But this year, I was going out in real public among grown-up, gainfully-employed people who I knew would spare no expense on their costumes. So I had to figure out how to get a costume on my limited budget. I searched the internet and settled on Storm from X-men (with no regard to the slightly lofty ambition of dressing up as the most beautiful woman in the world). I got a white wig from Value Village and a coworker offered to lend me a cape. I figured I would wear a black top and black pants and make an X for my belt out of the leftover felt from last year's domino costume. Done and done. Total cost: $6.99 (for the wig).
Fast forward to the night of October 30. I'm trying on the costume and I look like a hot mess. Never mind the fact that I'm not Halle Berry... I have a wig that is called "Surfer Boy" and a cape that could fit 3 people. I look like an Emo magician.
So it's Halloween morning and I'm frantically running around trying to get something (with about a million other people... what's their excuse for waiting until the last minute?). Every decent costume in the costume store is 90+ dollars -- I don't think so. I leave the store defeated and then... a stroke of genius... I have a white wig and I'm a black woman. That can only mean one thing -- Mary J Blige, bitches.
So I bought a few accessories, grabbed my faux fur jacket from about 10 years ago and wore a my black shirt, jeans and pointy boots. I was a little concerned that no one would understand my costume and I would have to answer questions about it all night, but I was pleasantly suprised that MJB is known even is waspy London. So the moral of my Halloween Tale is that with a little creativity, a recognizable Halloween costume can be achieved on a budget. It may be a little ghetto, but hey -- it's Mary J.
Total cost:
Wig: $6.99
Sunglasses: $5.00
Earrings: $5.00
love sbg
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