100 Easy DIY Halloween Costumes You Can Make for a Spooky Night Out
Cute, scary, funny and simple outfits for any last-minute gathering on October 31.
Sure, you can order a complete Halloween costume online, but where's the fun in that? Instead, exercise your creativity and crafting skills with these easy Halloween costumes that you can DIY with your group of friends or significant other.
Below, we have some of the best Instagram- and meme-worthy DIY Halloween costumes for you to put together right at home (they're also cheap to make!). Some are work-appropriate while others are super punny. Dress as your favorite Disney characters, like Snow White and Rapunzel, or gather a trio to transform into condiments (like mustard, mayo and ketchup) or cardboard robots. Some unique and award-winning homemade costumes include emojis, milkshakes, cake slices and unicorns. Other ideas will have you rummaging through your closet to mix and match pieces to transform into hippies, lumberjacks and bookworms (P.S. all you really need are some quirky glasses, suspenders and a book for that last one).
Go ahead and gather a few crafting essentials, like scissors, glue, cardboard, paint and glitter to dream up the coolest DIY Halloween costumes for October 31. Everyone at the Halloween party will be amazed by how quickly you assembled such a picture-perfect look.
Rey from 'Star Wars' DIY Halloween Costume

As you wait for the next Star Wars movie, dress as the newest Jedi master, Rey, and lead the resistance against any spooky ghouls on Halloween night. Put your hair in a bun, wear a battle-ready ensemble and find a trailing scarf to steal the look. If you can make a replica of BB-8, that would be even cooler!
Pennywise from 'It' DIY Halloween Costume

If anyone fears clowns, they'll surely hide after you transform into Pennywise from It. For this shapeshifting monster, you'll need orange hair, a white dress and a red balloon. To really get into character, randomly start doing the Macarena.
Medusa DIY Halloween Costume

Balloons probably feel a lot better than having real snakes as hair. Create a snake-like headpiece with balloons and dress in a medieval gown that complements the colors of the "venomous creatures."
Mermaid DIY Halloween Costume

Channel your inner mermaid with this simple DIY costume. If you have a long-sleeve green shirt, you're halfway there. To create the fin, you'll need a green apron and cupcake liners folded in half. Then, starting at the bottom of the apron, attach the straight folded part of the cupcake liner with a line of hot glue, having the rounded part facing down. Alternate the two colors to fill the entire width of the apron. Start gluing another layer of cupcake liners, making sure they overlap the first line. Repeat until you have covered the entire apron. Put on a colorful wig and you're good to go!
Skeleton DIY Halloween Costume

Get ready for your comfiest Halloween yet! Grab a long-sleeve black shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. Then, cut or tear a piece of duct tape the length of a bone and place it on the clothing items. Draw the bone shape on top of the duct tape, peel the tape off and place it flat onto the cutting mat. Using an X-Acto knife, cut out the bone shape. Once you have finished cutting out your bones, you can re-stick them back onto the clothing.
Bird DIY Halloween Costume

Kids are going to love this homemade getup. You likely already have the white shirt and leggings you'll need.
Next, you'll want to grab some:
- White mask form
- Cardboard box
- White and metallic silver cupcake liners
- White coffee filters
- Tape
To make:
- Fold many cupcake liners and coffee filters in half.
- Cut out two oval wing shapes out of your cardboard box.
- Starting on one side, attach coffee filters with tape while overlapping them to create a "feathered" look, splaying it out on one end to create a wing shape.
- Add in smaller cupcake liners to add extra texture and be sure to mix in a few silver liners to make sections pop.
- Attach a tube (the circumference of your arm) made out of cardboard to the back of the ‘wing' with gaff tape to secure (this is where you will slip your arms in to wear).
- Cover the backside of the wing with more coffee filters and cupcake liners to hide the cardboard base.
- Repeat steps 3-6 with the other wing.
- Using your white mask form, layer a few small folded cupcake liners to create the tighter/smaller feathers that would be on a bird’s face using double stick tape.
Kids Plant DIY Halloween Costume

Another good one for kids? This adorable plant look!
- To make, cut a hole in the bottom of the basket wide enough for hips and legs to fit through comfortably.
- Download the leaf template and trace it onto green paper. Trim and fold in half.
- Cut varying lengths of wire. Create stems by threading with green straws, dabbing hot glue as you thread to keep the straws in place.
- Hot glue the leaves to the ends of the stems. Hot glue the stems to the inside of the basket, avoiding the sides. You can reinforce these with duct tape if necessary once dry.
- Cut two lengths of green ribbon to use as shoulder straps. Attach them to the inside front and back of the basket with velcro tape or safety pins.
- Dress in shades of green and slide the basket over your head, with the straps resting on your shoulders. Bend stems around you to create a natural look and voila!
Disco Ball DIY Halloween Costume

For a super groovy look, opt for this fun disco ball that can be created using a large cardboard box, spray paint and aluminum foil.
- Once you gather your supplies, cut two large circles from the cardboard box. Spray silver paint on both sides of the circles and let them dry completely.
- While they dry, cut out 1"x2" foil rectangles. Tear 1/2" wide strips of duct tape and place foil rectangles on the sticky side so the majority of the foil hangs off (so it looks like a banner of flags).
- Starting at the bottom, stick the tape/foil banner across the silver cardboard circle so the layer above overlaps the layer below. This will create a tiled effect.
- Trim or fold back the tape around the edge of the circle to maintain the round disco ball shape. Complete two circles for the front and back.
- To create shoulder and chest straps, measure the length needed before cutting and taping nylon webbing to the cardboard's front and back.
Cassette Tape DIY Halloween Costume

Time to go back to the '80s! Another large cardboard box will do the trick here!
Steps:
- Cut two large rectangles from the cardboard box.
- Spray paint both sides of the circles with teal spray paint.
- While this dries, print out two copies of the cassette label template provided. Cut out the label and glue it to the center of the cardboard rectangles.
- Using a black permanent maker, follow the template to add the cassette shapes and outlines.
- To create shoulder and chest straps, measure the length needed before cutting and taping nylon webbing to the cardboard's front and back.
Record DIY Halloween Costume

Swing dancer costumes are always a hit, but you want to know what's even more clever than that? A swing record!
- Once you have your cardboard box: Cut two large circles from the cardboard box. Spray both sides of the circles with black spray paint and let them dry completely.
- While they dry, print out two copies of the record label template provided. Cut out the label and glue it to the center of the black cardboard circles.
- To create shoulder and chest straps, measure the length needed before cutting and taping nylon webbing to the cardboard's front and back.
Tree DIY Halloween Headband

A look this bold will require you to just dress in your favorite tree-like outfit (meaning, a green top and brown bottoms!). Head outside to gather some branches, then cut branch pieces at your desired length with pruning shears. Once you have determined branch length and placement, apply hot glue to the branch's base and glue it to the headband. It works best to hold the branch in place for a few minutes until the glue dries. Once all branches are glued securely onto the headband, paint over the hot glue and headband with acrylic paint.
Vampire DIY Halloween Costume

No one will ever believe this costume is made from plastic tablecloths!
For the cape:
- Lay red and black plastic tablecloths on top of each other.
- Trim both to fit your height (you want about 18” extra to fold over the top).
- Cut a scalloped edge along the top and bottom sides.
- Lay a piece of black ribbon about 18” from the top of the tablecloths.
- Fold the tablecloths over the ribbon and tie them around your neck.
- Fluff the tablecloths as needed.
For the collar:
- Cut a 2” thick strip of printer paper to comfortably fit around your neck.
- Accordion fold rectangle doilies and large round doilies cut in half. Attach them to the paper strip with a glue stick or double-sided tape.
- Glue a ribbon around the paper strip to fasten it around the neck.
Citrus Slice DIY Halloween Costume

We bet no one would expect you to enter the Halloween party as a citrus slice. This fun costume idea only requires a few materials —this citrus wedge template included.
Milkshakes DIY Halloween Costume

Other than your preferred ice cream-colored dress, you'll need to DIY a cherry and whip cream hat to complete the look.
Cake Slice DIY Halloween Costume

Cake is a delicious party treat and a favorite for some. So don't be surprised if you win Best Costume when dressed as a slice.
Unicorn DIY Halloween Costume

Make the wings for your unicorn costume using paper plates and cardboard. Go for drinking straws to make the horn.
Robots DIY Halloween Costume

"Beep, boop" your way into a Halloween bash with these robot outfits. Simple cardboard boxes and colored paint are all that's needed to make these semi-realistic mechanical fits.
Essential Oils DIY Halloween Costume

Lemon or lavender? Choose your scent and turn corrugated cardboard rolls into this unexpected yet creative Halloween outfit.
Tropical Drink and Pool Boy DIY Halloween Costume

Looking for a cute couples costume? Transform into a tropical drink and have your partner dress as a pool boy to match your look. You can easily DIY the straw hat with paper plates, cardstock and hot pink paint.
Lumberjacks DIY Halloween Costume

This is an idea you can easily create with clothes from your closet. Don't forget the suspenders and fake axes!

Amanda Garrity is a lifestyle writer and editor with over seven years of experience, including five years on staff at Good Housekeeping, where she covered all things home and holiday, including the latest interior design trends, inspiring DIY ideas and gift guides for any (and every) occasion. She also has a soft spot for feel-good TV, so you can catch her writing about popular shows like Virgin River, Sweet Magnolias, Hallmark Channel’s When Calls the Heart and more.
Mariah Thomas (she/her) is an assistant editor for Good Housekeeping, where she covers home and lifestyle content. Mariah has more than four years of editorial experience, having written for TLC, Apartment Therapy, Women's Health and Avocado Magazine. She received her master's degree in journalism at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and published her first book, Heart and Soul: Poems of Thoughts and Emotions, in 2019. She's also the founder of RTF Community, a platform for creatives of color to connect, learn and showcase their work.

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