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20 Halloween Costumes for $20 or Less

By U.S. News & World Report

Chances are, at one point in your life you’ve spent way too much money on a Halloween costume. It might have been an impulse purchase at a marked up price purchased at the last minute, or a glitzy costume you couldn’t resist at an expensive seasonal store. Either way, it’s an easy trap to fall into.

This year, there’s no reason to empty your wallet for Halloween, whether it’s a costume for yourself or your kids. You can find plenty of inexpensive options online, especially if you use coupons or a cash back websites, but you can also make a costume yourself. Before you scoff at the idea because you’re too busy or feel you’re not crafty enough, check out these 20 easy ideas:

1. Rosie the Riveter: This simple yet classic costume requires only a denim shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a red bandana tied in your hair. You might even already have those items in your closet.

2. Ninja Turtle: You can have fun with this costume and change up its accessories. Wear a green shirt and pants and spray paint a roasting pan for the shell. Cut fabric from a craft store for a mask, accessories and headband.

3. Bat: Cut up a cheap black umbrella for bat wings and attach it to a black long sleeve shirt. You can easily make bat ears from the scraps, too.

4. Minion: This new costume idea is incredibly easy. Wear a yellow shirt with overalls, and then create “eyes” from Mason jar lids glued together and secured with a black strap.

5. Lego: Glue Tupperware bowls upside down to cardboard boxes and spray paint them your favorite color. Red Solo cups work, too.

6. Cowboy or cowgirl: Use denim jeans and a plaid or flannel shirt from your closet and find a cheap hat and boots from your local thrift store.

7. Bank robber: Take a striped shirt (or decorate a plain shirt with black duct tape) and add a black hat, mask and gloves with the fingers cut out.

8. Waldo: This one is similar to the robber costume, but with a red and white striped shirt. Add blue jeans and a red and white striped pom-pom hat and you’re ready.

9. Grapes: This costume is beyond simple — just attach purple or green balloons all over.

10. 1920s flapper: Wear a plain black dress, or one with fringe, and add stockings along with a sparkly headband with a feather.

11. Jellyfish: Take a clear umbrella and attach thin ribbons or fabric all around the edge. Then, wear a white or metallic outfit.

12. Men in Black: This costume is great for the last minute. Just wear a dark suit, white shirt and dark tie with dark sunglasses. Bonus if you have a long thin flashlight to use as a memory eraser.

13. Facebook: Take a page out of television show “The Office” and draw the words “book” on your face. It doesn’t get much easier than that!

14. Scuba diver: Spray paint two soda bottles yellow and affix black Duck tape around the bottles. Attach them together and then secure rope to strap into a backpack. Grab your goggles and snorkel, or find some for cheap in an end-of-summer sale. You might even be able to use them again next summer!

15. “Life hands you lemons:” Paint a shirt with the word LIFE, carry around a bag of lemons and hand them out to everyone you see.

16. Care Bear: Wear a cheap, colorful sweat suit, and use felt to attach ears to the hood and create a design on the stomach. Your options include rainbows, hearts and smiley faces.

17. Shark: Here is another sweat suit costume, this time with a dorsal fin attached to the back. Create the fin from cut and sewn white felt, stuffed with scraps. Create teeth from white felt and secure them around the edge of your hood.

18. Superman: Become Clark Kent with a white button-down shirt and a Superman T-shirt underneath. Complete the look with cheap black glasses (you can pop the lenses out).

19. Charlie Brown: Stick a zig-zag pattern around a yellow shirt with black Duck tape and wear black pants or shorts. Bonus if you bring your dog along!

20. Medusa: Weave plastic snakes through curly hair and use wild makeup to complete this easy costume.

Whatever you decide to be, I hope you have a fun and frugal Halloween!

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20 Halloween Costumes for $20 or Less originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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