The Best Halloween Costumes for Mystery Lovers
If you feel like dressing up as one of your favorite sleuths for Halloween, here are ten options that are recognizable and easy to recreate. These costumes are perfect for mystery fans to showcase their love for the genre!
Jessica Fletcher
Jessica Fletcher is the beloved mystery writer and amateur sleuth on Murder, She Wrote. In Cabot Cove, Maine and all around the world, Jessica solved murders with her cleverness, class, and literary intuition.
To dress like Jessica Fletcher, consider these for your costume:
A wig with the classic soft bob hairstyle
Either a women’s suit with a scarf to dress for a book tour
Or more comfy clothes to wear around town like a sweater
You could also wear a sweatshirt that says “Cabot Cove” on it
Or a rain coat for the wet Maine weather
A magnifying glass
A typewriter
Arrive with a bicycle to showcase how Jessica doesn’t drive
A book
Consider putting a cover on one of the books for J.B. Fletcher’s classic mysteries like “The Corpse Danced at Midnight”
2. Sherlock Holmes
A consulting detective who barely needs any introduction is Sherlock Holmes. Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and found in many adaptations, Sherlock Holmes solves complex crimes through logic and deduction.
To dress like Sherlock Holmes, consider these for your costume:
A deerstalker hat
A pipe
If you don’t have a classic cape for a coat, you can wear a suit.
A magnifying glass
3. Hannah Swensen
Hannah Swensen is the amateur sleuth found in the Hannah Swensen Mystery book series by Joanne Fluke and the Hallmark adaptations of this and Murder, She Baked. Hannah runs a bakery in Lake Eden, Minnesota while solving mysteries and figuring out her love life.
To dress like Hannah Swensen, consider these for your costume:
Warm clothing for the Minnesota weather
Clunky boots (in the book they are moose hide!)
A baking apron from “The Cookie Jar”
Baking supplies!
Any cookies or sweets you want to share
Maybe her cat Moishe makes an appearance with the outfit
4. Vera
Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope is the main investigator on the show Vera that ran for 14 seasons, based on the books by Ann Cleeves. With her caustic wit, Vera solves murders against the breathtaking Northumberland landscape.
To dress like Vera, consider these for your costume:
The most important part of this costume is her signature bucket hat
A scarf
A trenchcoat or something similarly practical
5. Morgan Gillory
Morgan Gillory from High Potential is a single mother of three who begins consulting with the police to solve murders. She has HIP which means she has a genius level IQ but low executive function, and is a big asset to the department.
To dress like Morgan, consider these for your costume:
Blonde wig
Colorful or texturally interesting jacket
Short skirt
Tall (hopefully colorful) boots
A case file to indicate how you work with the police
Pink rubber gloves
6. Columbo
Columbo is a LA homicide detective on the classic mystery show with the same name. While his unassuming and occasionally clueless demeanor makes criminals underestimate him, he is a pro at catching the mistake in a perfect murder.
To dress like Columbo, consider these for your costume:
The iconic trenchcoat
A tie
A police badge
A cigar
A detective’s notebook
His basset hound named Dog
7. Miss Fisher
Phyrne Fisher is a lady detective in 1920s Melbourne Australia in the show Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. With style and panache, Miss Fisher solves complicated crimes.
To dress like Miss Fisher, consider these for your costume:
A flapper or 1920s dress
Pearls
A colorful 1920s coat
A hat or headpiece from the 1920s
A costume revolver (hers has a pearl handle)
8. Adrian Monk
Adrian Monk is the obsessive compulsive police consultant on the comedic mystery show Monk. Despite his many phobias, Monk is a genius at figuring out complex cases.
To dress like Monk, consider these for your costume:
A suit
Disinfectant wipes
A shirt buttoned up all the way
A magnifying glass
9. Hercule Poirot
Hercule Poirot is a classic detective created by the Queen of Crime Agatha Christie. This Belgium detective has peculiarities but is a genius at solving crime.
To dress like Poirot, consider these for your costume:
A homburg hat
The mustache is extremely important!
A well-fitted suit
A monocle
10. Elsbeth
Elsbeth is a quirky attorney who helps the NYPD solve murders in the show of the same name. With her positivity and eye for detail, she is great at catching killer’s slipups.
To dress like Elsbeth, consider these for your costume:
A red wig
A giant purse or bag
A pink outfit
A colorful scarf
A Statue of Liberty hat
