Students across campus and surrounding areas flock to the University party scene every Halloweekend for days of dressing up, being with friends and “safely and legally” drinking.

Halloweekend enthusiasts often insist one needs three or four costumes for each day of partying; however, between paying for tuition, rent and groceries, many students don’t have an extra few hundred dollars to spend on costumes. 

These 10 simple costume ideas are great for individuals or groups who want to dress up using items already in their closets or things that can be made or bought for cheap. Also, if you’re concerned about sustainability, most of these costumes are made up of items that can be worn after Halloween rather than a one-time costume that will end up collecting dust in the back of your closet.

Alvin and the Chipmunks

This costume idea is great for trios, especially if one member already wears glasses. What each person needs is a red, blue or green sweatshirt, hoodie or even T-shirt. Alvin’s “A” can easily be made with some tape or paper. Chipmunks’ ears can be cut out and taped on a headband, or the group can split the under $20 cost for a three-pack of chipmunk headbands on Amazon. 

Regina George from “Mean Girls”

“Mean Girls” turned 20 years old earlier this year, making this the perfect Halloween to wear a Plastics-inspired costume. Dressing up as the forever-iconic leader of the trio is as easy as cutting out two holes in a tank top and wearing a bright-colored bra or shirt underneath. Pair the shirt with a mini-skirt — maybe even a blonde wig — and you’re ready to go. This costume can also work for a trio if you have friends down to dress up in the preppy, Y2K styles of Gretchen Wieners and Karen Smith.

Jennifer Check from “Jennifer’s Body”

If you want something as girly as Regina George but a little more murderous, the demonic Jennifer Check is the perfect choice. Just wear a white shirt, pink jacket, low-rise skinny jeans and some pink heart earrings that you can get for $7 on Amazon. You can also add some fake blood around your mouth to really capture the possessed, boy-eater look. 

The Mystery Gang from Scooby-Doo

The Mystery Gang is a classic costume idea for groups. The iconic five are easy to recreate with a white, long-sleeved shirt and orange ascot for Fred, a purple dress or shirt and skirt combo with a green scarf for Daphne, an orange top, red skirt and glasses for Velma, a green T-shirt and brown pants for Shaggy and dog ears with brown clothes and a teal collar for Scooby. The Mystery Gang’s recognizable color palette makes it easy to interchange some items with clothes you already own or can easily get, for example, replacing Velma’s chunky orange sweater with an orange T-shirt. 

Edward Cullen from “Twilight”

If you think of autumn as the “hoa hoa hoa” season, there’s no better costume than Edward Cullen. If you have a gray or black coat and dark jeans, all you need is silver glitter or rhinestones. You can buy some glitter body spray or glitter fabric paint to turn a white T-shirt into the skin of a killer. 

You can make the costume even better with some pale face paint or yellow contacts, but the look can be complete without makeup as long as you exude Edward’s unsettling, self-loathing energy. Friends can join in as Bella and Charlie Swan, the Cullen family or even Renesmee if you know someone with hauntingly large eyes. 

Kordell Beckham and Rob Rausch from “Love Island USA”

The “Love Island USA” hype has died down since the summer craze, but it’s still relevant enough to inspire your costume for this Halloween. For the fashion icon that is Kordell Beckham, you can wear a black shirt and red jacket or try to recreate one of his other looks from the show. The only other thing you need is a box of his beloved Cheez-Its. 

Rob Rausch is easy if you have a pair of overalls to recreate his go-to outfit. Just make sure you have an artist friend who can draw a snake on your right arm that looks vaguely similar to his tattoo. 

If you instead wanted a cute couple costume, you could dress up as Beckham and Serena Page, the winners of season six. Alternatively, go as Rausch and Leah Ketab and recreate the infamous fire pit scene. You could also rope your British friend into the group costume as the colorfully dressed and incredibly unpopular Aaron Evans.

Kim Possible

Kim Possible premiered 22 years ago, but the show’s protagonist remains a popular costume because of how easy her look is to recreate. All you need is dark green pants, a black long-sleeve crop top, fingerless gloves and a brown belt to complete the iconic Disney Channel character’s look. Friends can also join in as Ron Stoppable in a black shirt, gray pants and black gloves or Rufus, the naked mole rat, which fortunately does not require actual nudity, just a peach-colored bodysuit. 

The Powerpuff Girls

The Powerpuff Girls are a great idea for a group of three, especially for a blonde, ginger and brunette trio. For Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup, all you need is a light pink, blue and green dress with a black belt and, of course, Blossom’s red bow. Friends could also dress up as Professor Utonium, The Powerpuff Girls’ father, or one of their main nemeses like Mojo Jojo.

Dipper and Mabel from “Gravity Falls”

The “Gravity Falls” fandom returned this summer with the release of “The Book of Bill,” making this Halloween the ideal time to dress up as the Mystery Twins. For Mabel Pines, you just need a pink sweater, which you can add the shooting star logo to by recreating it with fabric paints or even printing it out and taping it on. Pair this with a purple skirt or shorts and a pink headband to complete the look. For Dipper Pines, you need a red or orange T-shirt, shorts, a blue vest and his pine tree hat, which you can make out of any white and blue hat or buy on Etsy for about $15. 

Rodrick Heffley from “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”

If you have dark hair and eyeliner, you’re already halfway to completing your Rodrick Heffley look. The only other thing you need is a black T-shirt and a flannel or a dark-colored button-down to wear over it. If you want to go the extra mile, recreate the “Löded Diper” logo with fabric paints. You could also go for Charlie Wright’s version of Heffley from “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul” if you have a similar dark bob haircut.

The hassle of finding costumes that are affordable and practical can add unnecessary stress to what should be one of the most fun weekends of the fall semester. 

But you don’t need to feel pressured to spend your hard-earned money on a jaw-dropping costume that will be seen mainly by drunk people in poorly lit spaces. Look in your closet for a few items to make a costume with, maybe buy one or two accessories and enjoy Halloweekend while saving your money for post-party food on Green Street or on-sale Halloween candy. 

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