Top tips to have a Very Harry Halloween on a budget or schedule

I have been to many fan conventions over the years and love seeing cosplayers of all fandoms and backgrounds. People put a lot of effort into sewing film-accurate costumes or growing their hair out to resemble the bushy mane of Hermione Granger. But you don't have to be sartorially gifted or have piles of gold in Gringotts to have fun with costuming. Here are some tips.

Start simple

Ten years ago, I decided I wanted to be Professor Umbridge for Halloween. All I had in mind was that I had to wear revolting amounts of pink and look a little bit childish. So I spent three dollars on a pink suit coat at a thrift shop and eleven dollars on a custom-made hairband. I paired that with a pink lacy camisole and a pink knee skirt that my friend was happy to part with. Last of all, a friend found a pink cat pin at Walmart for $1. I loved the cut-rate pinkness of everything I wore and won second place in the work contest on a small budget. I still use it on a regular basis because kids feel comfortable yelling curses at me and adults wan ta picture with me.

This is an example of how to take what you already have or what you can buy on the cheap and create something fun for yourself. One of my favorite things to do that doesn't involve horrifying fans is to dress as a witch dressing as a Muggle. Remember the wizard in a nightgown? Mr. Weasley in a golfing sweater on a summer morning? Think of clothes that are fun, but don't make a lot of sense. I once wore a Red Sox shirt with a Hawaiian shirt and a tweed cap over jeans for a midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Your options really are only limited by your imagination.

Get the gist

If you've never heard of Disney-bounding, you're in for a treat. Disney parks don't like guests wearing costumes that make them look like the characters played by professional cast members, but it has nothing official against you slightly resembling your favorite character. So wear a black pair of jeans and a purplish shirt and seashell earrings and you're unofficially Ursula the Sea Witch. A yellow bottom with a red t-shirt looks a lot like Winnie the Pooh. My personal favorite is wearing a yellow checked shirt, jeans, and a brown hat making you Woody from Toy Story.

In that spirit, why not find something red and gold and be your favorite Gryffindor? Get dramatic with some silver and green accessories and a black outfit to fit in with Slytherins. Put on a red or gold scarf and a pair of cat ears and you can be Hermione with the bad Polyjuice Potion dose.

When all else fails, Tonks

Nymphadora Tonks is a fantastic character for the playful person in all of us. You can be a Metamorphmagus in any gender with a funky wig or a pig's nose or really by changing your appearance to be more unusual.

Whatever you do, own it. It's the most magical day of the year and you deserve to have fun.