Halloween Makeup Ideas: 12 Step-by-Step Looks for Beginners

The easiest Halloween makeup ideas use products you already own: black eyeliner, a neutral eyeshadow palette, red lipstick and white or pale face makeup will get you a cat, a vampire, a skull, a scarecrow, a broken doll or a pop-art comic character in 10 to 20 minutes. Below are 12 step-by-step looks ranked from beginner to advanced, 20 more quick ideas, a safety section for kids' face paint based on FDA guidance, and how to take it all off without wrecking your skin.

What you need: a basic Halloween makeup kit

You do not need a professional kit. Most looks on this page use the items in the first table; the second lists inexpensive extras worth buying if you want a full painted face.

Safety first: what the FDA says about Halloween makeup

Face paint and novelty makeup are cosmetics, and the color additives in them must be approved by the FDA for the way they are used. The agency's guidance comes down to a short list:

• Patch-test. The FDA recommends testing makeup at least 24–48 hours in advance on a small area of the arm of the person who will wear it. A rash, redness, swelling or other irritation is a sign of a possible allergy.
• Use only products intended for skin. "Don't decorate your face with things that aren't intended for your skin," the FDA says. That excludes acrylic and craft paint, permanent markers and craft glitter – "non-toxic" on a craft label does not mean a product is made for skin.
• Follow the label around the eyes. Some face paints are not meant for use near the eyes; the FDA says to believe the label even if the package shows a model wearing it there.
• Check the colors. Color names are in the ingredient list and can be compared with the FDA's Summary of Color Additives. If a color isn't on the list, the FDA's advice is simple: don't use it.
• Be careful with neon and glow. The FDA has approved eight fluorescent colors for cosmetics, and none of them for use near the eyes. Only one glow-in-the-dark color, luminescent zinc sulfide, is approved for limited cosmetic use – and also not near the eyes.
• Smell it. A very bad smell can mean the paint is contaminated. Throw it away.
• Skip non-prescription costume contact lenses. Decorative lenses are medical devices that require a prescription; the FDA warns that lenses bought from Halloween stores, beauty supply shops, flea markets or street vendors can cause corneal scratches, infection and blindness.

Beginner looks, step by step

Each look assumes clean, moisturized skin. Let moisturizer sink in for a few minutes first; makeup grips better and comes off more easily.

1. Classic cat (5 minutes)

1. Draw a winged eyeliner flick on each eye, a little longer than usual.
2. Fill in the tip of your nose with black eyeliner in a soft upside-down triangle.
3. Draw a thin line from the nose down to the center of your top lip.
4. Add three dots and three short whisker strokes on each cheek.
5. Finish with dark or red lipstick, and paper or headband ears.

2. Vampire (10 minutes)

1. Apply a foundation one shade lighter than your skin and set with powder.
2. Blend gray or plum eyeshadow around the whole eye socket and under the cheekbones.
3. Line the lower lash line with a deep red or burgundy shadow for a tired, bloodless look.
4. Apply dark red lipstick; with a lip brush, pull a thin drip from one corner of the mouth.
5. Dot two small red marks on the neck with lipstick and outline them faintly in plum shadow.

3. Scarecrow (10 minutes)

1. Draw an orange triangle on the nose with lipstick or face paint and outline it in black.
2. Add round pink or orange cheek patches and outline them with short "stitch" dashes.
3. Extend the corners of your mouth with a thin black line and cross it with small vertical stitches.
4. Add a few long lower lashes with eyeliner and freckles with a brown pencil.

4. Pumpkin (10 minutes)

1. Sponge orange face paint over the face, leaving the eye area clear.
2. Draw black triangles above and below each eye with eyeliner or black paint, keeping product off the lash line.
3. Add a black triangle on the nose and a jagged smile extending past the lips.
4. Paint a few darker orange curved lines from forehead to chin for pumpkin ribs.

5. Ghost (10 minutes)

1. Apply white face paint or the palest foundation you have, patting with a sponge.
2. Hollow the eye sockets with gray shadow, blending outward so there are no hard edges.
3. Shade under the cheekbones and at the temples with the same gray.
4. Dab concealer over the lips to mute them. Dust everything with translucent powder.

6. Deer (10 minutes)

1. Contour the sides of the nose and the forehead edge with brown shadow or bronzer.
2. Highlight the center of the nose, under the eyes and the chin with a pale concealer.
3. Blacken the tip of the nose and draw a line to the top lip.
4. Dot white eyeliner spots across the cheekbones and forehead.
5. Add a strong wing and lots of mascara.

Intermediate looks

7. Half skull (20 minutes)

1. Sketch the shapes lightly with a pale eyeliner on one half of the face: a large eye socket, a nose cavity shaped like an upside-down heart, and a hollow under the cheekbone.
2. Fill the skull half with white face paint, avoiding the sketched shapes. Powder to set.
3. Fill the eye socket and nose cavity with black shadow or cream, staying off the waterline.
4. Shade the cheek hollow and temple in gray, blending upward.
5. Draw a line from the corner of the mouth toward the ear and cross it with vertical tooth lines; round the top and bottom of each tooth.
6. Do your normal makeup on the other half for contrast.

8. Pop-art comic character (20 minutes)

1. Do a clean base and strong brows; outline the brows in black liner.
2. Outline the jaw, nose bridge, one cheekbone and the lips in black.
3. With red lipstick and a cotton swab – or the flat end of a pencil eraser dipped in lipstick – stamp even dots across the cheeks and forehead.
4. Add white highlight streaks on the lips and a "tear" outlined in black with a white shine line.
5. Draw a speech bubble on a piece of card to hold in photos.

9. Broken porcelain doll (20 minutes)

1. Pale base, round pink cheeks placed high, small heart-shaped lips drawn inside your natural lip line.
2. Draw long, separated lower lashes with liquid liner and add a wide-eyed white line on the lower waterline only if the product is labeled safe for the eye area.
3. With the finest brush or liquid liner, draw thin cracks branching from one eye and the hairline – shaky lines look more real than neat ones.
4. Shadow one side of each crack lightly in gray to give depth.

10. Zombie (20 minutes)

1. Mix a little green or gray face paint into your foundation and sponge it on unevenly.
2. Press plum, brown and red shadow around the eyes with your fingertip; uneven is the goal.
3. Hollow the cheeks and temples with gray-brown.
4. Stipple dark shadow along the hairline and jaw with a dry sponge for a mottled effect.
5. Blot lips with concealer, then add a little dark red at the center.

11. Witch with glam eyes (15 minutes)

1. Blend green or purple shadow over the lid and under the lower lash line.
2. Add a sharp black wing and a small star or crescent moon beside one eye.
3. Contour the cheekbones a little more sharply than usual.
4. Finish with black, deep plum or dark green lipstick.

12. Clown, cute or creepy (20 minutes)

1. White base on the whole face, set with powder.
2. For cute: red diamond shapes above and below each eye, a red nose tip, heart-shaped lips, pink cheeks.
3. For creepy: thin black lines from the brows down through the eyes to the jaw, an elongated dark red smile that curves up past the lip corners, gray shading under the eyes.
4. Outline the shapes in thin black liner to sharpen them.

20 more Halloween makeup ideas

Halloween face paint for kids

Children's skin can be more sensitive than adults', and kids rub their eyes. Keep it simple and gentle.

1. Choose water-based face paint labeled as a cosmetic with a full ingredient list. Avoid anything without ingredients, anything that smells bad, and craft or "washable" school paint, which is not made for skin.
2. Patch-test on the inner arm 24–48 hours ahead, as the FDA recommends – earlier if your child has eczema or allergies.
3. Keep paint away from the eyes and lips. For a small child, paint from the cheekbones down and on the forehead only. A cat nose and whiskers, a pumpkin on one cheek or a spider on the forehead looks great and takes two minutes.
4. No fluorescent or glow-in-the-dark paint near the eyes – the FDA has not approved those colors for the eye area.
5. Skip gems and glitter on toddlers, who may pull them off and swallow them.
6. Use a clean sponge and brush for each child at parties, and don't paint over broken skin, rashes or cold sores.
7. Wash it off before bed following the label – usually mild soap and warm water for water-based paint.

The FDA also points out an advantage: makeup instead of a mask lets a child see better while trick-or-treating. In 2005 and 2009, face paints were recalled in the United States after causing rashes, itching and swelling, which is why checking the label and patch-testing matter. If your child has a reaction, wash the product off, call your pediatrician if it is more than mild, and report it to the FDA.

Five-minute kids' designs

• Cat or tiger: nose tip, whiskers, a few stripes on the cheeks.
• Spider-Man cheek: a small red patch with black web lines on one cheek.
• Pumpkin cheek: orange circle, green stem, black face.
• Butterfly: two wing shapes on the cheeks and nose bridge, well below the eyes.
• Ghost: a small white ghost with two black dots on each cheek.
• Bat: black bat shape across the forehead.

More full outfits for children are in Halloween costume ideas and last-minute Halloween costumes.

How to make Halloween makeup last all night

• Layer thin. Two thin coats of face paint crack less than one thick coat.
• Set creams with powder. Press translucent powder on with a puff, then brush away the excess.
• Do eyes first when using dark shadow, then wipe away fallout before applying a pale base.
• Keep oil away. Greasy moisturizer and sunscreen under water-based paint make it slide; let skincare absorb fully first.
• Carry a repair kit: the eyeliner, the lipstick, a few cotton swabs and blotting paper.
• Eat and drink carefully – use a straw to protect lip designs.

How to remove Halloween makeup

"Don't go to bed with your makeup on," the FDA says: worn too long it can irritate skin, and flakes can get into your eyes. Remove each product the way its label says.

1. Water-based face paint: lather mild soap or a gentle cleanser with warm water, massage, rinse. Repeat rather than scrub.
2. Cream and grease makeup: break it down first with cold cream, cleansing balm or a plain oil such as mineral oil, massage for a minute, wipe with a soft damp cloth, then wash with cleanser.
3. Eye area: hold a cotton pad soaked in eye makeup remover against the closed eye for 15–20 seconds, then wipe gently downward. The FDA reminds users that the skin around the eyes is delicate.
4. Glitter and gems: lift with a piece of tape pressed lightly on the skin or with an oil-soaked cotton pad; do not rub glitter toward the eyes.
5. Adhesives for lashes, gems or fake beards: use the remover named on the adhesive's label.
6. Stained skin: reds, greens and blues can linger. Massage in oil or cleansing balm, leave for a minute, and wash again. A faint tint usually fades in a day.
7. Afterward: moisturize. If skin stays red, itchy or swollen, stop using the product and see a doctor.

Matching makeup to the rest of the look

Makeup can be the whole costume or the final ten percent. Pair a vampire face with one of the classics in Halloween costume ideas, coordinate a half skull with your partner using couples Halloween costumes, and carry the color story to your hands with Halloween nails. For the wider safety picture on the night itself, see Halloween safety tips, and for everything else about October 31, 2026, go to the main Halloween guide.