Cheap Thrills: 5 Face Paints & Prosthetics for Under $10

I believe that great costumes are built with creativity, not cost. You don’t need to spend a fortune to create a spine-chilling (or stunning) Halloween look this year. With a few budget-friendly makeup kits and prosthetics, you can transform into anything from a vampire to a neon space invader. Here are some great kits to help you get started — each for under $10.

Fun World Water Activated Face Paint

Price: $5.43

This easy-to-use face paint kit activates with just a little water, making it perfect for quick application and cleanup. The colors are bright, smooth, and safe for kids, and — in our testing — once they dried, they were pretty smudge-resistant. Since the formula is water-activated, this was incredibly easy to wash off!

The kit comes with a brush, but it’s pretty small, so I used a flat paint brush. After using the wet paint brush to activate the pigments, I made sure the pigment reached a creamy consistency before applying. To mix and blend colors, I transferred the ones I needed onto a separate surface (I used the kit’s lid) and swirled them together to get the color I wanted.

Woochie Glow-In-The-Dark Neon Face & Body Paint Set

Price: $4.54

Light up the night with Woochie’s vibrant neon paint set that glows under blacklight. It’s a standout choice for parties or trick-or-treating, and its water-activated formula applies evenly and stays put, even through hours of haunts.

Like the Fun World face paint, this set is also water-activated. The brush in this set is a nicer quality than the Fun World set, and its pointed tip makes it ideal for fine details. If you want to cover a larger, more saturated area, I’d use the paintbrush.

Although the package says it’s glow-in-the-dark, I’d treat this more as a blacklight-reactive kit. I found that under blacklight, some colors were brighter than others.

Fun World Vampire Makeup Kit

Price: $3.87

Sink your teeth into Halloween night with this classic vampire kit. Complete with fangs and fake blood — and white, black, and purple cream makeup — this is a great, intermediate-level kit for those 15 and up.

The cream makeup was ready to use right out of the container. The white makeup wasn’t very pigmented, but it blended nicely. The makeup was prone to smudging, so I’d recommend setting powder to help lock it in place.

This was probably the most advanced kit of this lineup, and mostly due to the dental adhesive. Be sure to read the directions fully (before buying) to make sure you’re up for it!

Rubies Claw Scratch Latex Wound with Fake Blood

Price: $6.24

Add a gruesome touch to your costume with this realistic latex wound prosthetic. The included fake blood enhances the “freshly clawed" effect. It’s easy to apply and remove, perfect for horror enthusiasts who love shock value without the mess. While the prosthetic is transparent, it’s not very translucent, so the prosthetic was noticeably lighter than my skin.

To use, thinly apply the glue to the outer edges of the prosthetic, let it sit for a moment, then apply it to your desired area. I used a Q-tip to push out the excess adhesive and blend the edges. The glue takes time to dry, so be sure to be patient! Finish the look with the fake blood, and you’re set!

Fun World Pins Prosthetic Transparent FX Appliance Makeup Kit

Price: $5.86 (in-store), $22.32 (online)

We said all these looks were under $10, and this one is — but only if you buy it in a physical Walmart store. It costs more online, but still might be worth it.

Simply peel and stick the prosthetic to where you want it, then add makeup and fake blood to take it to the next level. (Aside from the fake blood, this prosthetic kit was by far the least messy to work with.)

The transparent FX piece blended into my skin for a pinned-through illusion, and topping it with fake blood really sold the look — check it out in the video below: