With Halloween celebrations getting more popular every year, the annual frightfest of finding costumes for the kids seems to loom larger each October too.
If the thought of having to buy a new costume for each of the kids fills you with dread, fear not! We’ve got some ghoulishly guilt-free costume ideas that won’t leave you feeling like you’ve seen a ghost.
Zombify it!
Think about what fancy dress costumes you’ve already got around the house and then zombify them! This quick tip can work for almost anything… zombie rugby player, zombie cheerleader, zombie superhero, zombie princess. All you need is a pack of facepaints (inexpensive and available in most supermarkets in the run up to Halloween) and some talcum powder in their hair and voila! You’ve got a quick win with minimal effort.
For some top tips on how to create the look, check out these ideas for zombie makeup on Pinterest. You could even forgo the facepaints and see if you can recreate the same look with everyday makeup products.
Keep it simple
Find an old white T-shirt, or buy a cheap one, and some fake blood and you can’t go far wrong.
Cover it in scarlet handprints, cut slits in it with ‘wounds’ showing underneath, or go all Jackson Pollock and spatter it with fake blood. You could even give it a cheeky twist with cereal boxes like this genius ‘cereal killer’ costume idea.
Bandages or loo roll wound round make a simple but effective mummy costume, or give into some old-school Casper style and get a white sheet for a cute ghost outfit.
Get crafty
If you don’t want to spend a lot of money, but have some time to invest, there are some great crafty costume ideas that don’t take much more than a bit of time and effort.
- Go out on a forest walk and gather sticks to make your own witch’s broomstick. A plain black dress or skirt can be cut into a zig-zagged hem to finish off the look.
- Use some raffia or cut up brown paper bags into strips and stick them into cuffs and collars to make a great scarecrow costume. Add a check shirt and a sunflower and you’re done!
- Some black tights stretched over a couple of hangers can be fashioned into bat wings, as can some stiff black card cut to shape. Add some silver glitter glue to add details and make them look extra sparkly!
- Black tights filled with some kind of stuffing (old newspapers work too) can be attached to a T-shirt or leggings to make an oh-so-cute creepy crawly costume for little ones.
Other frightfully top tips
- If you want to be even more prepared for Halloween next year – try to pop to the shops the day after Halloween this year. All the major stores slash the prices of their Halloween stock and you can grab lots of bargains for costumes and home décor from as little as 20p. Stock up on costume accessories that the little ones won’t grow out of that you can use again and again – head bopper headbands, vampire teeth, capes, cobwebs etc. But be quick! They pack them away soon after the event so they can bring them out again next year – at full price again, of course
- Don’t throw away your pumpkins after the last trick or treater has left your doorstep. Keep your carved out pumpkin in the garden for wildlife to enjoy. You could even make your own pumpkin birdfeeder! Just make sure, if you are leaving them out, you remove any tealights you may have used inside. It’s also worth having a look on community groups on Facebook as sometimes local farmers or wildlife charities need them to feed their animals.
Have you got any fiendishly fab ideas for easy Halloween costumes? We’d love to hear them, or any other spooktacular top tips you have for anything Halloween-related! Just pop your ideas in the comments below. Happy Halloween!
