade that we both love. First is “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” I would go as Indy, and she would go as Short Round. For those who don’t remember, Short Round was the 10 year old asian boy sidekick to Indy on that particular adventure. The idea works on a lot of levels if you think about it, many of them funny and wholly inappropriate.

Another of the 80s haloween costumes we’ve considered is getting a bunch of friends together and going as The Goonies. Coincidentally, the actor who plays Short Round also plays Data in The Goonies, so if you have an asian friend who’s willing to play the token role, get him or her aboard and go from there.

Two other great ensemble ideas from movies of that time are going as either the Ghostbusters or The Breakfast Club. Both are iconic 80s films that almost anyone would recognize off the bat, and can be a lot of fun to dress up as.

This Halloween, return to the free fun days of the 80’s if only for the night.

You may be tired of going out this Halloween dressed as the common ghost, witch, or mummy. Instead of going with what you find in the stores, you can go out and get what you need to make up your own totally unique costume that no one else will be wearing. They may have made the same costume but yours is going to be different than theirs because you made yours on your own. One great place to find ideas, if you are low on inspiration, would be in some of your favorite books. Book character costumes can be a lot of fun and are going to stand out in the crowd as original.

If you want something that you are not going to see on many other people this Halloween, do not go for book character costumes that are popular right now. You can usually tell this by looking through the movies that have been out and popular in the last few years. One example would be Harry Potter. Though you can come up with your own costume for this, these are being mass produced at the moment, making this a very common costume. If you like that character, that’s okay, just know you or your child will not be the only one wearing it.

When you choose book character costumes, you can choose what you want, but if you go with something obscure, you may find that no one knows who you are supposed to be and that you are going to have to explain your costume time and time again. If you go with something that many have read, but is not out in a movie now or has been in the recent past, you may not have to explain too much. Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With the Wind is well known, but you may not run into too many people who have chosen it. You may not have to explain either, making it a great choice.

There are a few things to keep in mind when constructing your haloween costume. Some books that are classics have not been made into a movie. This means your interpretation of what that character looks like will be up to you and what you found in the book. This type of book character costumes will be a bit harder to make, but it will also be hard to be wrong. If something has been a movie, even if that movie was made a long time ago, there is already a predetermined look associated with that character. That is something to keep in mind.

If you have chosen book character costumes that are out of the ordinary, you may have a hard time finding what you need to build your costume. You may want to go to a costume store for the bits and pieces that you need, or you can look online for the biggest variety of hard to find items that are going to be perfect for your book character costumes and accessories. At times, you may have to rent something, but that may be better than paying too much money for something you may never use again. This Halloween make your own.