We all have a soft spot for Autumn in our hearts. The leaves turn shades of red and yellow, falling gently through the chilly nights. It’s the time to get a soft blanket and cosy up in front of the fireplace.
But Autumn also means Halloween, and if you enjoy a good time, you have got to dress for the occasion!
Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas is a classic when it comes to Halloween costumes, from the spooky yet dashing debonair Jack Skellington to his adorable ghost dog Zero.
Halloween is the beginning of the seasonal festivities, and you have to start it off with a bang!
Throw an amazing costume party, whether it’s for your workplace or friends. Make it a memorable night out with tribute acts and musicians. And of course, don’t forget to have everyone dressed up.
Now, if you love the renowned 1993 Disney movie, you will love these ideas we have for you. Here is a list of the top 7 Nightmare Before Xmas characters to dress as a family next Halloween!
Jack Skellington is probably the most popular of the bunch when it comes to Halloween Costumes. His pumpkin-shaped head and sleek, pinstriped suit with an oversized bow tie are his signature.
The Pumpkin King’s costumes are available in most shops. But they are just as easy to make if you are willing to put in the time.
You will need a long-tail black tuxedo, preferably pin-striped, to stay true to the character. You can customise this by snipping the edges in the tail and making it look old and worn out.
You can also prepare the bat bow tie using cardboard and some of your artistic skills!
Finally, the make up is easy enough to do. Paint your face white (be sure to use face paint!) and outline the stitched mouth. Use black paint for the raccoon eyes and nose holes and you are done!
Given that Nightmare Before Christmas is a musical, why not go the extra mile? Add an extra oomph to your outfit with a band playing all the songs from the movie!
Sally is right behind Jack as a popular character to dress up as. What is great is that her costume is even easier to prepare. Despite the dulled tones in the movie, her outfit is actually pretty colourful.
Once again, you can always buy her costume from your local stores. She is popular enough to have an ensemble for herself. You would most like to get a wig and her dress in the set!
Of course, it is always more fun to create the costume from scratch!
Sally’s dress is pretty straightforward to make, and there are several different ways you can do it.
One way is to buy or sew a simple knee length white dress and use fabric paint and dye. The other is to actually get fabric with the patterns and colours, and stitch them together to make the dress.
And the other option is to do a little bit of both according to your convenience!
Finally, grab a long, red wig and straighten out the hair. And voila!
You can get creative with Sally’s body and face textures. Her skin has a light blue tinge, with stitches over her right eye, neck, chest, and limbs.
She is very much an adaptation of Frankenstein’s monster. However, her feminine features must be taken into account!
Make sure you paint large eyes for her over yours. Add some exaggerated eyelashes and swipe on a nice red lipstick, and you should be good to go!
Oogie Boogie has one of the easiest outfits — and given that it is Halloween, it's pretty cosy, too!
It is a great costume for both kids and parents, requiring the bare minimum for creating the outfit from scratch. Yes, you can get one from your nearest Halloween store, but where’s the fun in that?
Oogie Boogie’s costume is mainly made up of burlap sacks and is oversized. Get an approximate measure of your body and cut up holes for your hands, feet, and head.
Use a separate portion for the head. Now, you can make this really comfortable for yourself by making the mask a hoodie attached to your body.
Just make sure to leave a hole out for your face so you can see where you are going.
Now, we come to the finishing touches.
Add large, thick stitches randomly over the costume to show wear and tear. You can use black fabric paint or markers to draw in the eyes and edges of the mouth too.
Finally, you can add some padding underneath your costume to puff up the sack to stay true to form!
Given that you are almost entirely covered by the burlap sack when in costume, there really is no need for makeup.
But you can elevate your look by painting visible black areas and even adding black light paint. This would add the glow-in-the-dark effect that is so true to Oogie Boogie’s style!
Where there is Oogie Boogie, there are his henchmen!
Lock, Shock, and Barrel are the mischievous little pranksters that love to stir up trouble whenever possible. It is the perfect costume for siblings, or friends.
They each have distinct outfits and hair. However, they don’t really need makeup since their faces are usually covered by their masks — yes, even in the movie!
So, let’s break down each of their costumes.
Lock is dressed as the devil, in red from head to toe. You can grab a red sweater and trousers for this or a jumpsuit to make things simpler.
He also has a long tail with an arrow at the end. This is easy enough to make or buy, whichever is more convenient.
Finally, the mask is more of a light salmon pink than a devil red. Lock also has two strands of his bright red hair poking up from the centre of his forehead. You can grab a short red wig for this if you want to add the smallest detail!
Shock looks a lot like Lock and they are often mistaken for twins. However, she is dressed as a witch, complete with a hat.
For her costume, you really need a simple pink frock, black tights, and black gloves. She also wears a white mask that does not really have any details.
Her hair is long, black, and messy. This is easy enough to pull off with a wig, temporary dyes, or even just your natural hair styled right.
You can add some pointed shoes to finish the look!
While Lock and Shock look very similar to each other, Barrel’s costume is a little different.
His outfit is often interpreted in purple, but black works great, too. It’s a simple T-shirt and trousers with skeleton bones painted over them.
It’s easy just to buy the outfit. But if you have the time, you could paint the bones to fit the outfit perfectly.
For his mask, he uses a round one, similar to Jack Skellington’s. However, he has a wide and toothy grin slapped on his!
If Frankenstein’s monster inspired Sally, then Dr. Finkelstein is Frankenstein. Albeit a bit more monstrous than the classic tale, Finkelstein’s outfit is as scary as it is creative.
It is definitely one of the more complicated ensembles even if you do buy the outfit from a store. But that is what makes the costume worth it!
For the body, all you really need is a white lab coat, white trousers, black rubber gloves, and black boots. He also uses a wheelchair to move around, so if you can manage that, your outfit is bound to be a great hit!
Dr. Finkelstein’s face is worn, so we are likely to require some patience. For an easy way out, you can simply buy a mask or a hat, which are available in most places.
Or you can choose to get your hands dirty!
Since Dr. Finkelstein is bald, a bald cap would make your life easier.
You could also grab a duckbill mask or clay to use as a mould for your face. This is for his mouth, which is shaped like a duck’s—we suspect he operated on himself, too.
And now it is time to whip out your artistic skills and use reference photos to paint your face. Pay attention to the duckbill especially.
Now, for the head, you can simply paint the lines where his head comes off to show the seams. But you can also have the pink brain peeking out a little to make it more accurate.
Or even better, use a white hat with the visor cut off; paint your bald cap like a brain and cover it with the hat. This way, you can take it off as a neat party trick!
Zero, Jack Skellington’s skeletal dog, is also an easy costume to give your family pet!
This video by Casey Renee Cosplay gives you a complete guide to patching one up for your dog or cat. Take the little one to the party with you as your loyal furry friend; we are sure everyone would love it!
There you have it, 7 amazing Nightmare Before Xmas Characters that you can go to your next Halloween party. Make your party match your costumes with vintage bands.
We tried to include a variety of characters that are accessible for everyone to dress up as on this list. You could always use this guide as an inspiration to create your own version of the costumes!