Last Minute Halloween Costume Destinations in Brooklyn

So you waited until the last minute to pull together a Halloween costume. Again.

I swear I have all of my BEST costume ideas on November 1st. But the entire month of October? Nothing. I’m totally blank.

Lucky for us, we live in Brooklyn. And that means our options for finding weird relative cheap shit that we can fashion into something wearable are disproportionately high. And the chance that you know someone with a sewing machine, bedazzler, hot glue gun, power drill, or impressive amount of adhesives is also quite high. (hint: I have all of those things.) As a self-proclaimed queen of pulling something together from nothing, here’s a list of places to rummage through to find something that will make you look unidentifiable enough that you feel safe getting recklessly drunk this Halloween.

Oh man. I don’t know who exactly Walter is and I often wonder how the hell he accumulated this eclectic collection of consignment but what I do know is you will find it there. anything and everything and especially something costume worthy, i popped by today and he was busy shuffling through and curating a costume collection. “this one is perfect, i just came up with this an hour ago,” he said pulling out a vintage t-shirt that read protect your skin “dress yourself as a zombie and wear this. it’s so simple!” he said laughing. “or this, for a couple,” pulling out two african outfits, plus a tiger-print onesie “for their friend.” this “grand vintage pop-stop” on berry street is the answer for all of your last-minute costume needs, plus a hell of a lot of other needs you didn’t quite know you had. wed-thurs 2-8pm, fri-sat noon-8pm. 131 berry st.

In brooklyn we don’t do flashy Halloween pop-ups and we rarely frequent chain shops. We are appalled by synthetic fabrics stuffed in a plastic bag that cost $75 and thus would never put them on our bodies. We’re smarter and cooler than that, and even on a holiday that encourages people to alter their normal state, that still won’t shake our impenetrable conscious-consumer tendencies or inherent coolness. however, we do still need places to buy things to get into the halloween spirit. Goblin Market NYC is basically the exact opposite of Ricky’s. And you are the exact opposite of a customer at Ricky’s. visit this little pop-up space on Frankie street for macabre goods and decor for the person who wants to dive deeper into the halloween spirit. and yes, it’s conveniently located right beside duke’s liquor box, so you can buy a little something to keep you warm on halloween too. noon-8pm, every day until halloween. 170 franklin st.

There is no lack of vintage and second-hand shops in greenpoint, but this one stands out for its pricing and chance at discovering some really amazing finds. Filled with bins that are marked by price points, whatever costume you dig out, you’ll leave feeling like a champion. thurs-sat noon-7pm, sun noon-6pm. 251 greenpoint ave.

Ok there’s nothing I can say here that you don’t already know about beacon’s closet. So you know that their collection is funky and it’s merchandised by color so you’ll naturally gravitate towards whatever draws you in. Prices can be steep considering everything is used and has that… smell. (you know that smell.) so choose one or two items that you can build around. Trust me, this will be your little beacon of costume hope. 11am-8pm 7 days a week. 74 guernsey st.

No, no this isn’t some hot new vintage spot, it’s literally the closet of someone you know who has gone to burning man. Mad max, a mad scientist, a dusty superhero, a doomsday prepper. Guaranteed to find any of these options and so much more. Plus, most items likely have unique pockets and places to hide your drugs.

I am so surprised at the amount of brooklynites who don’t know about this. Big trash day is the day in each neighborhood when most of the limitations on trash are lifted and you can throw almost anything. It’s my favorite day of the week and the last one of the month is always the best because people are moving and way less reluctant to hold on to their things. This Sunday is Big Big trash day in north Brooklyn, so cruise around and score some shwag.

see you out there, brooklyn.