8 Halloween Costume Ideas for Girls & Tweens (Using Dresses She’ll Wear Again)
Most Halloween costumes get worn for one evening and then live in a bin. These don’t. Each one starts with an Ava & Yelly dress she’ll want to wear long after October, plus two to four easy add-ons. You might already have half of them in the dress-up box.
How it works
- Pick the costume she’s excited about.
- Get the dress, then gather the add-ons (most are under $15 at any party or drugstore).
- On November 1st, lose the props and keep the dress.
Jump to a look:
- Cinderella (Tweens)
- Fairy Godmother (Shrek) (Tweens)
- Angel (Tweens)
- Cowgirl (Tweens)
- Fairy Princess (Girls)
- Unicorn (Girls)
- Cupcake (Girls)
- Dorothy (Tweens)
Tween Halloween costume ideas (ages 7–16)
1. Cinderella costume
The dress: Tween Sateen Double Flounce Dress (Tweens 7–16)
What to add
- A wide blue headband
- Sparkly “glass slipper” flats
- Long pale-blue gloves
How to style it: Pull her hair into a high ponytail or a bun and push the headband back so it sits like a band of ribbon. The double flounce gives the skirt that ballgown swing on its own, so keep everything else simple: gloves to the elbow, sparkly flats, maybe some pearl earrings.
After Halloween: Holiday parties, recitals and birthday dinners. Satin and a double flounce never needed Halloween as an excuse.
Shop the Sateen Double Flounce Dress →
2. Fairy Godmother (Shrek) costume
The dress: Tween Red Glitter Velvet Mini Dress (Tweens 7–16)
What to add
- A big purple updo (or a wig)
- Cat-eye glasses
- Red flats
- A fairy wand
- Fairy wings
How to style it: Height is the whole joke. Tease a high bun (or use a purple updo wig), add red cat-eye frames and a long strand of pearls, then hand her the wand. Small wings are optional.
After Halloween: It’s her holiday party dress, already sorted. Add black tights and Mary Janes in December.
Shop the Red Glitter Velvet Mini Dress →
3. Angel costume
The dress: Tween Longsleeve Smocked Sneaker Dress (Tweens 7–16)
What to add
- A gold halo headband
- White feather wings
- White sneakers
How to style it: Keep it tonal: ivory dress, white wings, white sneakers, a gold halo. If it’s cold, white tights and an ivory cardigan keep the look intact.
After Halloween: The winter concert, picture retakes, a holiday brunch. Ivory with sneakers works all season.
Shop the Longsleeve Smocked Sneaker Dress →
4. Cowgirl costume
The dress: Tween Long-Sleeve Floral Sweetheart Dress (Tweens 7–16)
What to add
- A cowboy hat
- Cowboy boots
- A red bandana
- A jacket with fringe
How to style it: Boots first, then the hat, then a bandana knotted at the neck or tied on a wrist. The brown floral print does the prairie part for you.
After Halloween: Keep the boots, lose the hat: a brown floral dress she’ll wear to school through spring.
Also styled by us: the Tween Shimmer Crinkle Babydoll Party Dress with a straw hat and tall boots. Only a few sizes are left, so grab it if hers is one of them.
Shop the Long-Sleeve Floral Sweetheart Dress →
Girls’ Halloween costume ideas (ages 2–6)
5. Fairy Princess costume
The dress: Girls Tiara Embellished Tutu Party Dress (Girls 2–6)
What to add
- Pink fairy wings
- A sparkly crown or tiara
- A star wand
- Ballet flats
How to style it: Wings on, crown on, wand in hand. The tutu skirt already has the volume, so flats beat anything with a heel for trick-or-treating.
After Halloween: Every birthday party she’s invited to this year. Pink tulle never goes out of rotation.
Shop the Tiara Embellished Tutu Party Dress →
6. Unicorn costume
The dress: Girls Unicorn Hankey Hem Dress (Girls 2–6)
What to add
- A unicorn horn headband
- Rainbow clip-in streaks
- Glitter shoes
How to style it: Clip two or three rainbow streaks into a high ponytail and slide the horn headband in front of it. The rainbow tulle hem is the tail.
After Halloween: Rainbow tulle doesn’t need an occasion. Expect it at daycare, parties and the grocery store.
Shop the Unicorn Hankey Hem Dress →
7. Cupcake costume
The dress: Girls Cupcake Mesh Dress (Girls 2–6)
What to add
- A cherry headband
- White leggings
- Pink or white tights
How to style it: The pastel ruffle tiers are the frosting. Add a cherry headband (a red pom-pom on a plain headband works) plus pink or white tights and red sneakers for the “sprinkles.”
After Halloween: Spring parties, Easter, a summer birthday. Pastel ruffles carry right through to June.
One more, while sizes last
8. Dorothy costume
The dress: Tween Suede V-Front 2Pc (Tweens 7–16)
What to add
- Blue ribbons for two braids
- Red glitter shoes with blue socks
- A small basket of treats
How to style it: Two low braids tied with blue ribbon, red glitter shoes, a small basket. A small stuffed dog in the basket is optional and very effective.
After Halloween: A chambray pinafore with a lace layer is a school-day outfit straight through winter.
Limited sizes left. If her size is gone, the same recipe works with any chambray or blue dress.
A few practical notes
- Let her choose the character first, then match the dress. She’ll wear the costume more happily, and the dress more often after.
- Plan for the weather. Tights, a cardigan or leggings under a dress keep every look intact on a cold night.
- Order early for Halloween. Standard US shipping takes 2–7 business days once your order ships; Express takes 1–2. Shipping details
FAQ
What are easy Halloween costumes for girls?
Fairy princess, unicorn and cupcake are three of the easiest because the dress does most of the work: a tutu dress, a rainbow tulle dress and a pastel ruffle dress, plus a few accessories.
What can a tween wear for Halloween that she’ll actually like?
Costumes built on a real dress, like Cinderella in a satin flounce dress or the Fairy Godmother in red velvet, look like an outfit she chose rather than a costume she was put in, and she can wear the dress again.
How do I turn a regular dress into a costume?
Pick a dress in the character’s signature color, then add the two or three accessories people recognize instantly: a headband, a hat, wings or a wand.
