True Harry Potter fans know that Halloween isn't so much a fun holiday as an excuse to dress up as your favorite witch or wizard. Sure, candy is great, but how many nights a year can you put on some robes and be your true magical self without having people think you might be a little bit off? But, just like Harry Potter could never have defeated Voldemort without the help of his friends in Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix, to truly pull off the perfect Harry Potter costume, one should not try alone. Putting together a cohesive Harry Potter group costume for Halloween is difficult, especially considering the over 500 characters featured in J.K. Rowling's seven-book series. Luckily, Harry Potter has one extraordinary group that is perfect for your squad costume: the Order of the Phoenix. So, here's how to create the perfect Order of the Phoenix Halloween costumes for you and your squad.
The Order of the Phoenix is the perfect group costume because you can pretty much do it with as few or many people as you want. After all, there are two incarnations of the Order — one from before Harry's birth that included James and Lily Potter, and one from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix that included Harry, Ron and Hermione. Here's how to make it work.
Hogwarts Accessories
Hogwarts Tie, $6, Amazon | Mens V-Neck Knit Sweater, $14, Forever 21
First things first: if any of your squad wants to be one of the Hogwarts students in the Order — aka Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna, Ginny or Fred and George — then the one thing you absolutely need is a Hogwarts tie. To complete the Hogwarts uniform look, all you need is a white button down shirt and a sweater for warmth, like this Men's V-Neck Knit Sweater from Forever 21. The sweater will not only keep you warm on the cold night of Halloween, but is also something you can wear all year round, unlike, say, a full-length robe.
Hair Color Makes The Wizard
Hair Chalk, $6, Amazon
For those of you hoping to become a Weasley for Halloween but don't have the required red hair, you probably want to invest in some inexpensive and temporary hair coloring. If you want quick temporary color with minimal mess, this bright orange hair chalk complete with tong applicator looks promising. If you're more into Tonks, then the same hair chalk plus applicator is available in a handful of other colors, including red, yellow, lime green and deep purple — perfect to create a multicolored look for Nymphadora.
Fans eager to become Tonks can also embrace her Metamorhmagus side with a fun and cute headband like this cat-eared one from Forever 2. (Bonus: this headband can double as a Luna Lovegood accessory.)
Cat Ear Headband, $6, Forever 21
The Wand Chooses The Wizard
Harry Potter Wand, $8, Amazon | Hermione Granger Illuminating Wand, $30, Amazon
Finally, one thing every witch and wizard needs is, obviously, a wand. The wand may chose the wizard, but for the purposes of Halloween, it's more like the wallet chooses the wand. One quick online search unveils wands. Depending on how official (or pretty) you want your wand to look, you can spend as much or little money as you see fit. A nice middle ground can be found with the Hermione Granger Illuminating Wand by The Noble Collection ($30 on Amazon). This 14-inch wand features an elegant ivy design and an illuminating tip.
So grab your friends, and get ready to raise your wands against Voldemort — it's time for the Order of the Phoenix to step out this Halloween.
Images: Warner Bros.; Amazon (3); Forever 21 (2)
