Clever 2021 Halloween Costumes That Won't Miss The Mark

Tired of wearing cat ears and eyeliner whiskers to every Halloween event? There's nothing wrong with a classic Halloween costume, especially when you're in a pinch. However, sometimes, it's fun to wear something a little unexpected and creative.

This year, punny costumes and clever makeup tricks might be your new go-to. The best part? These ideas are inexpensive and office appropriate. Taking on a surprising, simple, and fun costume will not only save you money, but also save you time and headaches. Let us do the thinking in terms of what you're going to be this year. That's more time you can spend celebrating the spooky season with your friends and family.

Plus, all of these costumes can be expanded into couples or group costumes. Anyone can jump on the bandwagon and take part in your costume to make life easy. Whether you go as a solo act or dress up with friends, you're sure to get compliments and laughs. Check out these top Halloween costumes for 2021 to find a cute idea!

Looking for a quick and dirty pun? The "Fifty Shades of Grey" Halloween costume from Good Housekeeping will make things simple. The base of your costume can be anything grey, like a grey t-shirt and jeans. Then, pick up a bunch of grey paint sample cards at your local home improvement store. These should be free!

All you have to do after that is attach the paint sample cards to your t-shirt. As long as you don't plan on wearing your grey t-shirt again, you can even use a glue gun to stick the cards to the fabric. Who said punny costumes weren't easy and cheap?

We're all about the puns when it comes to Halloween. The "Life Gives You Lemons" costume highlighted by BuzzFeed is bound to get you a few eye rolls. To recreate it at home, you'll need a yellow dress, a basket, a name tag, and some lemons. Place the lemons in the basket, put on your dress, and stick a name tag on the dress labeled "life." That's it!

If you feel like going the extra mile, try using a woven basket lined with cloth for a special touch. You might even pick up some lemon drops to give out for free. Your fellow party-goers will thank you.

Ready to show off your paint skills? Dressing up as a Roy Lichtenstein painting like Val Hill did on Instagram is sure to impress your friends and family. For this clever costume, you'll need your favorite outfit, a wig in a fun color, costume makeup, and a piece of heavy-duty card paper. If you don't feel like wearing a wig, you can also use a semi-permanent hair dye in red, purple, or blue. Hair chalk would work well, too.

The costume makeup involves red polka-dots and heavy black lines to re-create the look of the Lichtenstein pop painting. To give yourself a cartoon style, outline your lips, cheekbones, jaw, nose, and chin in thick black liner. If you really want to go the extra mile, you can even splurge on some electric-blue color contacts. Then, cut the iconic speech bubble out of the card paper and write out your favorite Lichtenstein phrase. The extra effort you put into your costume will not go unnoticed!

If you're on the hunt for a silly pun that requires minimal effort, "right to bear arms" should be right up your alley. Walmart even sells furry bear arms, which makes creating this costume incredibly easy. Wear the arms, and let your friends figure out the pun.

If those bear arms are a little too pricey for you, there's another cheaper option. Get two teddy bears and simply tape them to your arms! Wear whatever outfit you please to finish the look, as the teddy bears will do most of the work for you. If you wish, you can add a little more effort with some bear ears and bear makeup.

Ready for a progressive costume? Try out "universal healthcare" from PopSugar. This clever outfit needs just two components: A space dress or a space t-shirt, and a white lab coat. Amazon sells a variety of space and constellation dresses, space joggers, galaxy leggings, and space skirts. You can also find a lab coat at a variety of online retailers. For something less expensive, check out your local costume store. There's bound to be a simple lab coat in there.

If you're worried that your friends won't understand the pun, feel free to wear a name tag that reads "Affordable Care Act" or simply "healthcare."