We know what you’re thinking. Costumes? For what? Well, aside from Halloween being something we prepare for months in advance, there are plenty of opportunities for couples costumes all year round. Themed birthday parties, Burning Man, 4th of July BBQs — all are fair game in the costume department. But if October’s the only time you turn it out, Pin these now and come back to them later.
The last year in pop culture has been packed to the max with costume-worthy couples, from the ladies of Orange is the New Black to the dudes of 22 Jump Street. Here are 15 pop culture couple costume ideas for 2014… so far ;)
1. Dumb and Dumber To: Lloyd and Harry are at it again… 20 years later. Yes. It’s been 20 years. What better time to bring back the baby blue and orange tuxes?
Finnick and Mags from <em>The Hunger Games</em>
This odd couple from The Hunger Games has what is possibly the most genuine friendship in that entire series. Just looking at this photo leaves me teary-eyed!
3. Cory and Topanga: In case you missed it, these two are back in action this year as parents. To turn this couple into a costume, your beau might need a temporary perm ;)
4. Piper and Alex from Orange is the New Black: These star crossed lovers would be an easy costume to recreate, provided you have access to prison uniforms. Or, you could dye a pair of blue scrubs that special dingy brown hue.
5. The Dudes from 22 Jump Street: Board shorts, printed man tanks and guns out. Done.
Kimye, Newlywed Edition
Oh Kimye, you provide so much costume-based inspiration. Last year, Brit rocked a faux baby bump as a combination of both Kim (whale dress) and Kanye (shutter shades and microphone). This year, class things up and go as this surprisingly-not-insanely-flashy-at-their-wedding bride and groom.
7. James Franco and Seth Rogen, “Bound 2” Edition: And from Kim and Kanye to their would-be doppelgängers, Franco and Rogen. You would need a fake motorcycle to pull this costume off for sure.
8. Pharrell and His Hat: No, not Pharrell wearing his infamous hat. One person dresses as Pharrell in his track jacket and the other person dresses AS the hat. So good!
9. Bill and Hillary Campaigning for 2016: Still have that Bill Clinton mask from the ’90s? Bring it back because the Clintons are back in action!
10. Entrepreneur Barbie and Her Entourage: If you’re a couple, one of you could dress as Entrepreneur Barbie while the other dresses as… her tablet? How about Intern Skipper?? If you’re a group, make this Barbie brigade happen. Stat.
11. Jennifer Lawrence Photobombing Taylor Swift: This has to be one of the best photobombs the red carpet has ever seen. Don a white strapless dress as JLaw, a red and black gown as TSwift, and let the photobombing hijinx commence!
True Detectives
2014 has absolutely been Matthew McConaughey’s comeback year. Pay homage to your new favorite dark drama by going as him and Woody Harrelson this Halloween. But we have to admit, he’ll always be that older dude from Dazed and Confused in our eyes.
13. Jimmy Fallon and Jennifer Lopez, Tight Pants Time: One of the strangest Jimmy Fallon skits to go viral, white pants and striped turtlenecks will turn you into tight pants titans in no time.
14. Grand Budapest Characters: There are two options with this one. Either you go as the lobby boy and his baker love, or you go as the lobby boy and his idol, Ralph Fiennes. Either way, you need at least one purple suit.
15. Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir: Finally, make your Olympic fashion dreams come true by dressing up as “the glimmer twins,” Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir. Leave your skates at home.
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures