As someone who has cherished the magic of Halloween since my childhood trick-or-treating days, I can confidently say this time of year brings out my creativity like nothing else! From going all out for costume parties in college to the unforgettable Halloween when our Cleopatra and Caesar costume went viral, dressing up has always been one of my favorite parts of fall. This may come as a shocker, but playing dress-up was my absolute favorite as a kid.
Whether I’m going for spooky-scary or recreating one of my favorite characters, I revel in the artistry of it all—especially when it comes to any sort of special effects makeup! In the spirit of my favorite holiday, I’ve compiled a list of 30 of my past Halloween costumes that will hopefully give you some creative costume ideas and inspire you to embrace spooky season the way I do. Let’s dive in and get ready to turn heads this Halloween!
30 Creative Halloween Costumes
This costume ideas list consists of all the ones I have worn over the last 10 years and includes looks I wore for Halloween photoshoots and ones I wore for Halloween parties! They are all a mix of specialty-made costumes and DIY ones as well. Whether you’re looking for couples costume ideas, group costume ideas, friends costumes ideas, DIY Halloween costumes, scary Halloween costumes, or even pet Halloween costumes, I have something for everyone this Halloween.
Note: The following costumes were photographed and special effects edited by Rachel Giese Creative: Zombie Bride and Groom, Beetlejuice, Voldemort and Bellatrix, Skeleton 1, Star Wars-Dark Rey, Scarlet Witch, Ghost, Witch. Huge shout out to Rachel for always taking Halloween to the next level with me!
1. Zombie Bride and Groom
This zombie bride and. groom couples costume is truly one of my favorites ever! We actually did this the year that we got married, so it was perfect timing and it was a complete DIY. Shout out to Rachel Giese Creative for finding the perfect location for this shoot and making us look extra spooky.
2. Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice is a Halloween CLASSIC, and this is one of my favorite makeup looks that I have done. I also created a simple DIY Lydia Deetz (see end of post) look to go along with this one for this fun reel.
Shout out to Rachel Giese Creative for photoshopping me onto some fake Beetlejuice tombstones in these shots-I was actually sitting on a barstool and camera equipment bag. See the behind the scenes for the before here.
3. Cleopatra and Caesar
The costume we will never top that we definitely did not expect to go viral the way it did. Props all go to Austin for his costume idea on this one! It has been years now and I still get the meme sent to me a handful of times a year, and even more so around Halloween. As seen on Buzzfeed and many other places for all of eternity.
Check out the original posts for this viral Cleopatra and Caesar costume on my Twitter and Instagram.
4. Voldemort and Bellatrix
I had ALWAYS wanted to dress up as Bellatrix Lestrange, and it turned out it was actually Austin as Voldemort that I was even more exited about! I spent about three or so hours transforming him into he-who-must-not-be-named using a professional grade bald cap, special effects makeup and a DIY nose prosthetic made of tissues, liquid latex and tape that he could not breathe out of for this photoshoot with Rachel Giese Creative. Safe to say he opted to go with the mask that the costume came with when we wore the outfits again out to a Halloween party the following week.
5. Skeleton
One of Rachel Giese Creative and I’s first true Halloween shoots! I absolutely loved doing this skeleton costume makeup, and I even included a few snaps from my first attempt at skeleton makeup 4 years prior in college. So wild to see how my makeup skills had improved during that time.
6. X-Men: Mystique and Wolverine
One of my most challenging costumes to date when it comes to makeup. I am so proud of how this one turned out because I was really nervous about taking on such a task. For the facial scales I pinned blue mesh onto a Styrofoam head and drew them out with blue puff paint. After letting it dry I cut them out and attached them to my painted face with liquid latex/special effect glue. I was still finding blue paint in my ears for a week after this.
7. Pennywise and Georgie from IT
Pennywise and Georgie is such a classic Halloween costume that we even dressed up the dogs to match us! We even passed out candy like this which was definitely a surprise each time we opened the door. Loved how these IT costumes turned out.
8. Scarlet Witch
When Wandavision aired I just KNEW I had to recreate her look from it as a Scarlet Witch costume. I started planning early and got this custom suit off of Etsy, and Rachel Giese Creative shot and edited these photo to give me her powers. Love how they turned out!
9. Chucky and Bride of Chucky
We had too much fun with this classic duo costume! All DIY, down to the staples I glued to my face.
10. Star Wars – Dark Rey
Another fun shoot with Rachel Giese Creative! We actually shot this for May The 4th Be With You, but it would make a great Halloween costume as well.
11. Hocus Pocus
Is it even Halloween if you don’t watch Hocus Pocus at least once? Had so much fun dressing up as the Sanderson Sisters in these iconic Hocus Pocus costumes and recreating the scenes all night.
12. Circus: Ringmaster, Jester and Lion
Circus costumes are such a great group costume idea! You can include a ringmaster, jester, clown, lion, acrobat, etc. The options are endless.
13. Freddy Krueger
Loved this Freddy Krueger costume so much I did it twice! Once as a couple costume with Jason, and two years later with some improved special effects makeup and a puppy costume to match.
14. Venom
Everyone who knows me knows I LOVE Marvel, so this Venom costume was on the bucket-list for years.
15. Ghost
This was such a fun shoot with Rachel Giese Creative! We shot these at a local haunted attraction, The Thirteenth Hour. The staff did my makeup and I even got to stick around to do some scaring afterwards!
16. Austin Powers and Vanessa Kensington
Grew up watching these movies (which I probably shouldn’t have been) so when I came across this Austin Powers costume for Austin I knew we couldn’t pass it up.
17. Power Puff Girls
The perfect group costume for three (or more!) We even had the Mayor of Townsville and Mojo Jojo.
18. Kim Possible and Shego
Because who didn’t want to dress like Kim Possible growing up? I know I did.
19. Scooby Doo Characters – Daphne, Velma and Shaggy
My favorite part about this Scooby Doo costume is how perfectly each of us fit our characters. Couldn’t forget the Scooby Snacks!
20. 101 Dalmatians – Cruella Deville
One thing about me is I am always down to dress up as the villain. This Cruella Deville costume was such a fun look to recreate, and all a DIY.
21. Vampire Diaries – Katherine Pierce and Elena Gilbert
Any Vampire Diaries fan will recognize these looks immediately.
22. Jigsaw from Saw
Want to play a game, anyone? The only thing I was missing for this Jigsaw costume was a tricycle.
23. Witch
This was the year I binge watched American Horror Story, so I obviously had to recreate a modern witch look from Coven.
24. Pirate
This pirate costume was one of my earlier costumes, and still a favorite due to the fun makeup.
25. Deadpool and Spider-man
This Deadpool and Spider-man costume is such a dynamic duo! The best part about these costumes is how we painted on the “masks” so we didn’t have to actually wear a mask all night.
26. Darth Vader
Back to my college days! I was so proud of this DIY Darth Vader costume top I made. I took a simple black top and sewed bits of fabric and buttons to recreate his outfit.
27. Batman
Another college favorite! Batman and Catwoman is such a great duo costume.
28. Iron Man
Had to dress up as my favorite superhero at least once! Loved how this Iron Man costume turned out.
29. Zombie
Such an easy DIY! You can make a zombie costume out of anything really, such as old clothes or some you find at the thrift store.
30. Lydia Deetz
This Lydia Deetz costume was such a simple one to throw together last minute! I mainly dressed up as Lydia to go along with my Beetlejuice costume for a reel, and I already owned everything for it.
And there you have it—30 of my most creative Halloween costume ideas inspired by years of my passion for dressing up! From my early trick-or-treating escapades to the viral moments that have become part of my Halloween legacy, I hope these ideas spark your creativity and help you craft a memorable look this season.
Don’t forget to share your costume creations with me—I can’t wait to see how you bring my costumes to life! Happy haunting, everyone!
Dog Halloween Costumes
BONUS: Because who doesn’t love dogs dressed up in costumes? Here are a few of Luke and Leia’s best dog Halloween costumes!
Pin this post for later:
