Every Halloween, the same popular costumes pervade social media pages and overflow Halloween stores. Over time, people reinterpret them, year after year only with occasional tweaks or additions. These so-called “basic” costumes are tried, true and very popular.
“Witches, mermaids, vampires, princesses, pirates, gold-diggers, athletes, cops, prisoners and lifeguards are all popular costumes,” WHS student Sophie Murray said.
Accessibility contributes significantly; well-known costumes are easy to find inspiration for and simple to purchase. A quick search online reveals a plethora of ideas that would satisfy most people. However, over the last couple years, people are choosing to move away from recognizable, basic Halloween ideas to niche costumes.
“Due to the rise of social media, I’ve noticed people are trying to find more unique costumes that aren’t mainstream,” WHS student Sofia Baroletti said.
With apps like Tiktok, this trend of less “mainstream costumes” seems prevalent in annual costume inspiration videos. Imagine slideshows with collages of different elements of costumes with catchy Halloween songs playing in the background. It makes sense that people already find their niches on TikTok because the algorithm floods their For You Pages with anything they interact with.
“Recently, I’ve been watching “Gossip Girl,” and duo Serena and Blair costumes are all over my For You Page,” WHS student Gianna Frederick said.
By guiding viewers down a rabbit hole of their specific niches, people see solely what they are interested in, which applies to costumes too; the inspiration they receive for costumes on social media directly stems from those interests. For example, if someone interacts with pop culture moments on social media, they might see inspiration for or be inspired by that iconic moment when Hailey Bieber stepped out in a red mini dress and heels while Justin Bieber wore a sweatsuit and crocs; it is a perfect couples’ costume. Or maybe even Abby Lee Miller, a person with an abundance of viral moments to recreate. If history interests someone, they could see inspiration for historical figures’ costumes, like Catherine of Aragon or Alexander Hamilton. It is all about a person’s specific niche that others might not understand.
While mainstream costumes might be easier to find, niche costumes can actually be straightforward to put together. For example, if a person goes to private school, dressing as Ladybird, from the movie “Ladybird,” would be simple: they already would have a school uniform and would only need to buy pink wrap for an arm cast to make it recognizable. Or maybe dressing as Felix from the movie “Saltburn.” This would just require purchasing gold wings as people typically already own jeans or a jean skirt and a white tank top.
In the end, niche costumes will never be as prevalent or popular as mainstream costumes, that would be an oxymoron. However, social media enables people to find their niches, and consequently, more niche Halloween costumes.
