5 family Halloween costume ideas (including pets and grandparents!)

The assignment:

Halloween costumes for the entire family

The goal:

 Keep it fun by selecting costumes that match personalities

Tricks to pulling off the look: 

1. Use a background

2. Include as many people (and personalities) as possible

3. Details, details, details…

 

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1. Our family is out of this world!

Alien wig / Pink Alien shoes / Astronaut costume / Astronaut helmet / Iron-on patches 

Balloon Kit 1 / Balloon Kit 2 / Black mylar cones/ Purple mylar cones/ Silver mylar cones/ Eyeball balloons / Photo backdrop stand kit / Galaxy background

The background for this shot was my first attempt at a “fuller” balloon garland. I combined several kits to create the fullness and added cones, mylars, and eyeballs (my personal favorite) to take it up a notch.  The galaxy background, which I realized much too late was the wrong size, transported us to outer space for our family photo.

Once we decided that space was where we were going for Halloween, I immediately got to work on the costumes. Coming up with a storyline helped each family member determine their role: four astronauts (two humans and two dogs) traveled to space, found an alien, and returned home under the expert guidance of mission control, all while avoiding two rogue NASA scientists.

I knew that the orange space suits would stand out no matter what, so selecting that color was intentional.  I also added iron-on Apollo mission and NASA patches so that we all looked a little more like the real deal. The helmets, mission control headset, wigs, and pocket protector are additional details that make the look seem more finished.

2. Two beauties and a beast.

Rose garland / White photo backdrop / Belle wig / Belle dog costume

This was one of my very first creations.  I knew I needed to incorporate red into the background since the subjects were wearing yellow and blue.  The only red that came to mind related to Beauty and the Beast is, of course, the rose.  The white photo backdrop was really the only option to make all of the primary colors pop, and its simplicity put the focus on the subject details (jewelry accessories, red shoe and choker accents, the Beast’s suit, the candy bag).

The inspiration for this idea came from my daughter’s desire to dress as Belle.  Incorporating the dogs into the look was a bit more challenging since, at the time, these types of costumes were extremely difficult to find in a small (irregularly shaped) dog size.  Once I sourced all of the items for both Belles, I had to resort to having the Beast’s costume custom-made, because what I wanted just didn’t exist (a problem I commonly have).  It will forever go down as the nicest dog costume ever because it is made out of actual suiting material.  That being said, the wigs are what make this look work, and thankfully, my dogs are well-trained in wearing costumes.

3. Let’s parrrrghty!

Pirate human costume #1 /Pirate dog costume #1 /Pirate dog costume#2 / Pirate human costume#2 

It’s definitely a pirate’s life for us (Pirates is one of our most beloved Disney rides).  This was our first time joining the little one and pups in the Halloween photo, so a beloved theme felt like an easy entry point.  It happened to be during the middle of the pandemic, so sourcing/creating a fun backdrop was not going to happen.  Thankfully, the success of the movies made it very easy to find costumes and, as usual, the dogs stole the show.

4. We solemnly swear that we are up to no good.

 Dog costume / Snape wig / Wizard wig + beard / Hermoine / Snape / Dumbledore / Luna

This look was really fun because we didn’t have to create a storyline, so we instead focused on matching personalities (including dog personalities) to characters.  This makes the photo meaningful (and in this case, funnier) for other family and friends to enjoy.  Having learned my lesson from the tiny galaxy that I accidentally purchased the year before, I paid careful attention to the sizing and was happy to see a much larger backdrop arrive at my door.  One major benefit to using a Harry Potter theme is that there are so many characters to choose from.  We were thrilled to include my sister and other family friends in the look because there is truly something for everyone.

Balloons: Brown / Burgundy / Peach / Black / Light brown /  Coffee brown / Owl / Black mylar cone/ Hogwarts backdrop / Photo backdrop stand kit 

 

5. Classic Halloweenie

Sometimes you just have to bring it back to the classics (pumpkins, bats, ghosts, spiders, etc.).  The challenge here was yet again finding the correct size costume for the pups.  At the time, larger dog ghost costumes were easy to find, but something to fit a mini dachshund was nonexistent.  This time, I resorted to making the costumes myself, and several layers of white fabric and creative pinning made this look possible.  My favorite part of this look is that only “classic” Halloween colors are featured and that everyone has their own pumpkin candy bucket.