It’s fitting that Emily dressed up as Pantone swatch number 1797C for Halloween. She’s our resident photo and art genius! Did your boyfriend go as a paint brush, Em?

I love Halloween. I want to believe that everyone loves Halloween—like it’s a universal Tim Burton-style Christmas—and that we all come together, unified, for the sake of weirdness and costumes, zombies, vampires, princesses, and gore. I’m torn, though, on whether I love it enough to take Vogue‘s costume suggestions. For the haute couture undead look that’s all the rage, they suggest booking a professional stylist. The people of MAC, Sephora, Nars, or Henri Bendel will make you fabulous for a price. Some of these ghastly makeovers run over $200. I didn’t even spend that much for my wedding up-do! Silly and frivolous or the expensive style solution for the biggest dress-up day of the year? What’s a ghoul to do?

Halloween is the perfect time for a little gender-bending. And Sherlock Holmes is one of the best fictional detectives making a resurgence this year with a new movie, so why not combine the two for your costume? All you need are a few classic menswear pieces that can be pilfered from your dad’s closet, thrifted, or purchased (details after the jump).

It’s no wonder Lady Gaga has reportedly gone bankrupt four times because quite a bit goes into her extravagant everyday looks. Homegirl loves her crazier-the-better accessories! After the jump we’ve got the deets for how to get the perfect Lady Gaga costume with things possibly in your closet already and items you could totally wear again (either with more clothing or while role-playing).

Kate Gosselin is so hot right now; you may already have her fabu hairdo. Or you might have a raccoon that digs through your trash that inspired you to be her for Halloween. Whether you worship the cable TV mother of the year or just have a lot of spare kids to dress up in costumes, here’s how you can recreate her reality-show chic on the cheap. Now that Kate’s back on the market and it’s Halloween, what better time to slut it up like a reality television fame whore?!

Oh Carrie Prejean, we’ve had so much fun getting to know the former Miss California and her distaste for gay marriage in the last year. She’s become one of the most recognizable beauty queens that we’ve ever had the pleasure to see actin’ a fool on national TV! In fact, she makes the perfect Halloween costume, especially if you live in a warm part of the country and can feasibly wear a bathing suit at the end of October. (If not, a tacky white evening dress is a good substitute.)