Choosing a costume that the whole family can get on board with can be challenging, especially if you have trouble agreeing on other things. Often you’re trying to appeal to multiple age groups, and you want the idea to be cool enough for your teenager to show their friends, and appropriate enough for grandmom to show her retirement community. Finding this balance can be difficult, however, with a few tips it can be a fun part of the process. 

Getting Started

Before you take your ideas to the rest of the family, there are some basics you’ll want to make sure you have covered. 

Choose enough characters

You’ll want to choose group costume options that easily accommodate the size of your family. This doesn’t mean that you have to choose something with exactly the same number of people, for example, if you want to do scooby doo but only have 4 people in your family, this just gives everyone options for who they want to be. However, you want to make sure that the cast of characters you are choosing has enough characters to fit your family, so if you have 6 people in your family, someone might be left out of a Scooby Doo theme. 

It is also helpful to make sure everyone has an option that is of similar value. This will help you avoid fights and any disappointment when no one wants to be a certain character, but everyone wants to be a different one. No one wants to be a character that no one is going to recognize, and you don’t want anyone to feel left out. 

Keep Warmth in Mind

While a group of beach-goers may be fun and easy to make at home, you and your family will probably be too cold to enjoy anything on Halloween. Especially if you live in an area that is cold by October, keeping warm while you’re out at a party or trick-or-treating is very important. You and your family will have a much better time if everyone is dressed weather appropriate. 

This doesn’t mean that you have to opt for a winter sports theme and wear parkas and snow pants, but it could mean choosing a costume that you can easily layer. Coming up with creative costumes doesn’t always mean looking exactly like the character, but instead an interpretation that is close enough to be recognized, but doesn’t forfeit your comfort. So if you’re characters are dressed for warmer weather, skin-colored layers underneath or similar pieces that are more appropriate for winter can be a great option. 

Make Sure Bathroom Breaks are Easy

Especially if you have younger children, it is important to make bathroom access easy when it comes to a costume. Something that has to be unbuttoned in multiple places, and with assistance from a parent, might turn into more of a hassle than it is worth. Depending on how long you plan to wear the costumes, you and your family may have to use the bathroom several times, and you don’t want to waste time removing multiple layers. 

A great way to do this is to design your costumes around a normal structure of clothing, such as pants and a shirt or something similar. For example, if you want to do a minon-themed group costume, overalls might be more trouble than they are worth, but you could go for jeans and a blue tank top over a yellow shirt and get the same effect. 

Make it Fun

The most important thing to keep in mind when planning your family costumes is to make sure that everyone is going to have fun. You don’t want everyone to feel forced to wear the same thing and have one person hate what they are wearing. This could ruin their and everyone else’s night. 

Having a brainstorming session is a great way to get everyone involved in the decision-making process. When coming up with ideas, look for tv shows, movies, and activities that the whole family enjoys. You can also take the opportunity to introduce your kids or spouse to something you’ve always loved, like a childhood TV show or an era you enjoy. 

Whether you and your family choose harry potter costume or dress up as the cast of the Flintstones, zoo animals, or a group of skeletons, a family group costume is sure to be a hit anywhere.

Jenn Walker is a freelance writer, blogger, dog-enthusiast, and avid beach goer operating out of Southern New Jersey.