Some of my favorite posts here come from the things my kids ask me to find -- in this case, printable Halloween paper dolls. They loved some incredibly adorable paper dolls we'd featured here years back, but now they've gotten older and so have their tastes. So I've put together just some of the faves from around the web.
Some are in color, some let you color them in yourself, and some even feature paper dolls that offer other outfit options representing other holidays and seasons, should your kids want them to last. As for my kids, I imagine they're going to be torn between playing with them and sticking them to our front door for decor.
Hey, as long as I'm not cleaning up teeny little paper shred scraps from under the couch, they can do both.
[top image: Marisole Paper Dolls from Paperthin Personas]
P.S. Paper dolls are a fantastic Halloween party activity to keep kids occupied when they walk in (or distracted when you're running late with the cake) and they also make for a smart, free goodie bag gift. Just print, roll up a bunch, and tie with black and orange ribbon. Little bags of candy corn optional, but recommended.
Related: Free printable paper dolls: The ultimate collection from Betsy McCall and beyond
Free Printable Cute Halloween Boy and Girl Paper Dolls from Babal is Me This is the set that started me off on my search journey, although my 9-year-old in particular still loves them. She was just concerned about the boy "getting all the cool costumes" so she mixes and matches. Yep, she's my daughter. Free Printable Betsy McCall Halloween Paper Dolls via T Pettit If you're more of a traditionalist, these are going to be the paper dolls for you. In our massive roundup a few years back, we discovered T Pettit's incredible collection ready for printing, including decades of Betsy McCall printable paper dolls. If you just scan down searching for all the October pages (Command/F "Oct"), you'll find Halloween-themed paper doll outfits galore. Free Printable Vampire Paper Dolls from Paperthin Persona For something a little more modern and edgy, I am so thrilled to discover Rachel Cohen's amazing website. She's the one my 11-year-old was particularly excited about, since many of her designs decidedly skew a bit older. Most of them either come in full-color or in black-and-white, so your kids can design them to their liking, like this awesome vampire girl. Free Printable Marisole Halloween Costume Paper Dolls from Paperthin Personas My youngest really loved all the options available for the Marisole doll -- from a Cleopatra costume to an angel and a queen bee. Plus, yay for non-white dolls. (Why are they so rare?) You can also print out this Undead Beauty set of printable paper doll costumes and the super cool steampunk paper doll costumes (that one's for you, Delilah!), for even more cool dress-up options for Marisole or her friends, so they can all go trick-or-treating in a group. Free Printable Fairy Costume Halloween Paper Doll from Paperthin Persons These, from the same artist (prolific!) are very sweet, and you can either color your own, or download it in full color. And if you want even more options for this one, check out all the posts in the Poppets collection, which feature outfits that will fit her. In fact, check out everything on this amazing artist's site while you're there because your paper doll loving kids -- like mine, if you can't guess by now -- will go crazy. Also, buy stock in toner.Related: The motherlode of free printable pop culture paper dolls, from Disney princesses to Broadway beasts
Yo Gabba Gabba Free Printable Halloween Paper Dolls If your kids are still obsessed (sorry, Wendi Aarons!) I found adorable free printable paper dolls featuring Muno or Toodee in Halloween outfits. I wish there were Brobee -- but then, I'm sure it's hard to find anything to fit his arms. Free Printable Frankenstein Paper Dolls with Star Wars Costumes from Dinky Cow Yes, you read that correctly. And how awesome is that? Because why should Leia or Yoda dress up like Frankenstein's monster, when the monster can dress up like Leia or Yoda? FrankenYoda FTW! (Here's the direct download link since it's a bit buried on the page.)
