How to Save Money on Halloween Costumes
Halloween might not be as expensive as other holidays, such as birthdays and Christmas, but parents often end up spending more money than they wanted to on costumes and candy. The easiest way to reduce how much money you spend on Halloween costumes is to skip the retail stores and get creative instead. Your child is bound to be just as happy with an invented costume that you created with your own ingenuity as he would be if you let him pick one out at the store.
Instructions
Exchange costumes with friends and family members. Ask other people if they have old costumes their children have outgrown, and choose one that will fit your child. Offer your old costumes to friends and family members looking for ways to save money on costumes, too. Make your child's costume yourself. Use materials you have around the house so you don't have to buy anything. Perhaps your child could wear black pants and a black T-shirt and go as a black cat. Use black eyeliner to draw a nose and whiskers on her face. You might also cut old white T-shirts into strips and wrap them around your child to turn her into a mummy. Shop at secondhand and thrift stores. You can often pick up a practically brand new Halloween costume for just a few dollars. Since many children only wear the costume for one night, thrift stores are a good place to find costumes that look new and are clean and in good shape. Online searches might yield inexpensive, but gently used, costumes, as well. Ask your child to reuse a costume from last year if it still fits. Many children are willing to be the same thing again, especially if it's a much-loved superhero or cartoon character that your child is still passionate about. Shop the day after Halloween in preparation for next year. Many retail stores slash the prices of Halloween costumes by as much as half. Pick up a costume that your child will be willing to wear next year in a size or two larger than he's wearing right now and save it until next Halloween.
