11 Last-Minute DIY Halloween Costume Ideas

Grab your favorite flannel, some leaves from outside, and whatever weird hat you can find. To put this costume together, wear your flannel over a shirt, stuff leaves between your shirt and your flannel, and toss the hat on your head. And to really give a fright, complete the costume by using makeup to decorate your face with a sewn-on smile and deep, dark eye sockets. Once complete, you'll definitely be able to scare more than just the birds. 

Related: These Bewitching Folk Horror Books Will Haunt Your Dreams 

The many tortures and terrors in the Saw movies are enough to give anyone nightmares. And likely, those nightmares revolve around Billy the Puppet. To dress up as the disturbing ventriloquist, all you need is some white, black, and red face paint and to talk in a low and scratchy voice. But if you really want to go all out, wear a red bowtie and a tuxedo as well. 

Bring the frightening Babadook to life with this easy costume. After applying some face paint, throwing on a black coat and black gloves with long pointy fingers, you'll be well on your way to conjuring the creepy creature from the movie. For a finishing touch, put on a stylish old top hat and stuff a spare pillow into your jacket to recreate his hunched back. 

From the The Walking Dead to Train to Busan inspiration for this costume is everywhere you look. Make it your own with more slashes across your shirt, extra spatters of fake blood, and grimier clothes. Did you just turn zombie, with remnants of your former life still intact? Or have you been staggering across the undead wasteland for so long that you're nothing but bloody rags and bones? Just as there are many walks of life, there are many types of undead. So let your imagination run wild!

Related: 15 Zombie Books to Satisfy Your Hunger for Horror 

Despite being animated, Coraline is still very dark and creepy. To spread the movie's dread, dress up as the mother in Coraline. For this costume, you just need a turtle neck and black buttons. By attaching the buttons to a pair of glasses, you can take them on and off as you need to.

Saw certainly gave ventriloquist puppets a bad reputation. But plenty of other childhood toys are just as terrifying. Everyone has seen an old doll that gave them the creeps. And if you're somehow lucky enough to never have come across such a doll, just think of Annabelle from The Conjuring when making this costume. With some old clothes and some face-paint, this costume is easy to put together at the last minute.

Related: 9 Scariest Haunted Dolls You Do Not Want in Your Home 

The film IT, based on Stephen King's novel of the same name, is a modern horror masterpiece. And the characters from the book/movie are quite easy to recreate. Dress up as Pennywise the Dancing Clown with some face paint, a red balloon, and a column of pompoms affixed to the front of a white t-shirt. To dress up as Georgie, just grab a yellow rain slicker and fold up a paper boat. Does your sweetheart love King just as much as you do? Perfect—you can go as a couple!

Related: 22 Best Stephen King Movies for a Night of Terror 

Halloween and skeletons go hand-in-bony-hand. To dress up as a skeleton, use some face paint to draw a skull, with some sharp teeth and two lifeless and dull eye sockets. As for the body—or lack thereof—you can paint bones on black clothes, or make temporary cutout bones from sturdy white paper if you plan on using your clothes again. 

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. This costume is almost as easy as summoning the devious poltergeist from Tim Burton's movie. With a striped shirt and some dark eye make up you are already halfway there. Mess up your hair with a shock of spray-on green hair dye and you'll look the part in no time. 

All you need for a vampire costume is some fake blood or red face paint. Add a makeshift cape to go for a regal, old-school Count Dracula look, or stay in the clothes you're wearing to transform yourself into a modern-day bloodsucker. And if you want to be a specific vampire, there are plenty of hit vampire movies out there for inspiration! 

Related: 19 Vampire Movies that will Make Your Blood Run Cold 

Still struggling for a costume? If all else fails, go for the classic this Halloween: a sheet ghost. It doesn't get much easier than this. Just cut a few holes in an old sheet and you'll be haunting the halls of your home in no time.

Related: 20 Haunting Ghost Movies That Will Send Chills Down Your Spine