Haunted House Costume
Bring the classic spooky destination to life with a creative wearable house.
The haunted house is the ultimate symbol of Halloween, making it a wonderfully creative and spooky costume choice. This guide focuses on a wearable, structural cardboard house costume that sits over your shoulders, complete with glowing windows and eerie details. It is a fun, highly visual DIY project that is guaranteed to stand out at any Halloween gathering.
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Time
- ~120 min
- Budget
- $20–60
Try it on
See yourself as Haunted House
One clear photo of yourself; we render you in this costume — face untouched, full body, about 20 seconds.
One render, $1. No account needed — if it fails you're not charged. Pricing.
Your photo is sent to Google's Gemini API to make the render and isn't used for training. Renders are AI-generated and labelled.
Want a different costume on this photo, or a whole group in costume? Open the Try-On Studio.
What you need for a Haunted House costume
Short on time? Buy it ready-made
Spirit Halloween sells the complete Haunted House costume — one box instead of 6 pieces.
Large cardboard box
A sturdy box large enough to fit over your torso, cut with arm and neck holes.
DIY: Upcycle a appliance box or heavy-duty moving box.
Black and gray acrylic paint
Matte acrylic paint to coat the house and add weathered, spooky wood textures.
Yellow or orange construction paper
Bright paper to place inside cut-out windows to simulate glowing lights.
DIY: Use yellow tissue paper or thin plastic sheets.
Battery-operated LED fairy lights
A small string of warm white or yellow LED lights to illuminate the windows from inside.
DIY: Use a small flashlight taped inside pointing at the windows.
Faux spiderwebs and plastic spiders
Stretchable white webbing to drape over the roof and corners of the house structure.
DIY: Fray cotton balls to create miniature cobwebs.
Black clothing base
A simple black long-sleeve shirt and black pants or leggings to wear underneath the box.
DIY: Use any dark, plain clothing from your closet.
Rather not assemble it? See ready-made Haunted House costumes at Spirit Halloween ↗
How to put it together
- 1
Cut out a neck hole in the top of the cardboard box and two armholes on the sides so you can wear it comfortably.
- 2
Cut out window shapes (such as arched gothic windows) and a door shape on the front and back of the box.
- 3
Paint the entire exterior of the box with black and dark gray paint, adding vertical lines to mimic weathered wood siding.
- 4
Glue yellow or orange paper to the inside of the box behind the window cut-outs to create a glowing window effect.
- 5
Secure the battery-operated LED lights inside the box behind the windows using strong tape, ensuring the switch is easily accessible.
- 6
Drape and stretch faux spiderwebs over the roof and corners of the painted box, securing them with hot glue.
- 7
Put on your black base clothing, carefully lower the cardboard house over your head, and turn on the interior LED lights.
Makeup & hair
Keep makeup simple with dark, sunken eyes using black eyeshadow and a pale, ghostly face base. Keep hair neat and tied back so it does not interfere with the cardboard structure.
Haunted House for couples, groups, kids & more
- couples
- One person dresses as the Haunted House, and the other dresses as a classic Ghost or a Spooky Tree.
- group
- Create a neighborhood of different haunted structures, or pair the house with classic monsters like vampires, witches, and ghouls.
- kids
- Use a smaller cardboard box, ensuring the arm and neck holes are extra wide for comfort and safety.
- Plus size
- Select a larger utility or appliance box to ensure a comfortable, loose fit over the torso.
- pet
- Construct a lightweight, miniature cardboard facade attached to a comfortable pet harness.
Tips
- Make sure the armholes are cut wide enough to allow full range of motion for safety and comfort.
- Keep the bottom of the box short enough so that you can sit down easily without bending the cardboard.
- If wearing the costume outdoors at night, the glowing LED windows will double as a great safety light.
- Use lightweight cardboard to prevent the costume from feeling too heavy on your shoulders over time.
Haunted House costume FAQ
- How do I make the house look weathered?
- Use a dry brush technique with light gray and white paint over the black base to create a dusty, aged wood grain effect.
- Can I wear this costume to a real haunted house?
- Most commercial haunted houses do not allow guests to wear bulky costumes or masks for safety reasons, so check their rules first.
- How do I keep the box stable on my shoulders?
- You can hot glue foam padding or clean kitchen sponges to the inside shoulder area of the box for extra comfort and stability.
Did you know? The concept of the commercial haunted house attraction gained massive popularity in the United States during the Great Depression as a way to distract youths from committing Halloween vandalism.