I once used the same costume three years in a row. First year I was a werewolf and we made the costume with fake fur, grey cotton cloth, and a pattern. Next year my costume turned into the Big Bad Wolf (my little sister was Red Riding Hood, and dad got stuck as Grandma) with the addition of a tail (fake fur over a bent coathanger). Then I ditched the fur, cut holes out randomly, and broke out the fake blood and gause, and jacked my little sister's old crutches, and was an accident victim.

That's some good mileage, huh?

Talking about mileage - one of the best costume accessories I ever bought was a good black cape. I paid about $15 for it, which was a lot for me to spend on costume parts, but that cape was used for witches, vampires, Zorro, wizards, superheroes . . . Everybody could wear it - it was ankle length for a seven year old, and just nice for a sexy Zorro cape for an adult.
Now that the kids are too old to dress up anymore, we donated it to the daycare, and THEY are using it for anything you could imagine.

I have one of those too. It really does get good mileage, I've worn it as part of a witch costume, Rhiannon has worn it as part of a gypsy costume and as part of a dark fairy costume, the cat has used it as a blanket several times. When it finally becomes threadbare, I'm going to salvage the parts I can and make a pillow.

This is late... lol Before Halloween I was so busy making our costumes I must not even have seen this. Kit and I have been going with a sort of theme. Her first Halloween we were Little Bo Peep (me) and her sheep. My mom made the costumes for that one. I don't know how much they cost. Year two we were a witch and her little black cat. It gets COLD in Nebraska, and so far Kit's costumes have been made with cheap clothing items with bits sewn on. The cat costume was a hoodie and pants in black with a tail and ears sewn on, for a total cost of $10, and she was able to wear the clothes once I took the tail off the pants. (Kitty ears on a 2 year old's hoodie is perfectly acceptable year round, I think. ) My costume was a black tank I already had, a black skirt I already had, black shoes I already had, a witch hat ($5), a pair of red and white striped tights ($5) and 5 yards of sheer black knit fabric I picked up at Walmarts $1/yd shelf.

Last year we were both mermaids. Premade white turtleneck and purple pants for Kit, with a piece of purple fabric sewn to resemble The Little Mermaid's bra thing and scraps of purple and white fancy fabrics sewn to the legs for fins. Again she was able to wear the clothes because I just tacked the fabric on with a basting stitch, but even including the clothes and fabric, that one was under $15. (I shop clearance fabric!!) Mine was a pink satin formal I got on clearance for $5 from a store called DEB, with some sequiny fringe sewn under the bust and cool on-sale holographic halloween fabric for fins, plus a sequined crown. Total on mine was $14.

This year we'll be Mulan and Mushu. I found some lovely chinese brochade in a plum colored polyester at Walmart's $1 shelf, so bought 7 yards. That'll be the bulk of my robe, with some pink fabrics in accent. Kit will wear an orange hoodie and pants if I can find them, but I've got all year. I'll probably have to spend another $10 on fabrics for her dragon spikes and scales and my robe accents. Between the two of us, I expect to barely hit the $30 mark. It's easy when they're small.

The trick here is that I have a big party every year with friends, so my costume has to be a little sexy and cool, and well-done (my best friend is a heck of a seamstress. Can't be outshone too bad), but not inappropriate to wear while taking my daughter around. Kit's has to stand up to at least one party, plus trick-or-treating in the cold and visiting people, plus Boo at the Zoo. I'm not a great sewer, so starting with pre-made pieces is always good, but it also helps keep costs down, and it's really functional. And as you can see, I plan well in advance so that I can find what I need at sales and clearance. Easy to do when your daughter goes along with your ideas. Once she has her own, I'm sure I'll have a harder time. (Not that she has objected one little bit to any of my ideas. What little girl doesn't want to dress up as a mermaid? And she's really excited about being Mushu.)

Dragonkin - please check the first post of threads bfore responding, as you can see this thread was asking for tips back in October.