Halloween is around the corner and before you run out and buy a pre-made costume from your local Halloween store, you can save a pretty penny by rounding out your odds and ends of strange and unique clothing or random pieces of accessories that you can dress up! If you’re a beauty/makeup kind of gal and already have an arsenal of interesting and colorful makeup as well as tools, you can easily amp up your simple Halloween look. Here are a few different ideas that you can replicate fairly easily for Halloween (with the makeup being the focus!).
Porcelain Doll
This look is easy to pull off if you already have a fair complexion. Make sure to keep your hair simple, or grab a curling iron and give yourself from doll-like ringlets.
For a more “puppet” look, use your (waterproof) eyeliner and dot a few dots on the apple of your cheeks. For a more “china doll” look, grab a bright baby pink blush and swirl it over your apples. Dab a light concealer all over your lips to neutralize your lip color and go back over with a lipliner + lipstick combo, making sure to only draw the lips in the very center of your lips, and perhaps overlining on the very top and bottom (cupid’s bow and bottom lip).
Pair with a long, fluttery set of false eyelashes and a sweep of pale, shimmery eyeshadow and you are good to go!
Sultry Cat
Let’s leave our tacky cat costumes behind and go with something sleeker and more chic. Keep the makeup very clean and minimal and it will look very polished.
Go with a very thick cat eye and strong arched brows. Grab a black liquid eyeliner and gently dot a few dots right above your cheekbones and the apples of your cheek. Fill in the bottom of your nose (cat nose) with your black eyeliner (use liquid for a sharper edge) and set with a black eyeshadow. Grab a black lipstick (you can find a super cheap one at your drugstore) and fill in only the top lip. Gently go over the outer edges of your lip with a skin-toned concealer to prevent smudging and feathering.
Pair with a pair of black skinny jeans, cat ears, and a black turtleneck and you will be able to pull off a sophisticated cat costume
Comic Book Zombie
This is a fun alternative to your standard zombie costume, especially if you don’t like the hassle of doing special effects wounds, blood, and gore and want to play with colors more. For this look you will probably need more color eyeshadows, which you can find cheaper versions of at the drugstore, although for a smoother, more butterier application brands like Makeup Forever work better.
You will also need body paint if you want a more dramatic and realistic canvas to work on. Outline your “comic book” wounds with a black, waterproof, liquid eyeliner and fill in with alternating colors. Do fun things like draw in your teeth over your lips, fill in your brows with a funky color, and you can go one step further and temporarily dye your hair (your stylist will help you with this).
Bat Eyes
If you don’t feel like going all out with a full face of makeup or a full costume, but still want to be festive, this is a great idea to try. However, it will require a steady hand and experience using liquid liner.
Go over your lids and under eyes with a eyeshadow primer, and gently sweep and build up orange around the entirety of your eye. Gently buff out and blur the edges with a fluffier blending brush, and emphasize your browbone with a white/champagne color. Line the top and bottom of your eyes with a thick smokey pencil liner. Then very carefully draw on bat shapes (in alternating sizes) around your eye, making sure to use the point of your eyeliner brush for the sharpest edges.
Mermaid Scales
This look mimics the look of mermaid scales, but could be easily translated to anything magical and fantastical. Make sure you have vibrant blue and green eye shadows, as well as glitter if you want to take it to the next level.
Grab some fishnet stockings, stretch it gently (not too much) over the side of your face and temples and first gently dust over the areas that you want to look scaley with a white, shimmery eyeshadow as base first. Then, go over the areas with a bright blue and some green. Feel free to dust some glitter over the areas, and for the extra stickiness, mix the chunky glitters with some eyeshadow primer. After you lift away the stocking, you should be left with a beautiful, bright mermaid-y texture.
Black Swan
This is a very versatile look, reminiscent of Natalie Portman’s black swan makeup, but can be used for other looks (villians, superheroes, etc.).
It requires very little: a clean, flawless face with foundation set with powder for a all-matte look, minimal lips, and light bronzing to define the contours of the face. Then grab that liquid liner and fill in the entirety of your lids up to your brows, and feather out in crow-like feathers from the brow up towards your temples. Take that black down the sides of your nose to really dramatize the look.
Cleopatra
It’s a pretty specific look, but it’s just too gorgeous to pass up on if you have zero idea what to do for Halloween! The downside of this of course is the actual costume; it will probably require you to purchase the Egyptian queen’s ensemble from the store.
Strong brows are a must, as well as smokey blue eyeshadow, bold eyeliner, false lashes (or layers of mascara), and gold pigments. Keep the lip neutral and simple, like a brown-based nude lipstick. Think a lighter 90s lipstick.
