Halo said
I think they're fun to put together when you don't take it too seriously. Some people spend absolute on their costumes though...
Well yeah, but you really don't have to do that in order to make an awesome cosplay.
I always hate when I hear about people spending hundreds of dollars on cosplay websites that I swear
rip you off big time, as well as when people claim that they
have to use such sites because they can't sew or w/e.
In the case of most cosplays, you can get most of the clothing you need from second-hand stores with minimal edits needed. That's what I did with my Grell Sutcliffe cosplay - $7 at Goodwill for every piece that I needed, as opposed to the hundred-or-so dollars I would've spent on one of those stupid cosplay-selling sites. Not to mention, if you buy actual clothes while intending to mimic the look of your character, then it feels a lot more like you're wearing actual clothes that the character would wear, as opposed to just a costume. (Not to mention, with a lot of characters, you probably already own a lot of the basic stuff you might need.)
As for wigs, always go generic. Most places that sell wigs for halloween costumes will sell them year-round on their websites, and you can get wigs of most colors and styles for about $15 for a short-haired wig or $30 for long-hair. It might seem a bit pricey if you need longer hair, but that's a thousand times better than the hundred-dollar wigs those stupid cosplay sites will charge just because they can claim theirs are custom-tailored to look
just like the character. Not that it matters much since, unless your character has some really wild, really signature hair, you can find a generic wig that looks just like theirs. Also, wig caps are about $2. Ladies (and men with long hair): they're a wise investment.
As for weapons/accessories, that's a good chance to get artsy. If you have that kind of talent, go for it. If you don't... well, it's probably not essential to the character's look, and it's probably not worth the prices on the cosplay sites, either. Even then, a lot of unique accessories that you wouldn't be able to find generic you can still probably find elsewhere on geek-gear sites and the like for far lower prices than they'd be sold as for part of a cosplay. A Death Note? $15. River Song's journal? $10. The t-shirt worn by virtually any Homestuck character? About $20 on one of the two Homestuck shop sites. Not to mention any one of the things I just mentioned can also be homemade if you have the time and effort.
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Being able to act in-character, even in situations your character would've never had to face, is just one of the most amusing things about cosplay.
