10 Easy Halloween Costumes With Black Dresses

When it comes to Halloween, there are those who plan their
costumes months in advance, and there are those who leave their
decision-making for the night before the spooky holiday. Even those
who plan, however, can get caught unprepared—whether you’re
invited to an additional party or your office decides to wear
costumes to work—with no costume on hand. In fact, it’s likely
we’ve all been there: It’s two nights before Halloween, and
you’re invited to a last-minute party. It’s too late to run to the
costume store, so you’re forced to make do
what you have in your wardrobe. There’s one item we all have
hanging in our closets that is not only an everyday wardrobe staple
but also conveniently lends itself to many a costume: a black
dress.

Little inspiration is needed to quickly transform into some of
the most iconic women and characters of our day. Whether you’re
hoping to look feminine and feisty à la Victoria Beckham, queen of
posh, channel your inner witch per Wednesday
Addams, or become a veritable fashion icon like the Olsen
sisters, your black dress is a versatile Halloween superpower.

Scroll through to find 10 easy Halloween costumes with black
dresses, from starlets to literary characters, singers and
more—and never be caught unprepared for Halloween again.

Truthfully, I’ll take any excuse to dress up as the fabulous and
stylish Holly Golightly. I don’t even need it to be Halloween,
though that makes it extremely convenient.

Cruella De Vil is the perfect way to showcase both sides of
you—good and evil. Plus, she was a style icon in her own
right.

Take a swan but make it fashion. The Black Swan is equal parts
dark and ghoulish—perfect for Halloween.

… or Victoria Beckham, whichever you prefer. Whatever you call
her, you can’t deny one thing: She has remained a fashion icon
since her days in the Spice Girls.

Powerful and strong, Catwoman is an icon and a fun twist on a
typical black dress costume. Halle Berry does it right.

Amy Winehouse is visually represented by three key items: her
luscious black locks, her winged eyeliner, and her tight black
dresses. Take these three ingredients and you have an iconic
Halloween costume recipe.

The Olsen sisters dress permanently in black, which is
essentially my ideal wardrobe. They also make for a fairly easy
Halloween costume.

“I’m not perky,” says Wednesday Addams, my icon not just on
Halloween but in real life too.

I have been sucked in a Downton Abbey spiral and am quite
certain I am living in the wrong century. A flapper costume on
Halloween is my chance to right this wrong.

Grab a blonde wig, a swipe of red lipstick and a tight black
body-con dress and you’ll look like you’ve been hanging out with
John Travolta all night.