On Halloween night, everybody shows their spooky spirit by getting into costume. But any true Halloween fanatic needs to embody the holiday in more ways than just wearing one outfit for one night (or several nights here at Northwestern). Here is your guide to Hallowerking it in all aspects of life, all spooky season long.

Everyday outfits

You can dress up for Halloween without putting on a costume by invoking the themes of the holiday in more subtle ways. Cozy fall sweaters, sexy Morticia-esque looks, or horror iconography—whatever your style, you can spice up your wardrobe with some of the pieces below or pull the eeriest outfits from your own wardrobe.

Chunky Ribbed Sweater from Forever 21 ($24.99) Just the color orange is enough to give your outfit Halloween vibes.
Robin Black Flounce Sleeve Top from Lulus ($29.00). All the drama of witchy sleeves without the pointy hat (though that would also be quite the fashion moment).
The Shining Inspired Grady Twins Earrings from Etsy ($24.99). Etsy is a treasure trove of custom horror-inspired jewelry, so you can find the perfect bling for your favorite flick.

Music

Why listen to your boring, normal playlist when you could listen to Halloween music!? And yes, that is a genre. Create your own playlist of Halloween hymns or just listen to the one I’ve carefully curated. It’s got a little rock, a little pop, a little kitsch, and a little horror. What more could you want?

Check out my playlist below:

Movies

There are two kinds of movies for Halloween: campy and horror. Or, the secret third option (and my personal favorite): campy horror! Whatever you prefer, here are some recommendations, all available on Netflix.

Coraline (2009). Being animated does NOT mean it’s not disturbing.
The Conjuring (2013). Ghosts. A witch. New England. Ooky-spooky.
Scream (1996). A parody of a horror movie that’s also a good horror movie. 

Decor

When you live in a dorm room, it’s easy to forget how much fun it is to decorate for Halloween. String up some spiderwebs and pop a pumpkin on your desk to make your room hauntingly homey. Target is your one-stop shop for this kind of stuff in Evanston, or get crafty and make your own!

Lit Decorative Pumpkin from Target ($5.00)
Stretchy Spiderweb Halloween Decoration from Target ($4.00)
Spooky Paper Snowflake (Totally free! There are tons of tutorials for these; here’s how to make the one in the picture.)

Food

College students may not trick-or-treat, but they still deserve sweet treats on Halloween night. Try one of the recipes below or just, you know, gorge on a big ol’ bag of candy.

Caramel Apples. It’s fruit, so technically it’s healthy.
Halloween Party Cutout Cookies
Sugar Cookies. Just like grandmonster used to make.
Dirt Cake. Worms. You know, like a graveyard.

There you have it! Everything that you need to be freaky and fabulous for the most wonderful time of the year. Now go out and give ‘em pumpkin to talk about. Happy Halloweekend!

Thumnail by Neil Conway from Oakland, USA - Caramel Apples, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=34923299