Umbra Ex Libris’s second favorite holiday is right around the corner, and oh boy, are we excited. We love all things Halloween and cannot wait to celebrate with you. Where would Halloween be without people dressing up. Are you trying to find a neat literary costume to dress up as this Halloween? Look no further we have a list of ten potential costumes for our fellow book lovers. From Pennywise to an actual bookworm, we hope you can find some inspiration this year from us.
A Hogwarts Student (Harry Potter)
If you haven’t heard anything about Harry Potter, I might think you’ve lived under a rock for the last decade or so. The books, and shortly after the movies, became incredibly popular. In the wonderful world of Harry Potter students attend a magical school called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In this school students learn many activities such as spellcasting and potion making. After students graduate they can find many jobs in the wizardry world, from looking after magical creatures, to working in the wizarding government.
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Witch and Wizard costumes are a staple of any Halloween party. Look around and you just might see twenty. Why not spice up the stereotypical outfit to make it book themed? The classic outfit consists of a hat, a robe, and a wand or a broom. By adding some house colors from Harry Potter you can elevate that costume. Underneath your robe you should wear either green for Slytherin, yellow for Hufflepuff, blue for Ravenclaw, or maroon for Gryffindor. If you are trying to rock Harry Potter himself, you need to add a lighting scar with some makeup and some round glasses. This look will definitely be more popular at the party than the average witch or wizard.
Dracula (Dracula)
When I think of costumes I eventually fall towards vampires. Now there are multiple ways you can take this. You could go down the route of Twilight and dress as a member of the Cullen family. There are also Stephen King vampires from ‘Salem’s Lot or the Dark Tower series. But there is also the classic Dracula. This notorious vampire, created by Bram Stoker, preys on England as they vow to destroy him. It’s this story that sparked our fascination with vampires, and what better way to celebrate than with a costume.
For this costume, you can keep it relatively simple. To really pull it off you will need three things: White face paint, a cloak or cape, and vampire teeth. Dracula’s skin is described as a “tall old man, clean-shaven, save for a long white moustache, as clad in black from head to foot, without a single spec of colour about him anywhere” in our protagonist, Jonathan Harker’s journal entry. The white paint will help portray his lack of coloring. A black cloak or cape will help represent his looming figure. Pair this with a dress shirt and slacks for a more sophisticated representation. Lastly, the teeth because we are talking about a vampire after all. And there you have it, a great representation of our favorite vampire.
Frankenstein’s Monster (Frankenstein)
Yeah, yeah we all know it’s Frankenstein’s monster but for simplicity’s sake we will say Frankenstein. If you want to dress up as Dr. Frankenstein by all means nothing is stopping you. Dr. Frankenstein, a mad scientist, creates life by patching together a bunch of parts. Using the power of electricity, and who knows what else, brings to life this creature. The villagers misunderstood this poor monster which brought about his demise. It’s a tragic tale, really, but another classic Halloween staple.
To create this misunderstood monster, you really only need some green or yellow skin paint and some ratty clothes. Mary Shelly also mentions how his lips and hair are both black but you can do what you want with that information. Some ratty clothing or clothing you can cut and tear to make ratty should also be worn to complete this look. The stereotypical stitching makeup works great too seeing as how the monster was stitched together from other body parts.
A Hobbit (Lord of the Rings)
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Lord of the Rings is one of the most well known fantasies. A quick synopsis, a fellowship of hobbits, dwarves, elves and men band together to destroy the ring. They must take the ring to the Crack of Doom, where the ring was originally forged, and cast it into the volcanic fires. Of course, this mission would be too easy if not for the evil Sauron and his Black Riders who are trying to stop the destruction of the ring.
Hobbits have since become a loved character for many. This is a relatively easy costume if you have the right pieces. For this you will need a white/gray/off-white button down (slightly oversized if possible), pants of the tweed or corduroy variety (sweatpants can also work with slight alterations), suspenders, and a cloak. If you are using sweatpants, I suggest you cut or cuff the ankles so they land at mid calf. Hobbits appear to have baggy shirts, pants that are cuffed or too short, with suspender to hold them at the waist. They walk with a cloak for cover. If you’d like to include a tribute to the hobbits of LOTR, you can slip a gold ring on to a necklace chain and transform yourself into the beloved Frodo Baggins.
Faerie/Fae (A Court of Thorns and Roses)
If you are on Booktok in anyway, you have likely stumbled across some of Sarah J. Mass’s work. A full review of the A Court of Thorns and Roses will be coming to the blog soon. Mass’s fantasy world stretches across three series of world building and character depths. ACOTAR specifically follows the story of Feyre, a human girl, who is thrusted into the realm of the Fae.
It is full of romance and adrenaline pumping action. And of course the beautiful, mystical Faeries. These faeries are not like what we remember growing up. They do not look like Tinkerbell and speak through peeps and squeaks. These are powerful beings with beauty from another dimension. The good news, this Halloween you can feel the part as a Faeries as well. This is going to be in two parts because the dress code varies for men and women. For either, the color palettes will vary depending on your liking. Think natural, earth toned colors for a more nature oriented fae, bright and colorful for friendly fae, and dark for our more chaotic fae.
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For women, we want flowy and soft, yet still powerful and strong. To achieve this, a long skirt or dress with a flowy fabric will give us the softness we are looking for. With this, pair a vest or corset of coordinating colors. You can add variety to these costumes by incorporating gloves or sleeves. Flowy sleeves may lean towards a softer presenting fae while tighter gloves give way to a powerful, concealing fae. Lastly, layer items. This could look like adding belts or even skirts to add volume. Incorporate intricate jewelry like stacked necklaces or dangling earrings. And don’t be hesitant to add stylistic braids to your hair. Have fun and lean into femininity with this while also embracing power and grace.
For our guys, your fae attire may vary. A general base would be mid calf length pants, either cut or cuffed. A loose fitting button down coordinated with the color of your pants. To tie the costume together, a belt satchel to tuck your shirt into will help. This gives the woodsy, strong feel to the costume while sticking to a very natural presentation. For both of these costumes, I encourage the incorporation of ears if possible. You can get these off Amazon or special orders on etsy. This will add the fantasy feel to the characters.
An Eldritch Horror/Yog-Sothoth (H.P. Lovecraft)
Everyone in some form or another has heard of H.P Lovecraft. A common theme he uses in his books is how insignificant humans are to cosmic beings. For example, the sheer size and scale of his monsters make humans look like ants in comparison. Often, the characters who observe these monsters go crazy, delusional, or outright lose their mind trying to comprehend what they’ve seen.
Lovecraft describes Yog-Sothoth as a mass of orbs or eyes with and occasionally tentacles. Imagine the possibilities you can work with to try and create this eldritch horror. In my head, I imagine a black bodysuit. Attached to the body suit could be black pool noodles as tentacles. Added to those tentacles are fake eyes, or maybe some fake blood with eyes. It would be really neat to add some sort of lighting or glow sticks. This costume can be made however you desire, as no human can comprehend Yog-Sothoth. You might as well go crazy.
A Flapper/Dapper (The Great Gatsby)
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Wasn’t prohibition a wonderful time. Everyone lived their best life bootlegging alcohol and listening to the sound of that sweet sweet jazz. The roaring 20’s is one of the times I wish I lived in. Moreover, I wish I could have attended one of Gatsby’s well known parties. Even though he threw the parties for love, all the attendees enjoyed themselves. While there’s a lot more to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, when it comes to Halloween this is where you can find the coolest costumes.
Do you have an old suit lying around? For ladies I bet you can find a cheap retro dress from a thrift shop. Top hats and boas are optional but highly recommended to add that special pizzazz. For Halloween you could even throw a prohibition style party. Everyone comes dressed in dapper and flapper outfits while attempting to smuggle some drinks into the party. If you decide to throw one make sure to invite us!
A bookworm (just punny)
Now, this one isn’t necessarily from a book but more a play on words. If you enjoy reading the same way we do, there is likely a time you’ve been referred to as a bookworm or even referred to yourself as such. The term actually originates as an insult, not the cheery worm wearing glasses sitting in a book. A bookworm was used to describe someone who spent to much time in books, but a “worm” was used to refer to an object of contempt. Not very cheerful if you ask me.
So this costume lets us reclaim the word. Although not often used as an insult nowadays, or maybe an insult with very little singe to it, we can turn this into a fun costume. My preference would require only three things and optionally some paint. I would go for a green sweat suit, ideally of the lime or bright variety. Next, you would need some wire or black pipe cleaners. Lastly, a book. With our green sweat suit we can take a darker green paint and put some stripes on it. This will give our costume the cartoony flair to make our cheerful worm. With the pipe cleaners or wire we can twist and maneuver into the shapes of glasses, this will add a nerdy touch to our reading larvae. Of course you cant forget the book, because you can’t have a bookworm without the literature.
Pennywise (It)
Where would Halloween be without the scary. Stephen King’s villain, Pennywise, is a delightfully frightening clown to dress up as. In the book It, Pennywise haunts a group of children by transforming into their greatest fears. In the book, Pennywise transforms into a Dracula, piranhas, a mummy, and much more. The children team up to take him down to prevent other kids from dealing with him in the future. If you haven’t read It before, it’s well worth the read.
Really, if you want to dress up as Pennywise the clown you can taken any one of his many forms. The most recognizable one is obviously the clown. For the clown, you’ll need the normal clown supplies such as some white face paint. You can decide if you want red face paint for lips and the nose or if you want to go with the normal red honking nose. You can probably DIY an outfit from a thrift shop to save some money instead of the costume store. Feel free to add details or take away details to your desire, and of course have fun with it. Some people like to make their own while others like to buy everything. The choice is yours.
Sherlock Holmes (Sherlock Holmes)
Lastly, we have our favorite detective. Arthur Conan Doyle first introduced us to Sherlock Holmes in his novella A Study in Scarlet. In this short novel, Doyle brings about the famous detective and of course Watson. This is a typical murder mystery with patterns, clues, a mysterious death and an unknown killer. What really makes this story stand out is the unique protagonist Mr. Sherlock Holmes. Holmes has a keen attention to detail and a unique conversation style. The character himself is quick witted, but not immune to failure. He is so thoroughly loved people made TV shows and movies about him.
The fun thing about this costume is you could easily do it with a partner. For Sherlock, you will need brown or black pants, an off-white or white button down, a brown or grey vest, and lastly the hat. This hat is called a ‘deerstalker hat’. In the book, The Adventure of Silver Blaze, Doyle describes it as an “ear-flapping traveling cap,” and it is this hat that has coined the classic appearance of Holmes. Throw in a pipe and you have yourselves the beloved detective. For Watson, the same pants and top will do fine. Instead of a vest, opt for a sport coat style. Watson most often wore a bowler hat paired with his signature bow tie. Together, you will look like the most regal gentlemen (or ladies).
We hope you found some ideas for this years Halloween costumes, or maybe this sparked some new ideas. This is the time to be creative! We also hope you enjoyed our official launch into the Halloween season. Come back once a week for a special treat! What do you plan on dressing up as? What do you think Jonas and I will be dressing up for this Halloween? You might just have to come back and find out!
As always, happy (spooky) reading!