CIS Thrift Shops a thrift haunting good time
Across the country, the leaves are changing and the air is getting cooler. Fall is in the air and Halloween is coming. Everyone enjoys dressing up for Halloween, but most people don’t like buying average store-bought costumes. Visit a CIS Thrift Shop and assemble your one of a kind costume. With a bit of creativity, you can put together your unique costume for around $10.
Some people spend a lot of money on elaborate Halloween costumes – then there are the rest of us: Halloween means a quick run through our closets and a treasure hunt at your local thrift shop. There is no better place to shop for a costume than thrift shops. Whether you already have a costume idea and need to get some assorted pieces to complete your look, or need a last-minute costume, thrift shops and secondhand stores are the place to find the perfect costume!
“You can find just about everything you might need to build a great costume without spending a lot of money,” says Todd Beane, Communications and Thrift Shop Operations Director for CIS. “It’s best to focus on a few key pieces and then build your outfit around those.”
Look for frilly dresses, retro men’s suits, medical scrubs, or even a plain t-shirt to complete with accessories. Then shop around in the housewares department for the accessories. A star from a Christmas ornament, a dowel from a picture hanger, and some ribbon would make a great wand. Housewares and bed-and-bath departments are an often-overlooked source for costume creations. Velvet curtains create a vampire’s cape. Fancy tablecloths can be turned into queen’s robes. Sheer curtains can be attached to wire coat hangers and you’ve got fairy wings.
CIS Thrift Shops have the inventory you need to make that special one-of-a-kind costume that will have everyone talking and remembering your costume. And you won’t bust your bank account doing it. All clothes and accessories are priced to please and sometimes even marked down further from an already amazing value. You can count on CIS Thrift Shops for affordable inspiration to create hundreds of costume ideas.
Here are costume ideas and thrift shop pieces to look for to easily build that costume:
Costume Ideas
- Black hooded fleece jacket – cut up an umbrella and attach to black hooded fleece jacket and you have a batman/woman or vampire with wings.
- Green jumpsuit – glue on some bent white straws to make a human cactus.
- Protective goggles, canning jar rings and overalls – make Minion glasses with protective goggles and canning jar rings. Then add overalls to finish the look.
- T-shirt and empty bag of chips attached on shoulder – chip on your shoulder costume
- T-shirt and kitchen sponges attached – self-absorbed costume
- All white ensemble – use a paper plate and some black electrical tape to be a stick figure.
- Dress shirt, tie, and pants along with a bent inside out umbrella – weatherman in a hurricane.
- Men’s/women’s suit, dress shirt, tie and homemade microphone – sports announcer
Prom and Wedding Dresses
- Bride of Frankenstein
- Prom Queen or Beauty Queen (dead, zombie, or regular kind)
- Princess
Overalls or Coveralls
- Scarecrow
- Farmer
- Bob the Builder
- Rosie the Riveter
Vintage uniforms make for an easy costume. Look for uniforms such as:
- Military
- Nurses
- Cheerleader
- Scout Leader
- Sports Team
CIS operates four thrift shops throughout Brunswick County for your shopping convenience. CIS Thrift Shops are located in Boiling Spring Lakes, Leland, Southport, and Sunset Beach. For shop hours and more information about CIS Thrift Shops, please visit www.cisbrunswick.org or call 910-351-8007. To find out about current thrift shop inventory and sales, visit our shop Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CISThriftShops.
