17 Black Cape Costume Ideas for the Whole Family

Black capes are a Halloween staple in our house and can be used for a different costume every year. Just change up the accessories for a whole new character!

If you’re someone who always waits until the last minute to plan for a Halloween costume, this is the Halloween hack for you! For years I’ve gone back to my old reliable witch costume every time I needed a last minute getup for trick-or-treating or a costume party. My husband has a handmade leather bird mask he got from a Renaissance festival years ago, and he reaches for that anytime he wants to scare some kids asking for candy.

But then I discovered the mother of all reusable Halloween costumes: the black cape. Black capes are infinitely adaptable, lending themselves to Magician costumes, Vampire get-ups, and even a Hogwarts Witch or Wizard.

With a little magic from monster makeup or some well-placed accessories, you can transform a basic black cape into a whole slew of characters for the entire family. Another perk of the black cape is that it serves as an extra layer of warmth against the elements, something important to us who live in an area with….seasons. Heck, even a black umbrella wouldn’t wreck the style of your costume if you had on a black cape, which is a godsend considering it rains on roughly one-third of the Halloween nights where we live.

Here I’ve laid out my favorite ideas for using a black cape for your Halloween costume.

THE BLACK CAPES WE OWN

For the record, these are the black capes I have for our family. There are two options you have to choose between right off the bat: hooded or no hood on your cape. In a pinch either will do, but some costumes would make more sense without a hood or vise versa.

ADULT HOODED CAPES: Ian and I are wearing these good quality double-layer hooded capes, which I absolutely love.

CHILD CAPE: In the photos here, my very tall 4-year-old is wearing this 36″ hoodless cape and it fits him nicely. Here is a 30″ black cape for smaller kids.

CHILD HOODED CAPE: For a matching cape to the hooded adult capes we have, I found this children’s version. At 45″ inches tall, my son took size M (5-7).

I bought Thomas both capes above because I think he will get a lot of use out of them, not just for future Halloweens but for imaginary playtime any time of the year.

17 BLACK CAPE HALLOWEEN COSTUMES

VAMPIRE :: black cape + white button-up shirt + black pants + dress shoes + teeth + vampire makeup

WITCH OR WIZARD :: black cape + witch hat + wand + dark dress or outfit

MAGICIAN :: black cape + white button-up shirt + black pants + magician wand + top hat

SUPERHERO :: black cape + super hero eye mask + leggings + long sleeve tee + superhero letter or logo on shirt

BATMAN :: black cape + black batman mask + black leggings + black long sleeve tee + batman logo cut from felt for shirt + black boots

BAT PERSON :: black cape + bat mask or headband + black outfit

GRIM REAPER :: hooded black cape + black outfit + ghoulish makeup + reaper scythe

JACK THE RIPPER :: black cape + dress slacks + white button-up shirt + suit vest + top hat + dagger

DEVIL :: black cape + black outfit + horns + trident

PHANTOM OF THE OPERA :: black cape + white dress shirt + white suit vest + black dress pants + black dress shoes + phantom of the opera mask

HOGWARTS WITCH OR WIZARD :: black cape + black dress pants or skirt + white button-up shirt + grey v-neck sweater + Hogwarts house-color tie + Hogwarts house patch (hot glue a “pin back” to the patch, then pin onto your cape) + wand

DEMENTOR :: hooded black cape + black outfit + black mask or black “creepy cloth” draped over face + skeleton gloves or paint on hands

DARTH VADER :: black cape + darth vader helmet + black outfit + lightsaber

MAVIS (HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA) :: black cape + black dress + black and red stripped tights + red converse shoes + cute black hair or wig

MALEFICENT :: black cape + black dress + black boots + Maleficent head piece + black staff

THE CAPED LAWYER (SEINFELD) :: black cape + black sweater + grey khakis + white sneakers + sunglasses

CREEPY CAPED PERSON :: black cape + black outfit + mask :: because the scariest monster of all is an unhinged human being.

Have another idea to use a black cape for a Halloween costume? Let me know in the comments!

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