Just in time for Halloween, we’re celebrating our favorite throwback costumes

Twas the Thursday before Halloween, when all through the ‘gram,
Many were stirring, especially the millennial fam;
They’re posting #ThrowbackThursday photos of past costumes,
Butterflies, Pop-culture characters, and witches — with brooms;
Their family and friends threw lots of likes and love,
Because with looks like these, what’s not to be proud of?

Here, HelloGiggles celebrates #ThrowbackThursday with past Halloween costumes. And these are *certainly* costumes to give us peak nostalgia — not that I’m biased or anything…

BALLERINA (AND WITCH!)

emilyagain.png

“When I was a kid I always went in one of two extremes: either ‘pretty princess’ or ‘ghastly scary.’ There was no real in between. Take, for example, my ballerina costume that I wore when I was very little, just old enough to start picking out my Halloween costume myself. Yes, that’s glitter on my eyebrows. A bold choice. The next year I went classic again, but in a different direction: scary witch. I remember loving the fake nose with the wart on the end. This picture of me is kind of terrifying. It looks like I just emerged from the woods, like I’m in a M. Night Shyamalan movie or something.” — Emily Popp, Deputy Editor

MAUDE, THE BIG LEBOWSKI

nicole1.jpg

“I wish I could put forth a cute kids’ costume throwback, but as much as my parents memorialized my Disney Halloween phase of ’93-’03, those photos are buried deep in a basement pile that they’re unwilling to dig through right now. So my throwback is from way back…in 2016. This was last year, when my boyfriend and I were The Dude and Maude from The Big Lebowski‘s trippy bowling musical dream sequence, aka the best trippy bowling musical dream sequence in a movie ever, and I think we kind of killed it, minus “kind of.” This is probably my favorite costume in recent memory, because it involved two characters we both love, a trip to Toys ‘R’ Us, cutting plastic Christmas ornaments into a makeshift bowling ball bra, and a viking helmet. The Dude abides.” — Nicole Adlman, Senior Editor

SELENA QUINTANILLA

Alyssa-e1509053914935.jpg

“So I’m a huge Selena Quintanilla fan, and every year I would plan to dress up as her but it never felt right — I either didn’t have the right outfit, the right hair, or the confidence to rock a bustier. But last year, I was like fuck it, I’m only young once and I was 23, which was the same age Selena was when she passed away. It just felt right. So I decided to DIY one of her iconic red, sparkly outfits. I bought the fabric, I bought the jewels, and I bedazzled my bustier and leggings in the same way that Selena designed her outfits herself. So my costume felt really special and more personal.” — Alyssa Morin, Associate Beauty Editor

BRIDE

molly.jpg

“In recent years, I’ve opted for pop culture costumes: Daenerys Targaryen and Linda Belcher being a couple examples. But when I was about three years old, I desperately wanted to be a bride for Halloween. I have no recollection of this, but my mom just reminded me. And in retrospect, this explains a lot about my undying love for Say Yes to the Dress. Perhaps I’ll be a SYTTD consultant or bride next year?” — C. Molly Smith, Assistant Entertainment Editor

PHYLLIS NEFLER, TROOP BEVERLY HILLS

Marie1.jpg

Troop Beverly Hills has been one of my favorite films since I was a kid, and I’ve always wanted to be Phyllis Nefler! She is the epitome of glam, sass, and a true leader. This is the only time you’ll ever catch me in khaki. Only Phyllis can make it look this good.” — Marie Lodi, Beauty Editor

TIGER SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY

dan.jpg

“This is a photo from my pre-school days. Whereas most of my classmates wanted to be a Ninja Turtle or Princess Jasmine, I demanded my parents create my costume. I was oddly specific, insisting that the costume not simply be a butterfly, but specifically a ‘tiger swallowtail.’ Looking back it was creepily telling of the person I’d become. I also enjoyed that I felt confident at that young age to just be happy, and never bothered to wonder what others thought about me.” — Dan Magro, Sr. Video Editor

KIKI, KIKI’S DELIVERY SERVICE

anna.png

“This is from last year, but it’s my favorite costume yet. Because it’s all about improving year after year, right? Here, I’m Kiki from Kiki’s Delivery Service, a pop-culture witch I’ve always related to and admired. Kiki isn’t afraid to be exactly who she is, and that’s exactly how I felt while wearing this costume out and about.” — Anna Gragert, Associate Editor

OWL

mia.jpg

“This was one of my first-ever sewing projects, though I’d barely go so far as to call it that. In a last-minute attempt at a costume for my last college Halloween, I cut up and stitched together a couple dollar-store pillowcases, then stuffed the body with crumpled paper towels for some owl fluff. I meant to sew on the paper feathers too, but I ran out of time and taped them on instead. The next day, I found bits of my costume all over campus.” — Mia Nakaji Monnier, Copy Editor

PINK RANGER, MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS

amyagain.png

“1994 was a major year for Power Rangers — there were no less than five other girls in my class alone dressed as the Pink Ranger. Kimberly 4 eva.” — Amy Scarlata, Social Media Producer 

PIKACHU, POKÉMON

GRETCHEN.jpg

“This is hands down my favorite costume of all time (and in my opinion the best sibling costume of all time). I got to be Pikachu, which was super nice because Halloween was cold where I grew up, so I got show off my costume and be warm. My brother was Ash from Pokémon, complete with a Poké Ball. Also shout out to my mom for making our amazing costumes.” — Gretchen Cathcart, Editorial Video

PRINCESS

MISSY.jpg

“I remember I was really excited to be a sparkly fairy princess and was stoked that my mom let me wear some makeup. It’s probably the last time I put on lipstick until high school, but I felt so pretty and special! Plus, I got to carry a wand and I was wearing jelly sandals. What’s not to love??” — Missy Dawes, Editorial Video Editor

Happy Halloween, and happy reminiscing about your own past ensembles!

Filed Under