need some costuming/cosplaying? advice/help

Alright. First things first. Find a reference photo of a character you would like to gather inspiration from. If you have 7-8 weeks, you have a fair amount of time. Find the reference, then the outfit. Build off of it. You'll then have to decide if you want contacts, gloves, what type of shoes/boots, what outfit, and what color you want. As for a "cereal" (this is intentional) killer, it would be best to go to a thrift store or a goodwill, (starting not to recommend goodwill because they are getting more expensive). Find clothes that have been worn, because it gives and extra layer of authenticity to the costume. As for searches and generalizations, you're going to have to be specific. That's why I say find a horror/slasher mc where you like their outfit and take ideas from that. Once you have that, I can definitely give you advice on how to weather it and how to make it look older and grungy, and make it look somewhat real.

What specifics are you looking for?

First of all, before the "grunge aesthetic or like villain core" was a huge thing, those pants were just cargo pants, or jean cargo pants. It's just dark Y2K fashion. And if you want some weird aesthetic t shirt or crop top, once again, hit the Y2K fashion, or your nearest hot topic. More than likely they'll have what you're looking for. And with a shirt, go to a thrift store and find a t shirt that you like, and grab a pair of scissors. It's easy to "beat up" and "stress" clothing. It's a fairly simple thing to do. Don't limit yourself on a certain type of shirt, when a pair of scissors exists. You have creative freedom. As for chains, a thrift store will more than likely have old pocket watches with different looking chains, or any hardware store will have some small chains, if push comes to shove, and take this with a grain of salt, pet stores are also a place where you can get smaller chains in collar or loop form. (The chains are really nice for chainmail armor and relatively cheap to buy.) But I would go to a hardware store first before that. As an avid cosplayer myself and a wingsmith, I've bought some really questionable things in the name of cosplay. Weird looks happen, you'll be just fine. If they give you trouble about it, straight up tell people. The majority of people you talk too though, will think it's really cool.

Check your nearest mall lol

Oof