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11 Halloween Costumes for People Who Spend Too Much Time on the Internet

4 minute read

Halloween is almost two weeks away, which means time is running out to create the perfect costume. (Yes, you could always buy one, but homemade costumes are so much more fun and clever.) If you’re anything like us, you spend most of your time hiding behind a screen, entrenched in the weird world of the Internet — so why not use Halloween as an opportunity to celebrate the web’s biggest trends?

Here, ideas for 11 costumes that will help you take your web-savviness off of the screen and into the real world.

1. The Apparently Kid

Five-year-old Noah Ritter became a massive internet sensation thanks to his scene-stealing appearance on a local news segment. With appearances on Ellen, a mention on The Colbert Report and even a commercial deal, he won the Internet and our hearts.

What you need: A large TV microphone, a striped polo shirt, a can-do attitude. Make sure to punctuate all your sentences with the word “apparently”

2. The “Sexy Felon”

Jeremy MeeksStockton Police Department

This summer, the Internet collectively swooned over the mugshot of convicted felon Jeremy Meeks. He was just so dreamy that nobody seemed to care too much that the California resident was considered “one of the most violent criminals in the Stockton area.”

What you need: Perfect bone structure (or makeup to create the illusion), an orange jumpsuit, eyeliner to draw a teardrop on your face and tattoos on your neck, a sultry gaze

3. Potato salad

Remember that time the wonderful people of the Internet came together to raise $55,000 for some guy on Kickstarter who just wanted to make some potato salad? Yeah.

What you need: White pants, white shirt, a picture of potato salad to tape to yourself, money to tape to yourself (optional)

4. Some guy on Tinder

This will be the best way for you to score a date at that Halloween party.

What you need: A stuffed tiger, poster board and markers to make a portable Tinder placard, a weird pick-up line

5. The Ice Bucket Challenge

Beryl Lipton douses Matt Lee during the ice bucket challenge at Boston's Copley Square on August 7, 2014 to raise funds and awareness for ALS.
Elise Amendola—AP

This viral phenomenon truly dominated the Internet for weeks, so you might encounter other people who’ve turned this into a costume too. Step up your game by requesting ice water at the party and then make a scene by dumping it all over yourself.

What you need: A bucket to wear upside down on your head, ice cube trays to tape to yourself

6. The Snapchat ghost

A modern twist on a classic costume. To really commit here, you’ll need to dash away from all conversations in 10 seconds (or fewer).

What you need: A white sheet, scissors to cut some eye holes, large yellow poster board to tape to your back

7. Obama’s tan suit

President Obama Makes Statement In The Briefing Room Of White House
Alex Wong—Getty Images

Everybody online seemed to have really strong feelings about the tan suit Obama wore during an address about the terrorist group ISIS. Like, they didn’t seem particularly concerned about ISIS, but they were super concerned about Obama’s suit.

What you need: A tan suit

8. A Flappy Bird

Since the creator of this game seems to have taken about five minutes to make it, there’s no reason you should spend any more than that making your costume.

What you need: A picture of a Flappy Bird, a printer, tape

Note: If you plan to tag-team Halloween this year, here are some options that work for a group:

9. Pumpkin spice

Pumpkin Spice Latte
Michael Phillips—Getty Images

You’ll need to convince five friends to dress up as each one of the Spice Girls: Posh Spice, Baby Spice, Scary Spice, Ginger Spice and Sporty Spice. Then you get to be the long-lost sixth member: Pumpkin Spice. Get it?

How many people: 6

What you need: Platform shoes, a mini skirt, a pumpkin to wear on your head (or a picture of a pumpkin to tape to your shirt)

10. Sharknado 2

Gather your friends, attach some sharks to yourselves and swarm around everybody. Boom — you’re the real life version of everybody’s favorite campy disaster sequel.

How many people: 2 (or as many as you want, really)

What you need: Stuffed sharks to attach to your body, black clothing

11. John Oliver destroying things

The host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight started a tradition of taking buzzy topics or concepts and then just totally shutting them down — and these clips continually took the Internet by storm. For this costume, one person gets to be John, and everyone else gets to be one of the things he has taken down. (Think Columbus Day, native advertising, the Obama administration’s drone policy, pumpkin spice lattes, the sexism of Miss America, etc.)

How many people: 3 or more

What you need: A suit and rectangular glasses for John Oliver, a whole bunch of creativity for everything else

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