At a Glance: Easy DIY Halloween Decorations
- 15 projects, most under 30 minutes. A few need to dry overnight, and we say which.
- Built from jars, cheesecloth, pool noodles and dollar-store finds. Most cost $2 to $10 each.
- No flames anywhere. Every glowing project uses battery lights.
These DIY Halloween decorations use things you already have or can grab at a dollar store: glass jars, toilet paper rolls, cheesecloth, a pool noodle, and a pack of battery tea lights. Pick two or three, and your porch is done this weekend. Jump to the projects or see the basic kit.
Maybe it’s a week before Halloween and the bin in the garage is mostly broken stuff. Maybe you just don’t want to spend a lot on one giant inflatable. Either way, you’re in the right place. Every project below lists what you need, about how long it takes, and about what it costs.
Some are cute enough for a toddler’s room. A few are creepy enough for the front walk. Mix and match.
Grab one big pack of battery tea lights before you start, because half these projects glow. Flickering ones look the most like a real candle. One is a little dim in a big jar, so drop in two. (paid link)
- WARM AMBER FLICKERING GLOW: The amber light recreates the rich tone of a traditional flame, while...
- 40X LONGER-LASTING GLOW: Each tea light comes with a pre-installed 240mAh CR2032 battery, ready to...
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What do you need to make DIY Halloween decorations?
A basic Halloween craft kit you’ll use over and over
- Battery LED tea lights. A big pack covers the jars, the hats and the ghosts.
- Black and white acrylic craft paint. Plus one cheap foam brush per color.
- Tacky glue and glue dots. They hold paper, felt and fabric without heat.
- Cheesecloth or white gauze. One package makes a few ghosts.
- Googly eyes in mixed sizes. The fastest way to make anything look alive. A big pack of self-adhesive googly eyes (paid link) is all one size, so mix in a few others if you have them.
- Black cardstock and scissors.
- Clear fishing line. For anything that needs to float.
Quick tip: Pick one accent color, like orange, purple or lime green, and use it in every project. Your DIY Halloween decorations will look like a set instead of a pile.
Which DIY Halloween decorations can you make this week?
Here are 15 DIY Halloween decorations, roughly fastest first. Times and costs are planning estimates for one piece.
1. Toilet paper roll bats
Paint empty toilet paper rolls black and let them dry. Fold the top edges in to make two little ears. Cut wings from black cardstock, glue them to the back, and add googly eyes. Hang a cluster on a window or a doorframe with removable tape. About 20 minutes and almost free.
2. Candy corn garland
Cut triangles from yellow, orange and white felt, then glue them into candy corn stripes. Punch a hole near the top and thread them onto twine. Hang it on a mantel or across a doorway. About 30 minutes and $5.
3. Googly eye pumpkins
Grab a small real or foam pumpkin and stick on a dozen googly eyes in different sizes. Use glue dots so the eyes come off later and the pumpkin can still be pie. About 10 minutes and $3.
4. Mason jar monsters
Paint the outside of a clean jar green, purple or orange. Use two coats and let each one dry. Add googly eyes and draw a mouth with a black paint pen. Drop a battery tea light inside and the face glows. About 30 minutes plus drying, and $5.
5. Mummy jar luminaries
Brush tacky glue thinned with a little water onto a jar. Wrap strips of gauze around it in crooked layers, leaving a gap for the eyes. Stick two googly eyes in the gap, let it dry, and add a battery tea light. About 25 minutes plus drying, and $4.
6. Cheesecloth ghosts
Set a ball on top of a tall jar or a bottle. Soak cheesecloth in a mix of half glue and half water, wring it out, and drape it over the ball. Let it dry overnight, then lift it off. Add two black felt eyes. About 20 minutes of work plus drying, and $6. Our cheesecloth floating ghosts guide shows this one step by step.
7. Tomato cage ghosts
Turn a wire tomato cage upside down so the wide end sits on the ground. Wrap battery LED fairy lights around it, then drape an old white sheet over the top. Cut two eyes and a mouth from black felt and pin them on. About 20 minutes and $10, if you already own the sheet.
For the ghost, buy fairy lights with a timer so they click on at dusk and you never have to dig under the sheet. Each string is short, so a tall cage takes two. (paid link)
- Newly Designed:Reinforced battery box with ON/OFF switch. No power drain after removing the...
- 【Flexible Fairy lights & Battery life】6pcs lights per packing,The battery compartment extension...
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8. Floating witch hats
Hang dollar-store witch hats with clear fishing line from a doorway or a low porch beam you can reach from the ground. Tape a battery tea light inside each brim, facing up. At night they look like they’re hovering. About 15 minutes and $8 for three.
9. Bat branch centerpiece
Collect a few bare branches and paint them black. Stand them in a jar or vase filled with dried beans. Cut small bats from black cardstock and glue them along the branches. About 30 minutes plus drying, and $3.
10. Poison apothecary bottles
Soak the labels off old glass bottles. Paint the bottles black or leave them clear and fill them with colored water. Hand-letter tags like “Bat Wings” or “Eye of Newt” on cardstock and tie them on with twine. About 30 minutes and $2.
11. Spider nest
Stretch white nylon stockings over a ball of polyester fiberfill. Pull and tear the nylon so it looks like webbing, then stick plastic spiders all over it. Set a few in corners and on shelves. About 15 minutes and $5.
12. Eyeballs in a tree
Draw irises on ping-pong balls with markers and add red squiggly veins. Tie each one to clear fishing line and hang them from a low branch you can reach from the ground. About 30 minutes and $5 for a dozen.
13. Pool noodle witch legs
Have an adult cut a pool noodle in half with a serrated kitchen knife. Pull striped stockings over each half and slide the ends into old boots or black shoes. Stick the other ends into a planter so it looks like a witch crashed. About 15 minutes and $5. Got noodle left over? Make our pool noodle Halloween candles next.
14. Skeleton hands in a flower pot
Push dollar-store skeleton hands into a pot of soil so they look like they’re climbing out. Add a little moss on top. About 10 minutes and $4.
15. Painted doormat
Lay a stencil on a plain coir doormat and dab on outdoor acrylic paint with a stiff brush. Lift the stencil and let it dry for a day before anyone steps on it. About 30 minutes plus drying, and $10.
What usually goes wrong?
The cheesecloth ghost slumps. That means the glue mix was too thin or it came off the jar too soon. Use half glue and half water, and wait until it feels stiff all the way through, usually overnight.
Paint peels off the jars. Glass is slippery. Wipe the jar with rubbing alcohol first, use two thin coats, and keep painted jars indoors or on a covered porch.
How much do these cost?
- Under $10: Bats, googly eye pumpkins, poison bottles and the bat branches, using paint and glue you already own.
- About $25: The craft kit above plus three or four projects, including the mason jar monsters and a mummy jar.
- About $50: A full porch: tomato cage ghosts, floating witch hats, eyeballs in the tree and a painted doormat.
Where should you put them so they stay safe?
Light everything with battery lights. The National Fire Protection Association says a flashlight or battery candle is the safest way to light a jack-o-lantern. It also warns that dried flowers, cornstalks and crepe paper catch fire easily, so keep paper and fabric decor away from light bulbs and heaters.
Keep doors and walkways clear so nobody trips in the dark, and nothing blocks the way out. Hang things only from spots you can reach while standing on the ground. If you want something up high, like lights on the roofline, ask someone who’s comfortable on a ladder to help.
Here’s the test: walk up to your door after dark. If you can see a glow from the sidewalk and nothing is in your path, you’re ready for trick-or-treaters.
Want more? Try our cute and creepy Halloween decor ideas, the boho ghost wall hanging, or the Halloween infinity well for something bigger.
Ready for trick-or-treaters
You don’t need a big budget or a garage full of storage bins. A few jars, a pack of tea lights and one afternoon will make your house look like it’s been planning Halloween for weeks. Start with the bats tonight.
Show us your porch
We’d love to see what you made. Tag us on Instagram, pin your favorite to your Halloween board on Pinterest, or share a photo on our Facebook page.
A few helpful answers
DIY Halloween decorations FAQs
Easy picks, candles, kids, and saving them for next year.
Toilet paper roll bats, googly eye pumpkins and skeleton hands in a flower pot each take 20 minutes or less. You likely have most of the supplies at home already.
Usually, yes. Most projects here cost $2 to $10 because they reuse jars, rolls and old sheets. A whole porch of them runs about $50.
Stick with battery tea lights. Paint, gauze and paper catch fire easily, and battery lights stay cool and glow just as nicely.
The bats, the candy corn garland and the googly eye pumpkins are good for kids with a grown-up handling the scissors. Keep googly eyes away from children under 3, since they’re a choking risk. Let a grown-up do the knife work on the pool noodle legs.
Wrap jars and bottles in newspaper and stand cheesecloth ghosts in a box so they keep their shape. Pull the batteries out of the tea lights before you pack them.
Which DIY Halloween decoration are you making first?
Some of these take ten minutes. Others need a night to dry, so pick your first one tonight.
Vote, then tell us in the comments which one you picked and where it’s going.
