There has been a distinct chill in the air lately, meaning that spooky season is officially upon us. Halloween is a staple holiday in the fall season, so it’s time to start getting ready for it! These DIY Halloween decorations are great to make by yourself or with friends, and they’re bound to make your house or dorm look so festive and cool this season. Embrace the holiday spirit and let your creative side shine!
- Glowing Spider Nest
Supplies:
- Fake spiders
- String lights
- Tape
- Scissors
- Fake cobwebs
Directions:
You can do this fun craft on any surface of your choice. First, you will lay out your string of lights onto the surface and try to get a good amount of coverage over the whole thing. You may need to tape them down in a few spots to get the lights to stick. Secondly, you’ll start stretching out the fake cobwebs and putting them over the surface and the lights however you want; do your best to make it look like a real spider’s web! You may want to cut some smaller chunks to make it easier to work with. You’ll want to tape down the edges of the cobwebbing, ensuring that your tape is sticking to the surface as well, otherwise the cobwebs won’t remain stuck. Once you have your cobwebs laid out how you want them to be, start placing the fake spiders all over the cobwebbing. Make them face different directions for a realistic touch and some variety. If you want to, you can also place other fake bugs along with the spiders.
- Spooky Wreath
Supplies:
- Scissors
- Fake spiders
- Fake cobwebs
- A plain wreath (ones made from sticks are great for this)
- Twist ties (optional)
- Lights (optional)
Directions:
Start by cutting small chunks of fake cobwebbing and stretching them. Place them onto the wreath however you want, but make sure to pack them into the sticks so that they stay in place. For more color and dimension, you can use multiple colors of cobwebbing. Once you’re satisfied with your cobwebbing, you can add your spiders! Stick the spiders all over the wreath, facing different directions. You should try to tuck the legs into the cobwebbing a little bit to help them stay in place. Alternatively, you can use some black twist ties to hold them in place. For this, you will loop the twist tie around a stick and the spider’s leg, twist it tight, and then tuck the excess away. For an extra spooky touch, you could also add some small lights to your wreath!
- Milk Carton Haunted House
Supplies:
- Empty cardboard milk carton
- Black and white paint (possibly other colors if you want them)
- Paintbrushes
- Scissors or an X-acto knife
- Pencil or marker
- Small, battery-powered light (the mini plastics candles work great for this)
Directions:
Begin by washing out and drying your milk carton. Sketch out some windows and a door onto your milk carton. Once you’re satisfied with your sketches, start cutting them out. When everything is cut out, paint the entire carton black, grey, or brown. Let that dry. After the black paint has dried, you can paint another coat on, if necessary. If it’s not necessary, you can start painting on the details. For example, you could paint some shutters around the windows, or a fence around the house. Once you’re completely done painting and it’s fully dry, stick your small light inside the house and watch it come to life!
- Glowing Black Cat Garland
Supplies:
- Black construction paper
- Scissors
- A string of lights
Directions:
Make an outline of a cat’s head either on your black construction paper, or on a piece of printer paper. Cut that out. You can now use that to trace a bunch of other cat heads onto the black construction paper. Trace one for every two lights and make the size of the head slightly bigger than the width of two lights on the string. Cut them out, then make two little holes for the eyes that are spaced out well enough to fit two of the lights on your string. Make sure that the hole you cut is big enough to fit the light into, but small enough for it to fit snugly. Stick your cat heads onto your string of lights then hang wherever you want!
- Monster Door
Supplies:
- Scissors
- Construction paper
- Tape
- Optional: streamers, googly eyes, fake cobwebs.
Directions:
Pick whatever monster or ghoul that you want to create, whether that’s a mummy, Frankenstein, or a spooky monster in general. Use your construction paper to create its face, scars, wraps, mouth, etc. Additionally, you can use large googly eyes for the eyes on your monster. Streamers make good hair/fur, and if you’re doing a mummy, adding some cobwebs gives it dimension and some realism! You can do this on any door, but make sure that you reinforce your design if you’re doing it on an outside facing door side. Get creative with this one and make whatever your heart desires!
Brooklynn Jolley can be reached at [email protected]