Gods and Goddesses

• Treat yourself like the god or goddess that you are by paying homage to your favorite Greek or Roman figures. If you live in a cold climate, wear white leggings or pants and a white turtleneck for a base layer. Take a white sheet and drape it artfully around you, securing the sheet with safety pins. You may need to have a second person helping you. Tie a belt of braided leather, fabric or rope around your waist to further secure the sheet. Make a wreath for your head by securing ivy into a loop with pipe cleaners or chicken wire. Finally, if the god of your choice has a particular characteristic, carry a prop that reflects his personality. For example, Dionysus is the god of wine, so carry a wine glass to complete the look.
  
  

Big Screen

• Cardboard boxes are invaluable for cheap Halloween outfits. Skip the predictable Christmas present outfit and wear a personalized plus-sized costume by constructing a faux big screen TV. You will need a large box that you can fit into easily. A good place to obtain large boxes for free is a grocery or technology store---call ahead to see what they have available. Cut a hole in the box for your head and your arms. Make sure your arms can move freely and comfortably, as you are undoubtedly going to be using them throughout the night. With a straightedge, make an outline around the front side of the box. Within this outline, glue a movie poster or print characters from your favorite TV show inside the outlined box. You may want to enlarge the picture at a local copy center to properly fit the screen of your TV. Paint the other sides of the box black. Wear black clothing to blend in with your TV.
  
  

Grapes

• Get crafty to create a simple costume suitable for all sizes. For the base, choose a monochromatic outfit, like black pants and a black shirt. Purchase purple or green balloons. In fact, this is a good outfit for couples to choose, because one person can be green grapes and the other purple grapes. Blow up many balloons and tie the ends securely. Take yarn or string and tie the ends of the balloons onto the string with a simple overhand knot, about six inches apart along the string. Wrap the string of balloons around your torso and secure it with safety pins.
  
  

Garbage Bags

• One of the simplest items to convert into an outfit is the garbage bag. Purchase a garbage bag that fits your torso, and cut holes for your legs. Depending on the bag, you may want to the tie the top of the bag around your chest so your arms are free. An alternative is to loosely tie the top of the trash bag around your neck, and cut holes for the arms. Stuff the bag with wads of newspaper. You can make a jack-o-lantern by gluing a face and mouth with orange construction paper to the front of your bag. You can also be a faux heap of garbage by stuffing clean, disposable items into the top of your bag, like paper cups and plates. Leaving streams of different colored crepe paper is a colorful and classy way to create the illusion of garbage.