Halloween in the 1980s didn’t always involve elaborate costumes, expensive accessories, or weeks of planning. In fact, some of the most memorable 1980s Halloween costumes were made from whatever parents could find around the house. An old bedsheet, a cardboard box, or one of Dad’s oversized shirts could become a perfectly acceptable Halloween costume with a little imagination.
And sometimes, the results were surprisingly impressive. Other times, you ended up with crooked eyeholes, a cardboard robot that couldn’t fit through the front door, or a homemade cape that kept falling off. But that was part of the fun. Parents didn’t necessarily need a trip to the costume store to turn their kids into ghosts, witches, superheroes, or their favorite movie characters.
From bedsheet ghosts to homemade Ghostbusters, here are 12 last-minute Halloween costumes that parents put together in the ’80s using whatever they had around the house.
The Classic Ghost Made From an Old Bedsheet
Few Halloween costumes were easier to put together than the classic bedsheet ghost. All you needed was an old white sheet, a pair of scissors, and a parent willing to sacrifice a perfectly good piece of bedding. Two holes for the eyes, maybe another for the mouth, and suddenly you were ready to haunt the neighborhood. Of course, getting those eyeholes in the right place was another matter entirely. Plenty of kids spent Halloween night trying to see through crooked openings while the bottom of their costume dragged along the sidewalk. And if the sheet was particularly long, there was always the possibility of tripping over your own ghostly disguise before reaching the first house.
A Witch Wearing Mom’s Black Dress
Before elaborate witch costumes became readily available in every Halloween aisle, plenty of parents simply raided their closets. An oversized black dress, a pair of dark shoes, and a broom from the kitchen were usually enough to make a convincing little witch. If there wasn’t a pointed hat lying around, one could be fashioned from black construction paper or cardboard. A little green face paint or a fake wart completed the transformation, although neither was strictly necessary. The dress was probably several sizes too big, and the broom might have been taller than the child carrying it, but nobody was going to mistake you for anything other than a Halloween witch.
A Robot Built From Cardboard Boxes and Aluminum Foil
If your parents were feeling particularly ambitious, you might have ended up trick-or-treating inside a cardboard robot. The process usually involved finding a couple of appropriately sized boxes, cutting holes for your head and arms, and covering everything in aluminum foil. Bottle caps, colorful buttons, and bits of construction paper became control panels, while empty paper towel rolls could serve as mechanical arms. With Star Wars and Transformers fueling kids’ fascination with robots during the 1980s, the costume felt especially appropriate for the decade. Unfortunately, cardboard wasn’t exactly known for its flexibility. Sitting down was practically impossible, and navigating doorways required considerably more coordination than most kids possessed.
A Clown Wearing Oversized Clothes
A homemade clown costume was another reliable option when Halloween arrived before anyone had thought about buying an outfit. Parents could pull together a pair of baggy pants, an oversized shirt, mismatched socks, and whatever colorful accessories happened to be available. Some stuffed the clothes with pillows or towels to create an enormous belly, while others added homemade pom-poms or a ridiculous hat. The finishing touch was usually a generous application of face paint, complete with exaggerated red cheeks, a bright nose, and an enormous smile. Whether the result looked cheerful or slightly terrifying depended largely on your parent’s artistic abilities.
A Vampire With a Cape Made From Household Fabric
Becoming Dracula didn’t require much more than a white shirt, dark pants, and something that could pass for a black cape. Parents might use an old piece of fabric, a dark curtain, or whatever material was available, occasionally adding a stiff cardboard collar for extra dramatic effect. A little pale makeup, dark circles around the eyes, and some plastic fangs completed the look. Vampire costumes were already Halloween classics, but the popularity of movies like The Lost Boys in 1987 gave the bloodsucking look an extra dose of ’80s appeal. The best part was that the cape did most of the work, even if it was clearly made from something that had previously belonged in the linen closet.
Trending on Cheapism
A Mummy Wrapped in Torn Bedsheets
If your family had an old bedsheet that was beyond saving, it might have ended up as a mummy costume instead of a ghost. Parents tore white fabric into long strips and wrapped them around their kids over ordinary clothes, trying to recreate the appearance of ancient Egyptian burial bandages. Some added dark makeup around the eyes or a little powder to make the costume look especially dusty and ancient. The trouble was keeping everything together. By the time you’d visited a few houses, those carefully arranged strips might be unraveling around your ankles or trailing behind you. A mummy costume could look pretty convincing when you left home and considerably less impressive by the time you returned with your candy.
A Scarecrow Made From Dad’s Flannel Shirt
A scarecrow was practically the perfect costume for parents who wanted to use whatever was already in the house. An oversized flannel shirt, old jeans or overalls, and a straw hat provided the foundation. A few fabric patches made the outfit look appropriately worn, while pieces of raffia or straw tucked into the sleeves and pockets completed the effect. Some parents added rosy cheeks, a painted triangular nose, or stitched-looking lines around the mouth using face makeup. Unlike some homemade Halloween costumes, this one had the added advantage of being relatively warm. Kids could wear sweaters and extra layers underneath without ruining the look, which was particularly helpful on chilly October nights.
A Black Cat Made With Construction-Paper Ears
If you had black clothes, you were already halfway to becoming a Halloween cat. Parents could cut two pointed ears from black construction paper, attach them to a headband, and create a tail by stuffing an old black stocking with fabric scraps. A few whiskers drawn on with makeup and a little black triangle on the nose finished the transformation. The costume was inexpensive, recognizable, and surprisingly easy to assemble just minutes before heading outside. Of course, keeping the ears attached was another challenge, especially if the headband wasn’t particularly sturdy. And depending on how well the tail was secured, there was a decent chance you’d lose it somewhere along the trick-or-treating route.
Sign up for our newsletter
A Homemade Superman or Supergirl Costume
Not every kid who wanted to dress like a superhero ended up with an official costume. Sometimes, parents had to improvise with a blue shirt, matching pants, and a piece of red fabric tied around the shoulders. A homemade Superman emblem cut from construction paper or felt could be pinned or sewn onto the chest, while a red skirt could help create a Supergirl-inspired outfit. Thanks to the popularity of the Superman movies, the characters were familiar to plenty of children growing up in the 1980s. The homemade logo might have been a little crooked, and the cape probably didn’t flow quite like it did on the big screen, but that hardly mattered. As long as you could run around pretending to fly, the costume had done its job.
A Pirate Made From Old Clothes and a Bandana
A pirate costume was another Halloween standby that required very little preparation. An old striped shirt, dark pants, a bandana, and an improvised eye patch were usually enough to create a recognizable seafaring outlaw. Parents might add a cardboard sword, a homemade paper hat, or a sash tied around the waist for extra effect. Some even drew a mustache or beard with makeup to make the transformation more convincing. The result rarely resembled an elaborate Hollywood pirate costume, but that was hardly the point. With an eye patch over one eye and a cardboard sword in hand, you were ready to spend the evening demanding candy instead of buried treasure.
A Ghostbuster With a Backpack Made From Household Junk
After Ghostbusters hit theaters in 1984, plenty of kids wanted to dress like the movie’s paranormal investigators. Unfortunately, recreating those elaborate proton packs wasn’t exactly easy on a limited budget. Resourceful parents could start with a tan shirt and dark pants, then construct a homemade backpack using cardboard boxes, empty containers, plastic tubing, and whatever other household odds and ends were available. A hand-drawn Ghostbusters logo helped make the outfit recognizable, even if the equipment looked nothing like the movie version. The finished proton pack might have been enormous compared with the child wearing it, and there was always the possibility that something would fall off halfway through the night. Still, for a kid obsessed with the movie, carrying a homemade ghost-catching machine was pretty exciting.
A Karate Kid Costume Made From a White Bathrobe
When The Karate Kid became a hit in 1984, suddenly plenty of children wanted to look like Daniel LaRusso. Luckily for parents, a homemade karate costume didn’t require much more than a white bathrobe or loose white clothing, a fabric belt, and a headband. Some families added a homemade emblem to the back of the outfit, while others simply relied on the headband to make the reference clear. The costume wasn’t necessarily an accurate recreation of a martial arts uniform, especially if the bathrobe had pockets or fluffy trim, but that didn’t stop kids from practicing their best karate poses. And if you could manage something resembling Daniel’s famous crane kick, the outfit was practically complete.
When Halloween Costumes Were Made With Whatever Was Around
Looking back, some of the most memorable Halloween costumes of the 1980s weren’t necessarily the ones that came from a store. They were the ghosts with uneven eyeholes, the robots made from cereal boxes, and the superheroes wearing capes fashioned from old fabric. Parents worked with what they had, often putting together an entire costume in a single afternoon. The results weren’t always comfortable, practical, or particularly convincing, but they were certainly memorable. And somewhere in an old family photo album, there’s probably still a picture of a kid proudly wearing a homemade costume that took about 20 minutes to make.
