People love seeing skeleton decorations posing on peoples' porches and lawns. But what kinds of costumes look great on skeleton decorations? We'd like to argue that every costume can have its day! Dressing up a skeleton is a great way to make use of old Halloween costumes—just turn them into your next year's decorations! Allow us to share some fun ideas for dressing up skeletons in Halloween costumes.
For all of these photos, we used size small costumes and sweaters on 5-foot-tall poseable skeletons. You can use costumes in other sizes, but you may need to pin or stuff them so they fit appropriately. We recommend using plastic bags or polyfill stuffing if you need to bulk up your costumes or accessories to fit your skellies!
1. Grim Reaper Skeleton
We had to start with the classic skeletal Grim Reaper. If any costume was made for a skeleton, it would be this! Add elements like creepy skulls and candles in the background, a scythe propped up against a wall, and some spider webs, and you have a great Halloween display for your porch or yard.
2. Pirate Skeletons
After the popularity of Pirates of the Caribbean and its skeletal/zombie pirates, just imagine the possibilities with this skeleton dress up idea! An old trunk makes a great place for posing your pirate skeleton, and don't be afraid to add friends! This skeleton dog in a pirate hat makes as great a companion as any pirate's parrot. Add bottles, nets, ropes, lanterns, and other items to create a fun scene.
3. Skeleton in a Halloween Sweater
Dressing up a skeleton in scary costumes is fun, but what if you want something a little friendlier? Festive Halloween sweaters look adorable on skeletons, and we highly recommend giving them pants so they're not Donald Ducking around. They work well enough as outdoor decorations, although we love the idea of posing them inside to share in the festivities at your Halloween party!
4. The Nightmare Before Christmas Skeletons
Shop all The Nightmare Before Christmas Costumes
We have seen a few examples of generic Halloween costumes like grim reapers and pirates, but what about licensed character costumes? Feel free to do whatever you wish, but we couldn't resist dressing a skeleton as Jack Skellington with a skeleton dog as his pet, Zero. What licensed costume would you use to dress up a skeleton for Halloween?
5. Dead Trends Skeleton Costumes
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We looked at the dead trends from Halloweens past and decided to turn it into a whole scene with dressed-up skeletons! Barbie took 2023 by storm, while Tiger King Joe Exotic had us bingeing the show in 2020. If you decide to go with this theme, you can make it even more apparent by customizing tombstones for each trend. Which year had your favorite hot Halloween costume?
Are you eager to try your hand at dressing up skeletons for Halloween? (Trust us, it's tons of fun!) Whether you're putting costumes on skeletons that are 5 feet tall, 8 feet, or more, your display is bound to get noticed—no bones about it!
