Missed hearing my takes on costumes this Halloween? Super excited to get to debut that new movie look seven months early? Want another chance to rock that cosplay idea you had? Well then you are in the right place! Here are the best costumes to debut at your synagogue’s Megilla reading this Purim!

Keep It Classic

People have been dressing as King Achesheverosh and Queen Esther since, well, since the story happened — and there is no shame in keeping it old school. This one is easy to throw on last minute — just grab your nicest outfit and a crown! You can keep it extra crafty by making your crown yourself out of yellow construction paper. 

Do What I’m Doing

I am the ultimate trendsetter, so me and my friend group are going all out with the Scooby Gang. I will be Daphne and I already have my purple dress and green neck thing ready to go! This costume is the perfect throwback to my favorite movies to watch during preschool nap time that also embody present day trends because of that new Velma show that I am pretty sure got some mixed reviews, but… This is perfect if you have a large friend group and want everyone to feel like the main character!

Dress Up From Your Favorite TV Show (Bonus Points If It Came Out After Halloween)

The live actions of Percy Jackson and Avatar the Last Airbender both came out too late to be our Halloween costumes this year — but it is perfect timing for Purim. While it may be a bit of a challenge to find costumes since we are not in our marketing for Halloween era yet, don’t forget people may be reselling costumes from when the original PJO movies and original ATLA show were still new.

Also, on the note of eras, everyone and their mom is selling off their old Taylor Swift Eras Tour and Beyoncé Renaissance Tour outfits and now is the perfect time to snatch those and dress as Taylor, Beyoncé, or just really cool concertgoer. 

Rewear Your Halloween Costume

No one will judge you, they will just admire you for being a sustainable queen! Look, I know that we all bought $60 Barbie roller skating costumes for Halloween without once thinking about what we were going to do with it afterward. Wear it again!

Your synagogue congregation definitely did not see that costume’s debut in a frat basement and I am sure no one will bat an eyelash if you tell them that the bright red stain is from a raspberry hamentauchen instead of the mystery punch the frat served up.

Enter My Nightmares

I feel like every Purim some kid goes dressed as a clown, and I don’t know why. Clowns have not been popular for Halloween since the clown scare of 2016 (we do not speak of it), but somehow they always make a comeback for some loud kid at synagogue with chocolate all over their face. I don’t get it either. All I know is that clowns are terrifying and all of these kids will be haunting my nightmares. 

Make It Punny

Purim is late this year (yay Adar Bet!) and occurring quite close(ish) to Easter, why not go for the interfaith win and dress up as the Esther Bunny (Queen Easter?). This is easy! All you need is a bunny costume and a crown and you are all set for people to ask you: “Wait what are you?” “Oh I get it!” and then not laugh nearly as hard as they should. 

Be Lame

For some blog inspo I asked my dad what he will be dressing up as this year, and he answered the same as he does every year: “My costume is a middle-aged Jewish guy.” You won’t believe it, that is exactly what he already is! Complete with a smiley face kippah on top, and then his regular button down shirt and dress pants. Don’t be like him, put on a real costume. Or if, for real, dressing up is not your style, this is a great alternative and he always gets a really big laugh from the other middle aged folks at synagogue (much bigger laugh than Esther Bunny gets). 

Wear What My Roommate Is Wearing

My roommate makes her costume every year and it is always a surprise. This was actually a ploy to get her to tell me, which clearly did not work… (Pleasse I need it for my blog post!) Nope, she still said no… I guess a surprise can be fun and I hope her costume lives up to the hype. I had a dream the other night that she was dressing up as a foot and that was almost as terrifying as the clowns, so let’s hope she does better than that. 

Make It a Conversation Starter

Already own something cool that you can never wear again? Throw that bad boy on! I have approximately a million weird accessories from Bat Mitzvahs I went to literally a decade ago. My friend says he has a cheese hat that I am very excited to bear witness to. Sometimes, I like to remind people I ran a half marathon and throw on my medal.

A wise woman once said “Halloween is the one day a year when a girl can dress up like a total slut and no other girls can say anything else about it.” Well then Purim is the one day a year when everyone listens to my half marathon training experience and no one else can interrupt because I have a medal. 

Throw Something On From the Back Of Your Closet

Let’s face it, you forgot Purim was coming up. You thought you had more time. You still haven’t made your Meshiloach Manot or learned your Megillah reading. The lunar calendar is way too hard to follow — and “Oh, thank goodness I still own this flannel from my emo phase in middle school.” Throw that on with denim shorts, pants, or skirt and be that cowgirl you were born to be.