When I started using a blindness cane (white cane) in college, I felt a bit self-conscious about using my cane because I felt like I stood out wherever I went, especially since I was still learning to get around and answer questions about my vision loss. To help boost my confidence, I decided to find a way to incorporate my cane into my costume for a Halloween party that year, and the compliments I received helped me to view my cane as an extension of my arms that helps me navigate independently, not as a reminder of my vision declining. Here is a list of ideas for incorporating blindness canes into Halloween costumes by making the cane part of the costume, many of which have DIY options and can be put together at the last minute.
Do I really need to include my cane in a costume?
Not if you don’t want to! People who use blindness canes or white canes can dress up as whatever they want for Halloween, and aren’t required to incorporate their cane or a blind joke to create a fun costume that they enjoy. I put together this list of ideas for individuals who want to make their cane part of their costume, or that may feel self-conscious about having to use a cane for Halloween events so they can navigate safely in the dark. This is especially true for individuals that use canes part-time but need their cane for Halloween events due to reduced lighting and walking through uneven terrain.
For individuals who are fully sighted that are considering dressing up as a visually impaired person (inclusive of blind and low vision) for Halloween, please avoid pretending to be blind or having vision loss, or framing disability as suffering, a curse, or something that is miserable and tragic.
Related links
Being blind as a bat with a cane
On my first Halloween as a cane user, I dressed up as a bat for a party and won “best pun” in a costume contest for being “blind as a bat.” It’s worth noting that bats aren’t actually blind at all, rather they rely on echolocation to navigate in dark environments, but the costume was still a lot of fun and great for a cold Halloween night thanks to the scarf.
For the bat costume, you will need:
- Head-to-toe black or brown clothing
- A black or brown scarf to drape over your shoulders for wings (I wrapped it around my neck as I walked and draped it over my shoulders when I wasn’t moving)
- Bat wings, which can be worn in lieu of or in addition to a scarf
- Cat ears/bat ears
- An undecorated blindness cane
Turn a cane into a fairy wand
At another Halloween party hosted at a friend’s house, I was walking around a familiar well-lit area and didn’t need to use my cane as often, so I decided to decorate my cane for photos with removable decorations. I stored the decorations in a purse or crossbody bag while I was walking.
Even without decorating a cane, this costume idea would be a lot of fun for custom cane users that have a bright colored cane. I dressed up as a unicorn for another party and matched the pink tones in the unicorn headband with my pink and white Ambutech cane, which was a super fun look!
For the fairy costume, you will need:
- A pastel-colored dress
- Tiara
- A blindness cane
- Painter’s tape to put on the side of the cane handle so it can be removed later without damage
- Velcro dots to put on top of the painter’s tape
- A star shape cut out from glitter paper, with velcro dots added to the back so it affixes to the cane
- Silver sparkly scrapbooking tape to add to the top of the cane (optional)
For the unicorn costume, you will need:
- White, pastel, or other colorful clothing (sweaters, shirt/pants, dress, shoes, etc.)
- Unicorn headband that lays comfortably on the head/behind the ears
- Decorated or undecorated blindness cane (HiLite canes from Ambutech look great)
Related links
- How To Order Custom Colors for Blindness Canes
- Tips For Improving Confidence About Using Assistive Technology
Use The Force with a lightsaber cane
It’s pretty rare that anyone ever says anything about my cane while I am using it in public, but my all-time favorite comment is from a young child, who pointed at my cane and loudly asked “Mom, why can she bring her lightsaber into Target and I can’t?!” I later learned that many teachers of the visually impaired and orientation and mobility specialists often compare the reflective tape on blindness canes to lightsabers, which makes for a fun themed Halloween costume for blind kids, especially if it has reflective tape on the bottom.
For the lightsaber costume, you will need:
- Star Wars character costume of your choice (there are so many, it would be impractical to list them all)
- Undecorated blindness cane or colored blindness cane that has a red stripe (or another color) on the bottom
Be a hero with Daredevil
I can’t create a post on incorporating blindness canes into Halloween costumes without including a blind superhero in the list! There are a few different options for putting together a Daredevil costume, and here are two easy options.
For the black season 1 costume, you will need:
- Black sweater
- Black long sleeve shirt
- Pair of black pants
- Pair of black shoes
- An undecorated blindness cane— he uses white nunchucks in this costume
For the Matt Murdock costume, you will need:
- Gray jacket or cardigan
- White shirt
- Black tie
- Black pants
- Pair of black shoes
- Sunglasses (optional)
- An undecorated blindness cane— his cane on the show has a red stripe on the bottom
Going under the sea with Destiny from Finding Dory
My favorite Disney/Pixar character is Destiny from Finding Dory, a visually impaired whale shark that is friends with Dory and Bailey the beluga whale. This would make for a fun group costume with Finding Nemo characters!
For the Destiny costume, you will need:
- Teal/blue top or dress with white polka dots added
- Gray pants/leggings
- Shark fin to wear on back (optional)
- Blindness cane— either undecorated or with blue reflective tape added to the top
Dress up as Blind Barbie
On July 23, 2024, Mattel released Barbie Fashionista Doll 228, also known as “Blind Barbie,” developed with guidance from the American Foundation for the Blind and the Royal National Institute of Blind People. This would be a fun group costume or theme costume for an event, though I do not recommend trying to rock Barbie’s platform heels or wedges while walking with a cane in the dark!
For the Blind Barbie costume, you will need:
- Pink short-sleeve top
- Light purple skirt or pants
- Light purple (or other light color) shoes
- Gray headband or sunglasses (optional)
- Undecorated blindness cane
Related links
- Blind Barbie and Assistive Technology For Visual Impairment
- Assistive Technology and Dressing Aids For Low Vision
Joining the three blind mice
This is another easy group costume, but it is very popular with fully sighted people as well, so some people may assume the cane is part of the costume and that the person doesn’t actually have trouble seeing. Many of my friends with congenital blindness or low vision have mentioned this being one of their first Halloween costumes, so I’ve decided to include it here.
For the three blind mice costume, you will need:
- Head-to-toe black, gray, or brown clothing
- Small round mouse ears
- Sunglasses (optional)
- Face paint to add whiskers (optional— kids with sensory processing disorders may find this overwhelming or uncomfortable)
- Undecorated blindness cane
Related links
- Clothing Shopping Tips For Sensory Processing Issues
- How To Find Accessible Picture Books For Low Vision
Willy Wonka
This costume comes from a world of pure imagination and with two different options to dress as Willy Wonka from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I’ve included two versions of this costume, one from the 1971 movie with Gene Wilder and one from the 2005 version with Johnny Depp. The 2005 version also heavily resembles the Wonka costume from the 2023 movie.
For the Gene Wilder version, you will need:
- Dark purple jacket or cardigan
- Light purple shirt
- Beige bow tie (optional)
- Khaki pants
- Brown shoes
- Orange/beige top hat
- Undecorated blindness cane
For the Johnny Depp version, you will need:
- Burgundy jacket or cardigan
- Black shirt/sweater
- Pair of black pants
- Pair of black shoes
- Black top hat
- White framed sunglasses (optional)
- Purple gloves (optional)
- Undecorated blindness cane
Be a magician or ringmaster
Abracadabra! A magician is a fun costume that can make a cane seem like a very long magic wand, and it can also be used as a ringmaster costume for a circus. This can also be used as the basis of a wizard costume that incorporates a cane, using a longer robe and different hat.
For the magician/ringmaster costume, you will need:
- Black or red jacket/cape
- White shirt
- Bow tie (optional)
- Black pants (or blue jeans)
- Black shoes
- A black top hat
- An undecorated blindness cane
For the wizard costume, you will need:
- Long robe or cape (red and blue are common colors for cartoon wizards)
- Wizard hat
- Comfortable shoes
- An undecorated blindness cane
Act sweet with a candy (blindness) cane
One time, my professor wanted to ask me where I had put my blindness cane but couldn’t find the right words. Instead, they asked me “where is the candy cane?” This was really funny and made me think of a costume idea for someone that loves Christmas!
For the candy cane costume, you will need:
- Red and green or other holiday themed clothing
- Undecorated blindness cane with red on the bottom
- Alternatively, wrap another part of the cane with red reflective tape
More ideas for incorporating blindness canes into Halloween costumes
- Some of my friends have dressed up as other characters that wear glasses, including Velma from Scooby-Doo, Where’s Waldo (who uses a walking cane), and Mirabel from Encanto. For each costume, they wore their normal prescription glasses.
- I’ve also known several people who dressed up as Toph from Avatar the Last Airbender, either by themselves or as a group costume with other characters.
- For people who love a tech-inspired costume, another friend dressed up as a doctor and carried a fake syringe in their pocket so they could be a “blind SQL injection.”
- Another lab coat costume, a pair of friends dressed up as “scientists”, where one friend was sighted and the other was visually impaired. They were a single blind study, but if both had been visually impaired, they could have been a double-blind study.
Published October 25, 2018. Updated October 2025