What to Be for Halloween?

Each year, people scramble to come up with an ingenious Halloween costume rather than buy another ninja, witch, or monster get-up. To some, ideas come naturally. For others, thinking up a costume is a process that must start months in advance. This article will explain how I come up with a Halloween costume every year.

Things You Will Need

Knowledge of current events
Imagination
Motivation

Step 1 Think about popular fads or events that define the current year. Examples for 2009 include Twitter, the iPhone 3GS, the recession, the election in Iran, or how every top 40 rapper has suddenly learned what the word "swagger" means and feels compelled to use it in a song.
Step 2 Brainstorm how a Halloween costume could be made to represent or capitalize on these events. The key here is creativity, not cost. In 2008, I saw a person wearing a large piece of cardboard colored white and blue to look like a Facebook profile with his head poking through a hole in the top as the profile picture. This is the kind of creativity that makes for an excellent Halloween costume. The most rudimentary costumes are often the best.
Step 3 Decide whether the costume construction is feasible or not. Once you've decided on an idea for what you'd like to be for Halloween, think hard about the time and effort required to make such a costume in detail. Is it worth it? Are the materials you need easy to find? Will putting this costume together require a civil engineering degree? If the build process for a costume is too complicated, it is easy to become discouraged enough to give up.
Step 4 Decide if wearing the costume is feasible. When you're sure that the actual construction of the Halloween costume is doable, think about where and for how long you plan on wearing the costume. A lot of costumes are too cumbersome or uncomfortable to be worn for an extended period of time, and many inhibit certain movements altogether. If you plan on wearing the costume to a sit-down party for example, make sure your costume enables you to actually sit down comfortably. If you're making a costume to go clubbing on Halloween night, the ability to sit down may not be as important as being able to get a drink to your face or bust some killer dance moves.
Step 5 Build it! Now that you've carefully considered the construction and execution of your costume, gather all of the materials and tools you will need before you actually start building. This forces you to think the entire process through and prevents you from having to run to the store during the middle of the process. Creating a Halloween costume from scratch is one of the most fun aspects of Halloween, so take your time and enjoy the build.