Amanda Williams knows what it’s like to come up with costume ideas on a deadline. The professional costumer has some 20 years’ experience in the craft, creating wardrobe pieces for a variety of Las Vegas productions including Le Rêve, Opium, Barry Manilow’s Westgate residency and Nevada Ballet Theatre. If you’re stuck for a costume idea at the last minute, she knows what it takes to put one together. Here are a few of her remedies for Halloween panic.

I’m glad to get your advice. I always stress over Halloween costumes; I’m basically clueless about them. You don’t do any costuming during the season?

When I do, it’s a minimal effort: a couple of clothing items and a lot of acting. There you go! I think having whatever you have around the house kind of inspires you and puts you into character. I don’t necessarily think running around town and grabbing a bunch of stuff from Halloween superstores is necessarily the best idea. Being creative and thinking on your feet is how to go about it.

Tell us more about thinking on your feet. I’m kinda flat-footed. Be clever. And try to be funny, because I think having a funny costume is more important than having an elaborate cosplay costume. … That’s what starts a conversation, and if you’re gonna go out and about, you want to attract attention to yourself and have fun with it.

It’s not just about what you put on your body, but how you act; you can do something that can put you into character. I look to Pinterest for ideas like that. Do something like “cereal killer,” where you [string] together a bunch of little cereal boxes, put fake knives in them and then just tie it on yourself. … Something clever, thinking outside the box and being silly. Those are my favorite costumes, you know?

One year I put on an Enron hat, a flannel shirt and some fake blood. I told people I was the guy Dick Cheney accidentally shot in the face while hunting. Exactly! Perfect. Pull stuff from around your house, like old uniforms you’ve had, and think of how you can play them off. Everybody’s got something weird in their closet that they can just run with. Make it be a dead version of that [thing]; if you have an old bridal dress, be a dead bride—or maybe there’s something you’ve seen in the news relating to brides that you think is funny. Go with that. Have a story.

Are there non-clothing items we always should keep around the house for quickie costumes? One thing I’ve seen lately that’s popular is pool noodles. If you have some extra pool noodles laying around, you can get creative. You can cut them up; you can glue them together. You can use them as headpieces; I’ve seen them used as wigs in various contexts.

Also, just cardboard. You can make a big frame around your face and become a painting. Or maybe you can become an app, like Tinder or TikTok. You can just put cardboard around yourself and draw out the app interface, and maybe make yourself an ugly Tinder choice.

And if you want to be an android or a robot or something futuristic, wires, [circuit boards]. You’ve probably got a bunch of old technology lying around that you don’t use anymore.

Have you had a lot of experience with whipping up Halloween costumes on the fly? Well, I have a closet full of stuff from different eras of fashion, because I collect all kinds of clothing. And when I lived in the Bay Area, there were a lot more reasons for dressing up; everybody loved to do costume parties all year round. So, I always had something to pull out … but I know a lot of people around here don’t have the time or the focus.

Las Vegas needs more year-round costume events. We’re too weird a place not to have ’em. I agree. I wish there was a parade or something. … I want to give a shout-out to the Katy Perry show Play, which has a lot of funny, goofy costumes and some bathroom humor that people appreciate. I think that’s an inspiration.

[The Broadway musical] Six, which opened its tour at the Smith Center a few weeks ago—I mean, that’s an amazing inspiration for costumes, because you get to be both a pop singer and a historical figure, and you can walk around with Henry the Eighth’s head in your hand.

Going to shows, and getting inspired by them, goes a long way, especially in Vegas. … There’s costuming literally everywhere on the Strip. If you walk down Fremont Street, you see [street performers] dressed up. I find that inspiring, as well.

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