Easy Halloween Costume Ideas for Kids
It’s easy to make Halloween costumes for kids with a little inspiration and a few supplies. These cute, fun costume ideas can work for kids of all ages—and you’re likely to have some of the necessary supplies already on hand:
Cat
Turning your child into a kitty for Halloween is super-easy and always adorable. All you need are knit pants and a matching top in white or black, and a few accessories. Another option is a top or girls’ leggings with an animal print, such as leopard or cheetah. Glue felt triangles onto a headband to create cat ears and draw on a nose and whiskers with an eyeliner pencil.
There are costume accessory kits that come with ready-made cat ears and even a Velcro cat tail or one that you can pin onto your child’s pants. If it’s chilly outside, layer thermal bottoms under knit pants or girls’ or boys’ jeans to keep your child warm and comfortable.
Poodle
All you need to make this cute costume is a solid white or blush pink outfit, some hot glue, and polyester or cotton pillow filling. Knit pants and any T-shirts for boys or girls in a matching color is a good combination with which to start. Glue the pillow filling around the wrists and ankles of the shirt and pants to create poodle puffs. You can also create a fluffy tail by gluing the filling in a puffball shape on the back of the pants.
Finish the look with makeup—draw on a dog nose with a face-paint crayon and add whiskers. You can make a headband with poodle ears with felt and pillow filling if you’re the DIY type or find one that’s already made.
Fish
Making a fish costume is another easy Halloween endeavor. Black jeans or orange knit pants make a good base for this costume, along with an orange long-sleeve tee. Cut orange felt into oval scale shapes and glue them in an overlapping pattern on your child’s tee to replicate the look of goldfish scales. You can even decorate the felt scales with a fabric marker to add detail.
One alternative to the orange tee for this costume is an orange boys’ or girls’ hoodie. The hood can add to the goldfish look, and it keeps your child’s head warm if it’s chilly.
Ladybug
Then there’s the ladybug. This costume requires red-and-black apparel, such as a red long-sleeve T-shirt and black pants or a black tulle skirt. Black or red ballet flats for girls are a comfortable footwear option that complements this costume. You can use a black fabric marker on a red shirt or glue felt circles on it to create ladybug spots. Add antennae by gluing black pipe cleaners and red pom-poms onto a black headband.
You don’t have to add ladybug wings to complete this costume. However, if you do want to add them as a finishing touch, they’re easy to make from fabric or even cardboard. Simply use red half-circle shapes and affix black circles for the spots. You can then sew, glue, or Velcro the wings to the back of your child’s shirt.
Chef
If your child loves to help you in the kitchen, they’re likely to love a chef costume. It’s super-easy to put together with any type of comfortable pants and a white jacket. You can go with an actual chef’s jacket in your child’s size or substitute a boys’ or girls’ white dress shirt and a white apron on top. Add a traditional chef’s hat to provide an authentic finishing touch and give your child a whisk or other chef’s accessory to carry or tuck into their apron pocket to add to the look.
This costume is one of the easiest to make, and your child can wear it long after Halloween. If your child has a play kitchen set or likes to help you cook, a chef’s apron and hat are fun accessories.
Pumpkin
Go classic with a simple pumpkin costume. If you want something that requires little time and effort, pair black jeans and an orange tee. Use a black fabric marker to draw a Jack-o’-Lantern face on the T-shirt, and your child is all set. As an alternative, you could use felt shapes and hot glue or Velcro to make the Jack-o-Lantern face design. A pumpkin-shaped treat bucket makes a functional accent for this cute costume.
Princess
Another kids’ costume that’s almost effortless to put together using one of the girl's dresses you may already have is the princess costume. Start with a long dress formally or put together an outfit with a skirt and blouse in a floaty style. You can add dazzle by gluing sparkles or glitter onto the dress or skirt, then finish the look with a tiara or crown. You can make one with a headband and rhinestones or find a toy one.
These are just some of the ideas to consider when creating an easy kids’ costume for Halloween. Use one of these ideas or come up with your own—with basic apparel pieces like black jeans and long-sleeve tops, you can create a variety of DIY costumes by adding simple accessories.