It’s never too early to start practicing.
As a Virgo moon and rising, I do not do well with “last-minute.” Yet every Halloween, my best friends will inevitably invite me to another day-of party or bar crawl, and I’m stuck scrambling for a Halloween costumethat’s slightly more fun than a T-shirt that says, “This is my costume.” But now, I’ve got a new go-to: Halloween makeup that doesn’t require a costume—just a few basic products and some slight patience, whether you’re trying a Halloween eye makeup look or a Halloween hairstyle.
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And don’t worry about your makeup abilities, because I rounded up the 54 best Halloween makeup looks and tutorials of 2022 to start practicing asap. Whether you’re a makeup novice (see #13, I promise anyone can do it), or you’re ready to go full glam (hi #19),you’ve got hella options this year, from pop-culture icons, like Marilyn Monroe and Olivia Rodrigo, to ~reimagined~ classics like a cute cat and a werewolf. So to the naysayers who swear you can’t come up with a cheap Halloween costume within a few hours, give ‘em some ~spooky~ hell with one of these Halloween makeup ideas:
1. Mad scientist Halloween makeup
I’m low-key obsessed with this Halloween makeup tutorial from YouTuber Cydnee Black that recreates a creepy scientist after an experiment gone wrong (yes, a pair of protective glasses will be required). To get the smoked-out look around your face, trace gray or black eyeshadow along the outside rim of your glasses while you’re wearing them, blend the lines out with a fluffy brush, then add bits of darker smoke around your face with the same brush for a haphazard finish.
2. ‘60s girl Halloween makeup idea
Though you can wear graphic eyeliner any day of the week, try zhuzhing it up even more for Halloween with exaggerated false lashes and a white eyeshadowcut crease, as in YouTuber Dacey Cash’s ‘60s makeup tutorial. If you’re new to fake eyelashes, try grabbing a pair of magnetic lashes instead, then draw on a few lash strokes with black liquid eyeliner along your bottom lashes for the ultimate Twiggy look.
3. Eleven from Stranger Things
Not ready to stop talking about Stranger Things 4? Try this super-easy Eleven costume from season three that just requires a little fake blood under your nose. Keep the rest of your makeup natural (like, a little brown mascara on your top lashes and clear brow gel). Bonus points if you spring for an ‘80s-printed button-down and beach waves.
4. Bridgerton Halloween makeup
This soft, pink-toned makeup look would absolutely wow Lady Whistledown (or at least, one can hope). The Bridgerton ladies keep it natural and sweet on the show, so copy their look this Halloween by blending a few rose-toned eyeshadows all over your eyes and cheeks, and keeping your skin super glowy (using a luminescent makeup primer and lots of highlighter on your cheekbones) as YouTuber Sophie Schumann does in the tutorial above.
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5. Fairy Halloween makeup
Lots of cream blush and faux freckles create the base for this adorable fairy costume by Eve frsr, which you probably already know how to do if you’re a makeup lover. Still, if you don’t already own a faux freckle pen (which, tbh, I highly recommend you do), you can also get the look by dotting a brown lip lineror eyebrow pencil across your nose and cheeks.
6. Cassie’s makeup from Euphoria
Thank you to Euphoria season two for giving us even more Halloween makeup looks to copy this year, like this Cassie look in episode one that was a cornerstone of *that* bathtub scene. And luckily, it’s super easy to DIY: Dot eyelash glue in a winged-out shape, wait 10 seconds until it’s tacky, then stick on tiny rhinestones. If you have hooded eyes, you can follow YouTuber Crystal Chou’s trick of placing your rhinestones just above your natural crease to make the wing stand out.
7. Dead Barbie Halloween makeup
Calling it: Barbie looks will be everywhere this Halloween season (tysm, Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie). But if you’re not into the cutesy vibe, how about this scary, RIP version? YouTuber Roxette Arisa took a classic pink Barbie eye look to another level with liquid latex and special effects makeup. But you can also achieve the look a bit more easily by smudging red and black face paintaround your mouth for the lazy-yet-effective version.
8. Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman makeup
While I wouldn’t call Robert Pattinson’s The Batman my favorite film in the franchise’s long list, I will say Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman had some of the best makeup I’ve ever seen. This cool, fresh costume requires nothing more than asmudge-y black eyeliner, some liquid glitter, and an all-black outfit.
9. Black Swan Halloween makeup
Does Black Swan still live in your head rent-free 12 years later, or is it just me? Pay some respect to the movie with this Halloween makeup that only really requires black eyeliner—just lots of it. If you dread doing your brows, you’ll get a lil reprieve with this costume, since you’ll be drawing over them with black liner. Pro tip: First outline the shape with a liquid eyeliner pen, then fill in larger areas with a flat brush and gel eyeliner pot to save time.
10. Scar from The Lion King Halloween makeup
Scar is low-key the scariest Disney villain, IMO. Aside from the drawn-on eyeliner whiskers and nose, the key to this look is, obviously, the scar. After filling in your brows (creating a strong arch to match Scar’s perpetual scowl), draw a line through the brow and under your eyelid with a skinny brush dipped in full-coverage concealer.
11. Carrie Halloween makeup
If you ordered a vat of fake blood on Amazon (weird, but okay) for Halloween this year, you’ve got nearly everything you need for this Carrie costume. But you don’t want to just douse your entire face in blood (or, IDK, you do you)—take a hint from YouTuber LesleyMarie1213 who recreated realistic blood splatters using red liquid lipstick and a toothbrush. Trust, the tutorial is worth watching
12. Demon girl Halloween makeup idea
While this look could be as simple as red body paint, a black lip, and a black smokey eye, YouTuber Ash Levi (whose Halloween makeup tutorials I’ve followed for years) leveled up the vibes by adding contour and highlight. She layered a deep-red lipstick under her cheekbones and a white, cream-based body paint(which blends well into the water-based red paint she used) on the center of the face for dimension.
13. Cupid Halloween makeup
Seems like everyone on my FYP is planning to dress up as Cupid for Halloween this year, so I found this very cute makeup tutorial to match. This look is all about the red tones: red lipstick, red blush, and red eyeliner. YouTuber Glownicky also added a white graphic line above her crease with a single red heart on one side (which you should def copy because it’s cute AF), or add your own touch with a heart gemstone.
14. Marilyn Monroe Halloween makeup
Expect to see lots of iterations of Marilyn this Halloween in honor of the new film, Blonde, starring Ana De Armas. Regardless of how you feel about the movie, it’s still an excuse to go full glam this October, with contour, red lipstick, winged eyeliner, neutral eyeshadow, and Marilyn’s iconic beauty mark. But don’t worry if you think all this makeup will look harsh: Makeup artist Jordi of ItsLikelyMakeuplayered a translucent powder over her entire face to diffuse any edges and keep the look soft.
15. Carmen San Diego
If you have a strong black liquid eyeliner you swear by (read: it applies evenly, doesn’t smudge, and is super opaque), you’ve already got the basics needed for this Carmen San Diego look by drag queen Krisa Gonna. If a blocked-out glue-stick brow is a little too time intensive for you, cover your brows with concealer and brush them through with a spoolie to blend them into your skin tone before drawing on your black Carmen brows. Everyone will immediately start singing the theme song the second you walk in their midst with this costume, so beware if you don’t like sudden outbursts of song.
16. Olivia Rodrigo’s Halloween makeup idea
Basically the CEO of Gen Z, Olivia Rodrigo is the ultimate inspo for Halloween makeup this year, and this tutorial demonstrates four looks that make for an iconic group costume. But if you’re going with the OG Sour cover at minute 6:20, grab a mix of flat and 3D stickers for some contrast and dimension on your face. And don’t forget Liv’s signature winged eyeliner and glossy lip.
17. Nancy in The Craft
You don’t have to be a stan of The Craft to get on with this ‘90s goth girl costume (but I mean, it’ll definitely give you some street cred if you can quote a few lines). Get the look (a gray smokey eye and vampy lip) with a few basics: a cool-tone eyeshadow palette and a dark, purple lipstick.
18. Zombie Halloween makeup idea
If you have a contour palette laying around that you barely touch, now’s the chance to use it, as this zombie look is quite literally all about intense shadows and highlights. Start with a full-coverage foundation two to three shades lighter than your natural skin tone for that ~dead~ look, then go HAM with a dark, cool-toned contour on your cheekbones, nose, and temples for a sunken-in effect. YouTuber Melissa Alatorre also added a black smokey eye and red lipstick to mimic blood around the mouth to finish off the look.
19. Sunflower makeup idea
If you wanna go more cutesy this Halloween than scary demons, try this fall-themed sunflower eye look. Layer on an eye primer (necessary for keeping this look intact past midnight) before sketching out the flower petals with a yellow eyeliner. Then, fill each petal in with yellow eye paint and deepen it with a warm-toned brown eyeshadow stick.
20. Butterfly Halloween makeup
If you’ve got a steady hand and an array of sunset-toned eyeshadows, you can create this butterfly look like makeup artist Lauren Brown of RaggedyRoyal. To keep the shades bright and pigmented, dab a white eyeshadow base across your lids and along the lower lash line, then pack your eyeshadow on top with a dense brush.