Every year people of all ages dress up as scary monsters and funny characters for Halloween, but college students especially enjoy thinking up creative costume ideas for the spookiest time of the year.
The longtime tradition of donning costumes on Halloween night originates from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain held to mark the beginning of winter, where people would wear costumes and light fires to scare away ghosts.
Over time, the tradition has evolved and lived on into the 21st century where people dress up as anything from lovable movie characters to well-known Halloween creatures like a black cat.
Even with some Halloween celebrations minimized this year due to COVID-19 concerns, many students still used their imaginations to dress in unique outfits.
Digital advertising junior Madelyn Murret and civil engineering junior Quinn Fuentes twisted the meaning of a couples costume this Halloween.
Instead of imitating a popular couple, the pair dressed up as different versions of the character Eleven from their favorite Netflix series, “Stranger Things.” Murret, like many college students, enjoys the opportunity to dress in a costume.
“People like dressing up for parties, taking pictures and having an excuse to be something else for a night,” Murret said.
Other students also took inspiration from Netflix for their outfits.
Pre-nursing senior Madison Hanks dressed up alongside her boyfriend as members of the Cobra Kai dojo from the pair’s favorite popular Netflix series, “Cobra Kai,” which follows Johnny Lawrence from the cult classic “Karate Kid.”
“It’s just fun to dress up any way you want,” Hanks said.
Mass communication junior Mallory Panzavecchia donned a yellow hazmat suit in reference to the popular crime drama, “Breaking Bad.”
Panzavecchia said people enjoy Halloween because they can have an alter ego for the night.
“It allows people to show their creativity,” Panzavecchia said.
Some students developed costumes that were outside of the box, yet easy to achieve.
Biochemistry junior Kole Martin dressed up as “Jake from State Farm,” from the State Farm commercial. His costume only involved a red shirt and a nametag, but was easily recognizable.
Martin said he enjoyed other people asking him for insurance throughout the night and loved that others received his costume well.
“I like dressing up for Halloween because it’s always fun for people to guess what I am,” Martin said. “Most of the time it’s easy to guess, but sometimes it’s challenging and that makes it fun. I also like to experience everyone else and their excitement about how they made their costume.”
Chemical engineering junior Aaron Hutchinson chose to support the New Orleans Saints and dressed up as the Saints coach, Sean Payton. He said since the Saints were playing Halloween weekend, he couldn’t think of any better way to support his favorite NFL team than dressing “as the man himself.” Like Martin, Hutchinson’s costume was simple and just involved a Saints shirt and a baseball cap.
“I think people dress up for Halloween to have fun with friends,” Hutchinson said. “Dressing up is a great time.”
Biochemistry junior Kole Martin dressed up as "Jake from State Farm," from the State Farm commercial for Halloween.
