Collegiate Times

Halloween is the season of partying, and students around Tech are gearing up for the festivities. But finding the right costume can be tricky, especially on a college budget.

Luckily, there are quite a few options for Halloween shopping in Christiansburg.

If you?ve got a great costume idea and a very small Halloween budget, Good Will is the place to go. You can get sweaters, dresses, skirts, pants and shoes for under $3.50. Men?s coats and suits are priced under $10.

Good Will shopping takes some creativity and a lot of digging, but there is nowhere you can find cheaper clothes. Plus, all of the retro garbs have awesome costume potential.

Wal-Mart dedicates its entire lawn and garden center to Halloween, dubbing it ?Spooky Central.? The costumes are all under $25, but the selection is pretty generic. An employee told me that fairies are the big sellers this year at Wal-Mart.

The best features of ?Spooky Central? are the Halloween accessories and decorations. All of the wigs are under $8, masks are under $10 and plastic weapons are under $3. There are also Halloween unique decorations like Halloween pi?atas.

Elyssa?s Lingerie, located on Countrie Drive in downtown Christiansburg, has all of your basic ?sexy fill-in-the-blank costumes.? My favorites were the ?sexy girl scout? and the ?Mile-high Airlines? flight attendant. The ?Leg Avenue? brand costumes are fairly expensive for such a small amount of material though, ranging from about $40 to $65. The wigs are very authentic-looking, but they cost around $75.

Spencer?s (in New River Valley Mall) has some very original, and quite often hilarious, Halloween costumes and masks. The costumes are pricey, most between $45 and $50, but it?s the only store in Christiansburg with costumes like Cartman and Jesus. According to a Spencer?s employee, however, the ?Leg Avenue? costumes are still the best-sellers. Spencer?s mask collection is by far its best asset; Peter Griffin, South Park?s Satan and even Dick Cheney are all under $30.

At each of these stores, several students can be seen perusing the aisles for costumes. So what are Tech students wearing this year? And where are they getting their costumes?

Casey Shupe, sophomore classical studies major, said she only spent about $30 on her Cleopatra costume. ?I went shopping everywhere because I like to throw things together. I got my wig at Target. I have a lot of theme parties, so I buy things that I can use a lot,? said Shupe.

Tony Hagerich, senior marketing major, said he ordered his costume online for $20 plus shipping from www.spirithalloween.com. ?I have a convict costume ? I got it because I was just in jail and I thought it?d be funny,? said Hagerich.

Abby Mott, a sophomore and human development major, said, ?I?m going to be the ?80s cartoon character Rainbow Bright.? She said her costume cost about $50.

?I got it at ?Everything Halloween? in Roanoke. This is the first year I?ve actually gotten a real one ? I never buy costumes,? said Mott.