Getting dressed for an office Halloween [1] party is always kinda tricky: you're in need of a costume your boss will approve of — sorry, sexy cat — and definitely don't feel like going crazy for your nine to five — you've got a commute to get through, after all.
Stuck in a similar dilemma, we searched high and low for work-appropriate options and discovered a handful of brilliant ideas. These 47 looks will get the point across without causing any trouble, making getting into the Halloween spirit easier than ever. Suddenly, celebrating with your coworkers doesn't seem so scary.
Russell From Up
What You'll Need: A yellow shirt, a yellow cap, khaki or brown shorts, white socks, booties, a fake scout sash, and some balloons (the ultimate hint).
A Scarecrow
What You'll Need: A floppy hat, a plaid shirt, jeans, boots, and a bit of straw means you're pretty much off to see the wizard.
Rosie the Riveter
What You'll Need: A denim shirt and a bandana for your hair. Strike this pose in every picture so people know exactly who you are!
A Ladybug
What You'll Need: A red polka dot shirt and some wings.
Any Animal With Ears
What You'll Need: Just add a pair of ears! Cat, dog, bunny, mouse — if it has ears, it'll totally work in any setting.
Wednesday Addams
What You'll Need: An LBD [2], a white collared shirt, black tights, and black shoes.
A Ballerina
What You'll Need: A tulle skirt is the only must-have item. Pair it with a solid shirt, tights, and ballet flats, the stick your hair in a bun to drive the point home.
A Flight Attendant
What You'll Need: A blue dress, belt, and a neckscarf. And knowledge of where the nearest exits are.
Sandy From Grease
What You'll Need: An all-black look, a leather jacket, and a pop of red heels.
A Geek or Nerd
What You'll Need: A collared shirt and a pair of taped glasses and you're good to go.
Mrs. Doubtfire
What You'll Need: A white shirt, black skirt, and two pan covers to fight that fire.
Wayne's World
What You'll Need: Grab a coworker and go as Wayne and Garth. One wears a flannel shirt, white graphic tee, and jeans and the other rocks a black trucker hat, black tee, and jeans. Party time! Excellent!
Frida Kahlo
What You'll Need: A white shirt, a green maxi skirt, a tan scarf, and red flowers in your hair. Don't forget those statement jewels.
Damian From Mean Girls
What You'll Need: A hoodie, some sunglasses, and a sign with his hilarious quote — "She doesn't even go here!" — and you're done.
A "Formal Apology"
What You'll Need: Wear what you usually wear to work, just add an "I'm sorry sign." BOOM — done.
Tweedledee
What You'll Need: A yellow shirt, red pants, a blue bow tie, and suspenders. Maybe a Tweedledum.
A Robber
What You'll Need: A striped shirt [3]! And a black hat, black pants, and a bag of money.
A Minion
What You'll Need: A yellow shirt [4], overalls, and a pair of skiing goggles. It doesn't get any easier!
A Pirate
What You'll Need: A bandana, a white shirt, a brown belt, boots, boho jewelry, and maybe even a sword. It's likely you have all of these in your treasure chest — err, closet — already.
Elliott From ET
What You'll Need: A red hoodie and a makeshift bike out of an old basket. Oh, and don't forget your alien friend!
Batman
What You'll Need: This is another case of a graphic T-shirt saving the day. The mask is pretty much optional.
A Wicked Witch
What You'll Need: A pointy black hat — the rest of the outfit is up to you! We suggest something dark and mysterious.
A Power Ranger
What You'll Need: Rock one of these shirts under your blazer for a bit of motivation — go, go, Power Ranger!
Wonder Woman
What You'll Need: A red shirt with the Wonder Woman logo and preferably a blue skirt to go with the color theme.
A Piñata
What You'll Need: A rainbow-striped shirt. Bonus points if you go all out and add paper details like this!
A Mermaid
What You'll Need: A lace top to mimic netting, vibrant leggings, and a net skirt to go on top. And definitely add sparkles and glitter to take it to the next level.
Minnie Mouse
What You'll Need: Minnie ears, a black top, and a red skirt. Mickey not included.
Mary Poppins
What You'll Need: A black hat, a white shirt, a red bow tie, and a skirt suit. This one's perfect for all those commuting bag ladies.
A Skeleton
What You'll Need: A shirt or sweater with a skeleton print on it. Keep the rest of your outfit black.
Superman
What You'll Need: A superman t-shirt peeking out from under your everyday clothing.
Harry Potter
What You'll Need: A black jacket, a tie with Gryffindor colors, and a wand. Muggles beware!
Hermione
What You'll Need: A Gryffindor tie, a white shirt, a black skirt, knee-high socks, and a book.
A Mime
What You'll Need: If you've got a striped shirt [5] and a bowler hat, you're pretty much set.
Spinelli From Recess
What You'll Need: An orange hat, a red dress, striped tights, and boots. The best part is, you don't even have to ditch your jacket.
Waldo
What You'll Need: A red and white striped shirt, a red hat, and some glasses. But playing hide-and-seek at work probably isn't wise.
A Ghostbuster
What You'll Need: This one's timely with a new movie [6] in the works! All you need is one of these shirts — and the lyrics to the theme song memorized.
An '80s Girl
What You'll Need: Pull on a bodysuit over some leggings and rock a single arm warmer.
Miley Cyrus
What You'll Need: While the bear backpack may be a bit much, you can definitely wear a West Coat tee and tie a bandana around your head.
3 Blind Mice
What You'll Need: Another fun one to try with your colleagues. Grab some mouse ears, sunglasses, canes, and white gloves and go as three blind mice.
A Garden Gnome
What You'll Need: A pointy red hat, plaid shirt, and a watering can.
Audrey Hepburn/Holly Golightly
What You'll Need: A black dress, pearls, a crown, and cocktail gloves. This look will also pair perfectly with your coffee cup and bagged breakfast in the morning.