Game On!

Since the baby's due date is so close to Halloween, I won't be dressing up this year. But! That doesn't mean I can let my creative juices flow and help other people make their own original costumes, so every Tuesday in October be sure to check here for an innovative costume idea to get you ready for Halloween. While none of the costumes will take a whole month to make, the ones I demonstrate at the beginning of the month will take more time to put together than the ones at the end of the month, so keep that in mind if you are pressed for time.

It's fun to dress up as a character from your favorite video game for Halloween, especially because they are usually recognizable but not overdone - you know there won't be 15 people at the party wearing the same costume as you. I've gathered some ideas that I hope will help or at least inspire you to create your own.

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Mario

You might be thinking, "But ... Mario? He's kinda cliché for a costume list, don't you think?" And I'd agree with you. There are quite a lot of how-to blog posts dedicated to him, so I won't bore you by filling up space with another one, but I did want to share the site where I bought some caps for my nephews costumes. e4hats.com has some newsboy-styled caps in the perfect shades for Mario, Luigi, and Wario (sorry, you'll have to dye a cap purple if you have a Waluigi.) The link will take you directly to the particular hat that I used, but there is also a bigger size and a youth size if you need it. Just do a search on the site.

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Harvest Moon

This one might be a little harder for people to recognize, but the ones who do might be very excited to see it. The hardest part to find might be the baseball cap, but if you live close to a Hobby Lobby then you can dye one of the plain white caps that they sell. You'll get bonus points if you can either (1) carry around a cute farm animal with your costume or (2) get a girl to dress up as one of the ladies you can marry in the game. A lifetime supply of cookies will be awarded to the people who do both.

Team Fortress 2

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Not all TF2 costumes will be easy to recreate in time for Halloween (especially if you try to recreate some of their weapons) but there are some that are a little easier than others. Kali did a great photo tutorial of her Scout costume on her blog, Made By Kali. Also? There is a tumblr dedicated to TF2 cosplay help. Click it!

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Hunter (Left 4 Dead)

Speaking of Valve costumes, the Hunter is a pretty easy one to recreate. You can find a nice dark blue zip-up hoodie at Walmart right now, just fade it in the wash by adding some bleach to it. D. Vanderbleek has a great tutorial for a Hunter from Left 4 Dead 2, and a lot of the same principles can be applied to the Hunter costume for the original too. (The original Hunter is what I used for my picture on the right.)

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Lara Croft

There are many versions of Lara Croft's costumes, but the classic blue tank is my favorite. If you have trouble locating a tank top in the right color, most craft stores will sell white ones year-round along with dye so you can get it the right shade. Add to it brown shorts, some fake pistols, and a long braid (or a ponytail extension if your hair isn't long enough) and you've got one strong and sexy character costume.

There are tons of other great costumes inspired by video games. Need more inspiration? Check out my Pinterest boards!