Every year, there are a fair amount of Halloween costumes that are consistently repeated. Not only is this tacky, but it also suggests that students are unenthusiastic and unoriginal when choosing costumes.

Halloween is the one night of the year when a person can be as creative as they want and express themselves through costume. These are some of the most overplayed costumes from recent years:

Sexy Fill-in-the-blank

No matter where you are, there is almost always the guarantee that you’ll spot a sexy bunny, nurse, rag doll, etc. So be a bit more motivated this year and think of something different without exposing your body to frigid temperatures. An alternative to the sexy costume trend could be to reinstate the pin-up era of the 1950s: Stay classy and covered, while still turning heads.

Cat

This is by far one of the most popular last-minute costume ideas. Although unoriginal and very common, when in doubt, be a cat. Incredible amounts of people resort to wearing cat ears paired with either slutty attire or all black clothing. Aside from the immense amounts of cat-sightings each Halloween, this does make for a simple, last-resort costume, but come on, be a bit more creative this year. Maybe, instead of dressing up as a black cat, be a house cat. Get a colorful collar, get some jingle bells, some face paint and some “calico” mixed-and-matched clothing.

Turn the unoriginal back into a cutting-edge pop of flare – think outside of the box even if the costume’s stuck inside.

Zombie

Zombies are awesome in movies, and are always seen around Halloween.  Overplayed and unoriginal, zombie costumes can easily fall flat, but if done right, these can be some of the best. For example, being a stereotypical zombie with face paint and fake blood on Halloween isn’t original; dressing up as the cast from the “Walking Dead” and hitting the town among those zombies is far more original and completely modernized.

Snooki/Jersey Shore cast members

Since the beginning of “Jersey Shore,” Snooki and other “Jersey Shore” cast members have quickly become victims of overplayed Halloween costumes.

Many Snookies have been spotted over the past years – this year is sure to bring out a slew of pregnant versions as well as Snookies carrying spray-tanned infant dolls – and fake tanner is running low. Drop the bronzer and break out into something original.

Instead of being a typical Jersey Shore cast member, consider reenacting the filming of the MTV Series; get a group of friends and create something more innovative with a camera man, Snooki, Jwoww, Deena, Mike, Pauly D, and Vinny – celebrate your Halloween night filming your own “Jersey Shore” episode, instead of dressing like an individual cast member. Overplayed costumes shouldn’t remain overplayed; even the go-to costumes should have a creative twist to them.

Witch (or warlock)

A classic Halloween costume that will outlast time is the witch.

There are always mothers and little kids dressed up as every kind of witch known to society while out on the town trick-or-treating. This is one of the more forgivable overplayed costumes – if done right.

Being a young adult and dressing up as a witch as a go-to-costume is outdated, but being a full-grown adult or little kid dressed as a witch is cute, and considered a classic costume for the occasion (i.e. a middle school event, parents out trick-or-treating with their kids, etc).

Being a college student dressing up as a witch isn’t very original, when better, more creative costumes are available. Dressing as a witch in the prime years of your lives isn’t something you’d like looking back on in photos – so choose carefully.

Costumes are something to have fun with, so be creative and keep thinking.

Ashley Beam can be reached at [email protected]