Today's Topic
Halloween Freebie- Easy YA Costumes
I decided to make up some easy and affordable costumes to represent some characters from YA books. I read a lot of Contemporary, so this was kind of hard!! Unless someone in a Contemp book has a super distinctive style, it's pretty hard to make an outfit that people could say "yes that's totally _____". So I tried my best... and the emphasis was on AFFORDABLE. I used Polyvore, so I really had to hold myself back from picking the $2,000 dress. Almost everything I chose is under $50, and if it's not, it's something super generic that you could find cheap at any clothing store.
1.
- From Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. This was a favorite of mine as a child & how fun would it be to dress up like her?? I kind of did a mix of the movie version and the book version here. The yellow raincoat was very Michelle Trachtenburg.... and of course Harriet needs her notebook and binoculars.
2.
- Yay for Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene. The books were published way back when, so I made her an old fashioned looking detective girl.
3.
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Ronald Dahl. How can you not love Mr. Dahl's characters?? (Even when they're super selfish.) I went with the original movie version because I feel she's more well-known.
4.
- Say hello to your friends!! Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin was an 80's staple and everybody wanted to be brave enough to dress like Claudia. You gotta have the side-pony, and definitely some type of odd printed shit. Her outfits were regularly described as "outrageous" and she definitely liked to play with earring choices.
5.
- I love Lara Jean from To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han.... and I loved her style. It's romantic and girly and innocent and fun. I would say definitely wear something floral and a bow is a must.
6.
- Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira was not my favorite :( But I still think it would be fun to dress up like Laurel... mostly because a lot of her celebrity pen pals were from the 90's.
7.
- Mary Lennox from The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett was probably my hardest one to put together! But this would be SO fun to dress up as!
8.
- Luna Lovegood is probably tied for my favorite HP character. She's adorable, funny, and unique. This is an outfit she wore in the movie... as best I could recreate it.
9.
- Dorothy in Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige is not your girl next door. She's evil and wears mini skirts and stilettos. Make sure your lips are extra glossy because that's what PermaSmile would look like, right?
- **This one is the only outfit that I didn't make sure the prices were reasonable... sorry, it was something I made over the summer for book club. The dress is only $12 though!!
10.
- I'm only cheating a little bit here!! This is the 90's Clarissa from Clarissa Explains it All (one of my favorite shows as a preteen). But since Things I Can't Explain by Mitchell Kriegman comes out Nov. 10th, I think it's okay to say that Clarissa is now a book character :)
So one of these is actually my Halloween costume this year. Can you guess which one it is??
Also what were your Halloween lists about this week?
I almost did this topic, but you did a much better job than I could ever do. I love all the costumes you put together. I'd probably wear most of them as everyday outfits, too. :D
ReplyDeleteSarah @ Kerosene Lit
I LOVE these! I am scrounging around for a costume and I think I can make some of these from my closet! I love this theme for you, Michelle. and YES I can't wait for the Clarissa book :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is great and must have taken you FOREVER to put together. I'm rubbish at this kind of thing but I can totally see each character in the outfits that you have chosen. Plus I can see something in each one that I want for myself!!! Love the boots for Luna!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThese are amazing!! I used to love Clarissa too so I'll have to check out Things I Can't Explain! :D
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing. Very creative :D
ReplyDeleteOh these are amazing!!!! I could never come with something like this. I totally want to be Nancy Drew in that outfit!
ReplyDeleteI always wanted to dress like Claudia when I was a girl! What a great list!
ReplyDeleteThese are amazing. I love them all. The Babysitter's Club would be a seriously amazing group costume. Except I'd probably want to be Dawn. Although I have the hair for Kristy or Mallory.
ReplyDeleteCassi @ My Thoughts Literally
Awesome topic! These outfits are SO cute! I'd totally do Veruca Salt or Luna Lovegood. Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteMichelle @ Michelle's Minions
My TTT
These are great ideas! I'd love to be Veruca Salt for a day, or Dorothy Gale! Great topic! Happy Halloween! Here's my TTT.
ReplyDeleteI love all of these so much! But I especially love that you included Harriet the Spy Lara Jean! You really nailed each character's personal style!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love these costume ideas. I love the Veruca Salt costume. She is pretty terrifying! :-)
ReplyDeleteVery cute idea and costumes!
ReplyDeleteAnd as far as i can see every fitting in all aspects :)
I'm digging the Nancy Drew ensemble, especially the cloche hat. I loved Clarissa Explains It All. Nice list!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun list of characters!! I like the pictures you included of what each character would wear..
ReplyDeleteHere's a link to my TTT post for this week: http://captivatedreader.blogspot.com/2015/10/top-ten-tuesday-10-literary-halloween.html
Absolutely love these!! I'd be in Veruca Salt's outfit tomorrow. Fantastic topic :D
ReplyDeleteMy TTT
This is such a fun topic!! I love it! My favorite was Nancy Drew, for sure! Such a sassy lady! :D
ReplyDeleteHere are my Top Ten!
Using Polyvore was a great idea!
ReplyDeleteNancy Drew and The Baby-Sitters were my favorites as a girl --I love the outfits you chose for them (spot on with your Claudia notes and she liked Nancy Drew books too)!
My TTT was something similar: <a href="http://theartistlibrarian.blogspot.com/2015/10/top-dream-bookish-cosplays-top-tuesday.html>top book characters I'd want to cosplay.</a>
your ideas are so fun!!! Love how you put the costumes together! My TTT
ReplyDeleteThis was such a great idea! I love all of them, especially the Nancy Drew one. Great list! :)
ReplyDeleteThese are awesome!! I love some of the more well-known characters, so you're less likely to have to explain what your costume is ;)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a genius post idea! I love the looks for Nancy Drew and Harriet the Spy especially. I feel like if I saw someone dressed like that I would totally know who they were. That could have something to do with the fact that I was obsessed with Harriet the Spy and even wore a utility belt with all the gadgets and a notebook. In fact, it was part of what made me want to be a writer!
ReplyDeleteSeriously. This is fabulous! So much yes to Claudia from TBSC and Clarissa Explains it All. I have that book for review. Have you read it yet? I'm both excited and nervous.
ReplyDeleteI plan on reading it soon & I hope it's good!! I really really hope!
DeleteOMFG CLAUDIA!! She was my favorite babysitter, and that outfit is just AMAZING.
ReplyDelete