You’d never know I was a procrastinator based on the Halloween costumes I’ve pulled together last minute. Most years, I’m grabbing things out of my closet for a homemade DIY costume moments before heading out to a party, or ordering gallons of fake blood and face paint on Amazon two days before. But my costumes always look immaculate. My hack? An easy af Halloween makeup look that mostly takes place of a costume entirely (minus a few simple adds). Trust: Some Halloween eye makeup or a Halloween hairstyle can entirely turn your look into full-blown costume with very little effort (see: #13, I promise anyone can do it). And you don’t even need to be a whiz with a blending brush either. Just scroll through this list of 55 Halloween makeup-look tutorials and start practicing—before you know it, you’ll be winning best costume. So to the naysayers who swear you can’t come up with a cheap Halloween costume within a few hours, give ‘em some ~spooky~ hell with one of these Halloween makeup ideas:But first: You need this Halloween makeup starter kit
- Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Waterproof Eyeliner Pencil
- Unicorn Snot Bio Glitter Holographic Body Glitter Gel for Body, Face, and Hair
- Colourpop Fade Into Hue Eyeshadow Palette
- YNLJGC Face Gems
1. Barbie Halloween makeup After Greta Gerwig’s Barbie premiere, I guarantee we’re about to see a whole lotta Barbies walking down the street this Halloween. And I wouldn’t want anything different! Here’s the thing: You really just need pink makeup look and a pink outfit to match. But you can totally match it to your vibes, whether you go for a rose-y eye and lip or this full-blown bright look.
2. Jocelyn from The Idol makeup for Halloween IDK about you, but I spent the majority of my time watching The Idol just contemplating how I’d redo Lily-Rose Depp’s makeup for a Halloween costume. It’s fairly natural and simple yet looks so unmistakedly “her.” Just make sure to opt for a waterproof eyeliner that gives you a lil time to smudge it out but then sets in place (my go-to is the Makeup By Mario Master Pigment Pro Eyeliner Pencil, fwiw).
3. Glinda the Good Halloween tutorial All the glimpses of Ariana Grande as Glinda in the upcoming Wicked movie are getting me real excited, so I might just have to give this costume a go. Just snag a few key makeup products, including a pink-toned eyeshadow palette, a light-pink lip gloss, and a whole bunch of adhesive rhinestones. And if you’re v committed, put on a long, pink dress and wave around a wand. You’re a good witch, after all.
4. Cleopatra Halloween makeup look You basically already have the makings of this look if you have a gold cream eyeshadow to pat across your lids, lips, and cheeks. It’s v pigmented, but you can also blend it out where you want a more diffused look. But if you want to go even further, stick on a pair of gold false lashes like YouTuber WitJasmine.
5. Halloween eyeliner ideas If you’re more of a “throw on a spooky T-shirt and call it a day” Halloween celebrator, just up the ante on your makeup look with one of these eyeliner ideas. Whether you want a spooky vibe (hi, bloody floating liner) or a cutesy look (@ those adorable devil horns), you won’t get yelled at for not looking festive but still get to keep a lil bit of your peace.
6. Space cowgirl Halloween makeup If your vibe is “yee-haw, but make it shiny and pink,” consider this the easiest costume on this list. This look is heavy on the glitter, so don’t be shy and cover your entire face (eyes, lips, and cheeks) with a mix of metallics and glitter eyeshadows in varying shades and consistencies. And I guarantee if you went to a bachelorette party this year, you already have a cowgirl hat (probably in pink… with rhinestones). Yep, you’re gonna need all the glitter:
- Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Diamond Bomb All-Over Diamond Veil
- Focallure Metallic Chameleon Liquid Lipstick
- Sephora Collection Glossed Lip Gloss
7. Taylor Swift Lover makeup tutorial If you didn’t get enough of recreating Blondie’s makeup on the Eras Tour this summer (I mean, there’s a lot of content to choose from, mmk?), the Lover-era heart is probably the most recognizable for Swifties and bystanders alike. Here’s a lil trick tho from when I copied this look recently: Outline the shape of your heart with a beige or white eyeliner pencil first to get the shape right, then dab the glitter on top—you’ll avoid having to re-do the glitter a bajillion times like I did.
8. Masquerade mask makeup for Halloween All you need for this look is a steady hand, liquid eyeliner, and a foundation or concealer two to three shades lighter than your skin tone to get this look. Then, all you gotta do is throw on a black dress and put on your best regency-era voice. Make haste!
9. Mad scientist Halloween makeup I’m low-key obsessed with this Halloween makeup tutorial from YouTuber Cydnee Black that recreates a creepy scientist after an experiment gone wrong (yes, a pair of protective glasses will be required). To get the smoked-out look around your face, trace gray or black eyeshadow along the outside rim of your glasses while you’re wearing them, blend the lines out with a fluffy brush, then add bits of darker smoke around your face with the same brush for a haphazard finish.
10. ‘60s girl Halloween makeup idea Though you can wear graphic eyeliner any day of the week, try zhuzhing it up even more for Halloween with exaggerated false lashes and a white eyeshadow cut crease, as in YouTuber Dacey Cash’s ‘60s makeup tutorial. If you’re new to fake eyelashes, try grabbing a pair of magnetic lashes instead, then draw on a few lash strokes with black liquid eyeliner along your bottom lashes for the ultimate Twiggy look.
11. Eleven from Stranger Things Not ready to stop talking about Stranger Things 4? Try this super-easy Eleven costume from season three that just requires a little fake blood under your nose. Keep the rest of your makeup natural (like, a little brown mascara on your top lashes and clear brow gel). Bonus points if you spring for an ‘80s-printed button-down and beach waves.
12. Bridgerton Halloween makeup This soft, pink-toned makeup look would absolutely wow Lady Whistledown (or at least, one can hope). The Bridgerton ladies keep it natural and sweet on the show, so copy their look this Halloween by blending a few rose-toned eyeshadows all over your eyes and cheeks, and keeping your skin super glowy (using a luminescent makeup primer and lots of highlighter on your cheekbones) as YouTuber Sophie Schumann does in the tutorial above.
13. Fairy Halloween makeup Lots of cream blush and faux freckles create the base for this adorable fairy costume by Eve frsr, which you probably already know how to do if you’re a makeup lover. Still, if you don’t already own a faux freckle pen (which, tbh, I highly recommend you do), you can also get the look by dotting a brown lip liner or eyebrow pencil across your nose and cheeks.
14. Cassie’s makeup from Euphoria Thank you to Euphoria season two for giving us even more Halloween makeup looks to copy this year, like this Cassie look in episode one that was a cornerstone of *that* bathtub scene. And luckily, it’s super easy to DIY: Dot eyelash glue in a winged-out shape, wait 10 seconds until it’s tacky, then stick on tiny rhinestones. If you have hooded eyes, you can follow YouTuber Crystal Chou’s trick of placing your rhinestones just above your natural crease to make the wing stand out.
Everything you need for a “Euphoria” makeup look:
- Kiss Lash Couture Clear Strip Lash Adhesive
- Tarte Maneater Liquid Black Eyeliner
- L’Oreal Paris Telescopic Mascara
15. Dead Barbie Halloween makeup Expect all the Barbie looks this Halloween season (tysm, Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie). But if you’re not into the cutesy vibe, how about this scary, RIP version? YouTuber Roxette Arisa took a classic pink Barbie eye look to another level with liquid latex and special effects makeup. But you can also achieve the look a bit more easily by smudging red and black face paint around your mouth for the lazy-yet-effective version.
16. Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman makeup While I wouldn’t call Robert Pattinson’s The Batman my favorite film in the franchise’s…