40 DIY Halloween Costume Ideas For Women & Men For 2026
This post may contain affiliate links. Read the full disclosure
These DIY Halloween costume ideas for women and men are easy to make at home for a fraction of the cost of that expensive new costume you wear once and shove in the closet after. This collection of DIY adult Halloween costumes is better than those cheap store-bought costumes. Plus it’s oh so satisfying to say you made it yourself!
Tips For DIY Halloween Costumes For Adults
Most of these homemade Halloween costumes come together with cardboard, duct tape, fabric, a hot glue gun and spray paint. A few things worth knowing before you commit:
- Check what you already own first. A lot of these start with a plain black dress, a white t-shirt or a hoodie. The costume is what you add to it.
- Makeup does more work than you think, and it’s cheap. A decent face paint kit will stretch across several costumes.
- Think about whether you will wear it again. Something you can pull apart and reuse is worth the extra hour.
- Make sure you’ll actually be comfortable. You’re in it all night. If you can’t sit down or fit through a doorway, it’s coming off early.
- Borrow props, or organise a costume swap with friends. Cheaper than buying, and you end up with something you’d never have picked yourself.
- Discount stores are the place for wigs, tights and face paint. Anything you only need once.
- Op shops are a gold mine. You can find most items of clothing for cheap in an op shop instead of buying new.
- Be careful ordering online. The photos are optimistic and the sizing rarely matches. Leave yourself time to send something back and check reviews thoroughly.
In case you need costume supplies, check out:
DIY Halloween Costumes For Women
Finding an easy Halloween costume for women is usually not too big of a challenge. We are lucky enough that we can get creative with makeup and keep it really simple. Yet it’s fun to do something a bit more extravagant too! These DIY women’s Halloween costumes are fantastic!
DIY Birthday Cake Costume
A giant DIY birthday cake costume with you as the candle on top. Mostly cardboard, batting and fabric, so it’s cheap, but the cutting and shaping takes some time to come together. Best for a party where you’re not going to need to sit down much.
Shower Pouf Costume
This is such a fun idea and one that doesn’t use a lot of materials to create. Show up ready to party in your DIY shower pouf outfit and bubbles. This one wouldn’t take too long to make, so long as you’ve got enough tulle so don’t leave it until the last minute.
Flamingo Costume
Be feathered and fancy in your Flamingo Halloween costume. Feather boas, a pink dress and a beak you make from cardstock. The pink dress might be the hard part to find, so check the op shops before you order anything. Comfortable enough to wear all night. You can get bulk packs of pink feather boas on Amazon.
Crazy Cat Lady Costume
This Crazy Cat Lady Costume has to be one of the most hilarious costumes for Halloween and such an easy one to put together too, even if you’re time-poor! I reckon this might be one of my favourite funny women’s costumes for a DIY.
DIY Disney Maleficent Costume
Disney costumes for Halloween are always a great choice and this Maleficient costume will ensure you make a big entrance. You can make your own or buy a set of Maleficent horns.
Taxidermy Deer Costume
If you are leaving things until the last minute, this simple DIY costume idea is one you could pull off very quickly. Be a taxidermy wall-mounted deer or choose another animal for a bold statement. And much kinder than the real thing!
Bowl Of Cereal Costume
This cereal bowl has to be one of the cutest costumes, with so many bright colours! It’s made using chopped up pool noodles to make the colourful cereal. This looks like a giant papier-mache bowl, or you could get a lightweight plastic planter and cut leg holes into it.
Cheshire Cat Costume
It can’t get much simpler than this easy Halloween make-up Cheshire Cat Costume. It’s all in the face painting. This is a great option if you want minimal props that doesn’t take too long to put together!
Hot Chocolate Costume
This super cute Hot Chocolate costume would be super fun paired with a related costume to create a fun couple costume combo! It’s amazing what you can create with construction paper or cardboard boxes!
DIY Cookie Monster Costume
Get your felt and tulle ready, and grab a feather boa. That’s about all you need to create this easy & cute Cookie Monster costume.
DIY Jessie From Toy Story Costume
We had a blast creating our own Toy Story family costumes for my niece’s Halloween engagement party. This Jessie costume consisted of a few alterations to existing clothing and a couple of cheap accessories.
DIY Cereal Bowl Costume
Here’s another take on the fun DIY cereal bowl costume which looks amazing and includes a detailed tutorial for creating the papier-mache bowl. The rainbow-coloured Fruit Loops have been created by cutting up pool noodles. So clever!
Ursula Cosplay Costume
This stunning Ursula costume is the ultimate cosplay or DIY Halloween costume for women. This is the perfect option for plus sized costumes for women since you can fully embrace your curves in this sea witch costume. You will need plenty of purple body paint for this one!
DIY Unicorn Frappuccino Costume
If you love your Starbucks, this costume is for you! A DIY Unicorn Frappuccino so you can dress like a favourite beverage!
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
You can’t get any easier than this Buffy The Vampire Slayer costume! Grab your favourite black leather jacket, jeans or leather pants and rock your 90s style, ready to slay!
DIY Living Dead Costume
If you are planning for a scary Halloween costume for adults, this Living Dead costume would work for men or women.
Elliot & E.T Costume
If you’re looking for a fun costume for a pregnant woman, this E.T. costume is downright epic! So clever and you can just as easily pull this one off without a baby bump!
Gum Ball Machine
This gumball machine is a cute Halloween costume for women that incorporates pom poms and a red skirt. Get your glue gun ready!
DIY Pokemon Poke Ball Costume
If you love the Pokemon GO app or are a big fan of all things Pokemon, this Poke Ball Tutu Costume is a really fun and creative idea. Gotta catch them all.
Easy DIY Jack O Lantern Costume
Sometimes you just need a quick and simple costume in a hurry and this pumpkin costume is a perfect choice with a cute little headpiece and a repurposed orange sweater which you can decorate with your Cricut or similar.
Starbucks Costume
Another take on the Starbucks costume, this one is super easy to make and looks adorable! You just need a beige slip dress and some handmade accessories.
Last-Minute Scarecrow Costume
Grab your denim overalls and straw hat for this easy and quick scarecrow costume. You could give it a Wizard of Oz twist or just go with a generic scarecrow for your Halloween dress-ups! Cute crow-dog is optional! The wig is made from yarn, attached to a floppy hat so it doesn’t have to be a full coverage wig.
Potted Cactus Costume
If you’re the resident plant lady in your social group, this potted cactus costume is the perfect choice!
DIY Siracha Costume
This costume could not get much easier! There is a free Silhouette sriracha design file to make the t-shirt and then you just need to create your simple head accessory for a fun and easy costume anyone can wear! I’m pretty sure my husband needs to wear this one day since he puts Siracha on EVERYTHING!
Red Riding Hood
Red Riding Hood costumes are easy to DIY, as you can pick up a red cape or make your own with this fantastic Red Hiding Hood pattern tutorial. This is another great option for plus size womens costumes too since the cape can be flattering for every shape!
DIY Jellyfish Costume
This homemade Jellyfish costume would work for men, women or children. Plus you can make it with a few simple items from home if you’re in a rush! The hat is the main component. Lots of crepe paper or ribbons.
Pregnant Zombie Baby Costume
If you are looking for a Halloween costume for pregnant women, or even if you’re not, this horrifying zombie baby costume is always one to turn heads. This is an inexpensive option if you already have a baby doll at home too. Just use an old shirt or a cheap basic.
Weeping Angel Costume
This is a little more of an elaborate DIY costume, but there’s a really detailed tutorial to help you make your own weeping angel costume. This one is an equally good option for men too!
DIY Halloween Costumes For Men
While some men love the chance to dress up for Halloween, others dread it. These DIY Halloween costumes for men are easy options to help inspire something creative and fun.
DIY Pennywise Clown Costume
For a scary Halloween costume for men (or women), Pennywise clown is certainly a horrifying, yet simple choice you can create at home.
Miguel From Disney’s Coco
An emotional and heartwarming Disney film, Miguel from Coco is a fantastic Disney costume for men that requires minimal props. A red hoodie and jeans, some make-up and skeleton gloves paired with an acoustic guitar and you’re ready to roll. This is a ready in 30 minutes type of costume.
Freddie Mercury Costume
This fantastically easy DIY Freddie Mercury costume is actually worn by a woman, but it would of course be a wonderful choice for a men’s Halloween costume or fancy dress. It is featured as part of a music icons Halloween group costume.
DIY Wolverine Costume
With a wig and some serious sideburns, there is little else you need to create your own DIY Wolverine costume. Make your own claws, or buy some online. This is my big brother’s 40th birthday, which was a science fiction theme.
DIY Slash Costume From Guns N Roses
If you love Guns N Roses, this Slash costume is the perfect DIY costume idea to make you feel like a total rockstar! It is literally so easy too. A band shirt, a top hat, leather pants and a curly wig, paired with a guitar and you’re good to go. Swap out the pants for black jeans to make it even easier.
Stranger Things Demogorgon Mask
This DIY Stranger Things Demogorgon costume is so creative, designed so the mask opens up to give other party guests a fantastic fright! This is a costume that even teenage boys might enjoy wearing! You can also shop for Stranger Things costumes online.
DIY Pope Costume
Upcycle an old sheet or grab one on sale and turn it into a DIY Pope Costume. This certainly fits with easy to make Halloween costumes for adults.
Gingerbread Man Boxtume
Turn those cardboard boxes into your next costume with this simple Gingerbread man costume idea.
Marvel Costumes
For my 40th, it was Marvel theme. My husband was Captain America with a printed shirt off AliExpress paired with accessories from Shein – brown leather gloves, a posture strap that looked like Cap’s shield holder (and my fancy shield replica off Etsy).
My extended family were Hulk and Beast from X-Men, which was essentially basic clothes paired with a whole lot of body paint. It was Summer, so the body paint sweated off pretty quickly.
The Invisible Man
This Invisible Man costume is one that requires very little prep time. If you have a trench coat already, that’s a bonus. A pair of white gloves and a roll of bandages, paired with a bowler hat.
Amazon Echo Costume
This Amazon Echo costume is a little more complex to make but what a creative idea! It appears to be made from cardboard with LED lights around the top. This one might take a little longer to put together but still an inexpensive and totally unique men’s costume idea.
Need A Last Minute Halloween Costume?
If you are time-poor and not keen to spend a dime, there are plenty of easy DIY Halloween costume ideas in your own wardrobe and home. Many of these family Halloween costumes have items that can come together from what you already have too!
Here are some costume ideas from your wardrobe:
- Uniforms (Sport, work, hobbies)
- Seasonal gear (snowsuit, swimmers)
- Colour specific (Wiggles skivvy, Minion)
- Formal wear (Hollywood celebrity)
- Partner’s clothes (gender swap)
It can be pretty easy to pull something simple from your general wardrobe. Right now I could rock an orange belt karate kid from my late teen hobby, or a black dress teamed with dark make-up to be a witch. Costumes ready in under 10 minutes. DIY costumes don’t have to be hard!
Hopefully, these creative and funny adult Halloween costumes help you come up with the perfect DIY outfit for your next fancy dress event!
FOR MORE HALLOWEEN INSPIRATION
- DIY Halloween costumes for kids
- Easy DIY Halloween family costumes
- Halloween mocktail recipes the kids will love
- Book theme costumes for kids
- Halloween party games for all ages
- The creepiest Halloween party finger foods
- DIY Halloween decorations to set the scene
- Non-food Halloween treat ideas for trick or treaters
- Leftover Halloween candy recipes
- Adult couple Halloween costume ideas
- Halloween party activities for adults
- Halloween party name ideas
- Halloween name generator
Making one of these homemade costumes? Tell me which one in the comments. I’d love to see a photo of your own version!
