Halloween is two weeks away, and Koa has the classic student problem: a party invitation, an exam next week and a budget of roughly zero. Good news: the best costumes are often the ones you put together from your own wardrobe in twenty minutes. Here is how Koa does it.
Dressing up is older than you think
Long before costume shops, children in Scotland and Ireland went guising: going door to door in disguise. Records of guisers go back to at least the 16th century. In the 1890s, children in Ayrshire carried lanterns carved from turnips and wore false faces. The deal was simple: you performed a song, a joke or a short poem, and in return you got apples, nuts, cakes or a coin.
Koa loves this, because it means a costume was never about money. It was about turning up in disguise and having a good line ready.
What everyone else is wearing this year
The US National Retail Federation expects Americans to spend about $4.4 billion on costumes in 2026. The most popular adult costumes are, again, the classics: witch, vampire, Batman, Spider-Man and ghost. The nice thing for students: three of the top five need almost nothing you do not already own.
Five costumes for (almost) zero euros
- The cosy witch. All black or all pink, a long cardigan as a cape, and a pointy hat folded from black paper. A broom from the shared kitchen counts as an accessory.
- The friendly ghost. An old white sheet or duvet cover, two eyes drawn on with pink cheeks instead of scary ones. Wear it as a cape so you can still drink your tea.
- The sleepy vampire. Black clothes, a collar turned up, dark circles under your eyes (you already have those from studying). Hold a mug labelled "blood type: coffee".
- The exam ghost. Any ghost costume plus a highlighter and a stack of notes. Tell everyone you are the spirit of revision past.
- The pink pumpkin. An oversized pink or orange jumper, a green beanie as the stem. Cosy, warm and done in two minutes.
Koa's own pick is a tiny witch hat, of course. She even has a witch hat sweatshirt now, which counts as a costume and a study outfit at the same time.
The costume study plan
Making a costume is the perfect reward for a study session. Try this: one 25-minute focus round with the free study timer on pinkoa.com, then a 5-minute break to cut, fold or glue one piece of your costume. Four rounds later you have studied for almost two hours and your costume is finished.
Want to decorate your desk too? Koa's pink Halloween printables (bookmarks, wallpapers, a pumpkin progress chart) are free until Halloween.
Shade of the day: no. 20, Piggy Pink
Piggy Pink (#FDDDE6) is a pale, soft pink, almost like a blush. It pairs with sage, navy and turquoise. Pair it with navy for a calm ghost-meets-night-sky costume, or use it as the background of this week's to-do list.
Launch month is still on: code KOA20 gives 20% off until 25 October.
Follow Koa: Instagram · TikTok · Threads · X · Pinterest · YouTube