Costume or Couture? How to Trick-or-Treat in High Style
At a certain point on Halloween night, when your feet are sore and you’ve stuffed your pillowcase almost entirely full of candy, you’re forced to reckon with the fact that—as fun as trick-or-treating may be—schlepping up and down the candy wrapper-strewn sidewalks with a hefty sack isn’t exactly glamorous. For those who have the means to do so, however, there is one sure-fire way spruce things up: why not prowl the streets this Halloween in a bit of imaginative haute couture? (Unless you’re saving that Schiaparelli flamingo headgear or Viktor & Rolf wearable bed for some other occasion, in which case we salute you.) There’s no denying that a number of looks that make it onto the catwalks of couture week are outlandish at best—no matter how many hours of labor or thousands of feathers went into making them. From Jean Paul Gaultier to John Galliano’s Christian Dior, check out a roundup of the world’s most expensive costumes, here.
1The Snooze Button
If you’re always late, but you still like candy. Viktor & Rolf Couture FW 2018. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
2The Vampire
If you’re looking to out-slay Buffy. Valentino Couture FW 2018. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
3The Influencer
If you’re really looking to be photographed. Viktor & Rolf SS 2019. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
4The Scarecrow
If you hate walking. Viktor & Rolf Couture SS 2015. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
5The Pumpkin
If you’re determined to be the chicest pumpkin in the patch. Valentino Couture FW 2018. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
6The Ghost
If you’re also trying to ignore your boyfriend. Iris Van Herpen Couture FW 2013. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
7The Martyr
If you’ve got a cross to bear. Christian Dior Couture Fall 00. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
8The Polar Bear
If you’re determined not to let the cold ruin your Halloween night. Eymeric Francois Haute Couture FW 19. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
9The Art History Minor
If you’re going to work at Goldman Sachs, but you’re minoring in Art History because you think it makes you look less neoliberal. Viktor & Rolf Couture DW 2015. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
10The Oil Spill
If you’re going for a contemporary take on Ursula, or octopi drowning in pollution. (Thanks humans!) Maison Martin Margiela FW 18. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
11The Flamingo
If you’re still mourning the millennial pink trend. Schiaparelli Couture FW 18. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
12The Body-Positive Armchair Activist
If you’re determined to bring the #FreeTheNipple hashtag to the streets and enrage your neighbors simultaneously. Jean Paul Gaultier Couture FW 18. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
13The Chic Lollipop
If you want to both eat and embody a lollipop. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
14The Nuclear Family
If you’re trying to be truly horrifying…. why not dress up as the nuclear family by wearing a house, emblematic of the patriarchy and suburban dreams? Christian Dior Couture FW 19. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
15The Overachiever
If you want to put everyone else to shame. Christian Dior Couture Fall 00. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
