It’s very nearly that time of the year again (very nearly, actually—T-minus 5 days): Halloween!

Here at the Gloffice, as you may have guessed, we’re not really the sexy-nurse/firefighter/cop/witch/fairy/“any excuse for fishnets!” sort, so when Emily got back from Paris with shots of Jean Paul Gaultier’s Spring '13 lineup (a veritable dream team of musical icons, or as the show notes put it, “an homage to all the pop stars of the eighties'), the wheels started turning. Over the next few days, we’ll be rolling out some Gaultier-inspired options for you to try out on October 31st—and so what if you don't have Stephane Marais on speed dial? Emily fashioned a Ziggy Stardust-esque lightning bolt for Bianca last year [5] with a ruler, some eyeliner, glitter, and a shot of tequila. You can, too.

First up? Our favorite iconic gender bender with a set of pipes like no other; David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust[1,2,3,4]. Let's get down to business, Space Oddities:

As far as the costume, unless you have an asymmetrical wildly patterned jumpsuit at the ready, we think you'd be best snagging a bodysuit from American Apparel (preferably in any fluoro shade, but red will do), cutting off one of the arms at the shoulder along the seam (so it doesn't fray), slipping it over (or under!) some of their shiny leggings (we like gold-and-black dot, unless you have some of your own you'd like to employ), topping it off with any sort of loud, graphic jewelry (anything with stars on it will probably get the point across, but if you're feeling flush...), and a neon orange mullet-y wig. No room for subtlety here, friends, unless it's about your sexual preference. Viva Bowie! Onwards.

For skin, the idea is a bright, matte complexion (all the better for that slash of color across your eyes to pop): we'd use Urban Decay Brightening and Tightening Complexion Primer Potion, topped with Dior DiorSkin AirFlash Spray Foundationand as heavy a buffing as you'd like of Clinique's Stay Matte Sheer Pressed Powder. Pro Tip: to conceal eyebrows without going the full Lara Stone (i.e., bleached), glaze them repeatedly with a gluestick—we like Avery's, the elementary school classic—coat those suckers with some MAC Prep + Prime Transparent Finish Powder and finish them with a bit more of the Diorskin. Voila! [Note: For those of you who are going to complain about how putting glue on your face is bad for your skin, well, so is gorging yourself on bags of candy. Get into the spirit of things, already. Nobody likes a killjoy!]

When it comes to the rest of the face, well, Bowie's was always well-contoured. We like Tom Ford Cheek Color in Flush, smoothed from the temple to the lowest point on the apple of your cheek (think: aggressive '80s-mannequin makeup, so the more heavy-handed the better with those bright slashes)—and Tom Ford's Shade and Illuminate palette to emphasize the hollows under your cheekbones and to highlight the natural arches of your face. In Gaultier's interpretation, there's no masterful lightning-bolt artistry required; for eyes, line the inner rims to the waterline with Tarte EmphasEYES Inner Rim Brightener and surround them with thick swathes of Wet 'n Wild's aptly named Icon Eye Shadow in (the far less aptly named) Blue Had Me At Hello. Slick some Bobbi Brown Lip Gloss in Pink Sugar across that mouth and you're good to go. Have fun, and be sure to rock out appropriately androgynously.

Inspiration collage (and beauty-product wrangling) by Elizabeth Brockway. Gaultier photos by Emily Weiss.