Halloween is almost here! Are you panicking because you don’t have a costume and your crush invited you to a cute Halloween party and it’s very important that you look hot, creative, and capable? Okay, all you need are the right makeup products and the right YouTube tutorial and you’ll be good to go — I promise.
You don’t even need to have mega-impressive makeup skills to pull off a cool Halloween makeup look. There are plenty of beginner tutorials on the ‘Tube. They’re easy to replicate, and they only require simple products that you can find at the drug store, Sephora, an art store, or on Amazon Prime. In other words, they’re perfect for procrastinators.
For Halloween, you’ll want to use a good primer so that your makeup stays on all night long. If you can, you should splurge on a high-quality primer like Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Primer. This will keep your makeup and/or face paint from sliding off while you sweatily dance to Michael Jackson and carefully lock lips with your crush. If you’re using a lot of black, you should start with a black primer like PEEK Beauty Basic Black Primer.
Some Halloween looks require precise black lines, which you can use a high-quality liquid eyeliner for. At Sephora, try Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner or Kat Von D Tattoo Liner. At the drug store, I like NYX Professional Makeup Matte Liquid Liner and Maybelline Eyestudio Master Precise All Day Liquid Eyeliner. Many Halloween makeup looks can be created using eyeliner alone!
If your look requires bold colors, you can use a special effects body paint brand such as Mehron Makeup, which sells colorful palettes, liquid body paint, and even metallic powder.
Other regular makeup brands can also be useful for Halloween looks, including Wet n’ Wild, MAC, Kat Von D, Lime Crime, and Milk Makeup.
Okay, onto the tutorials!
Glam Skull
You knew this was coming! The glam skull is a Halloween makeup classic for a reason. This version only requires eyeshadow and eyeliner, and it’s somehow both sexy and scary — a win-win. YouTuber Amy Coombes uses three MAC eyeshadows to create this look.
Rainbow Skull
Because sometimes you have to gay up your regular Halloween looks, and this rainbow skull situation is SO cute. Roxxsaurus used her limited edition Roxi x Revolution Colour Burst Palette to create this look, but any rainbow palette would probably work.
Glam Pumpkin
If you have naturally curly hair, you can recreate Lana Summer’s pumpkin look, orange hair included. She uses Hair Paint Wax to color her hair, which I have personally tried and can confirm is VERY effective and easy to use.
Even if you don’t have curly hair, though, this is a really cute glam pumpkin makeup look that’s centered on two palettes: the Urban Decay Born to Run Palette and the 3CE Take a Layer cream pigment palette.
Creepy Clown
Did you know that you could be a creepy clown AND look cute somehow? I honestly did not, until I came across this Halloween makeup tutorial — an oldie but goodie. Makeup YouTuber Emma Cervin uses Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick in the shades “Potion” and “Vintage” to complete this look. You can give your crush a creepy-ass look all night long. Who knows, it might turn her on.
Scar from “The Lion King”
Dressing up as a cat is a time-honored tradition for lazy girls on Halloween. It’s just too easy! But you can elevate things a bit by dressing up as Scar from “The Lion King” instead! The remake of “The Lion King” came out earlier this year — which is what inspired Sandi Jarquin to create this look — but now it’s Halloween, and it makes for the perfect on-trend costume. The fake eyebrow scar!
Moon Goddess
Is there anything gayer than dressing up as a ~moon goddess~ on Halloween? You will look magical and so queer. This look is versatile, so it could also work for a mermaid or another goddess look. The key is that deep, ocean-blue makeup, which involves several Wet ‘n Wild palettes and Marc Jacobs Highliner in “Out of the Blue,” among other makeup products. Find a bright blond wig to really complete the look!
Spider
YouTube is full of illusion makeup tutorials on Halloween, and many of those looks are super creepy and all-too-convincing considering they involve fake skin and blood and whatnot. For a way easier and tamer illusion look, turn to this tutorial from Tina Halada. It’s a little more complicated than the end result makes it look, but it’s so worth it!
Violet from “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”
Remember Violet, the gum-popping brat from the Willy Wonka universe? With the right purple eyeshadow and body paint, you can totally be her for Halloween, as shown by YouTuber Ellie Addis. Plus, it’s the perfect excuse to chew gum and blow enormous bubbles all night long.
She-Hulk
Look, sometimes you gotta go big or go home. Turn into the She-Hulk with the help of an actual professional makeup artist, Erin Parsons. She uses body paint from MAC and Ben Nye Creme Color along with other body paint products to turn the skin completely green. Thanks to a cool eyeshadow and eyeliner look, the look is still femme and cute despite the green face.
Coraline
Last but not least, here’s a tutorial for turning into one of the creepiest lil’ girls from my childhood, Coraline. Rebecca Seals gets really creative to achieve this look — she uses Elmers glue, of all things, to help cover up her natural brows and create a base for new cartoonish ones. Of all the tutorials on this list, this one might be the most complex and ambitious, but it’s still not very hard!
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