Halloween DIY

The season for warm colors, fun crafts, and spooky decor is here!  Take a look at some fun ideas for an indoor party or outdoor display.

No carving required! Paint or freehand a cool design.  The glossy cream paint really stands out on a dark orange pumpkin with a bit of green sprayed at the top. Yes, you can do this with faux pumpkins too so your displays are reusable and even changeable every year.  How about a a bit of modge podge and paper scraps to cover?  Or pushpins for a glam look?

These are fun as place settings. These for a fall wedding, but I made Thanksgiving settings with mine. Idea from Mine Forever blog!

 No carving here either.  A great way to display your house number from October to December. I love to use different sizes and sometimes add a basket filled with small gourds to warm up a country porch.  You can stack the pumpkins with liquid nails or insert wooden dowels between pumpkins so they stay put.












For these very cool globes - that I made last year and will use again and again -follow these directions (from Sunset Magazine.)

1. Translucent orange spray paint for glass (available at some Michaels craft stores; Krylon Stained Glass Magic Color.
2. Glass globe for a light fixture (available at hardware stores)
3. Pencil
4. Cardboard
5. Scissors or craft knife
6. Black contact paper
7. Wire cutters
8. 20-gauge wire
9. Six black beads
10. Rubber band
11. Pliers
12. Hair dryer
13. Glass beads or sand
14. Tea light

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Spray-paint the outside of the globe and set aside to dry (about an hour).

2. Draw a simple design - a jack-o'-lantern, black cat, or bat - on cardboard and cut out. Trace shape on contact paper and cut out design.

3. With wire cutters, cut a 2-foot length of wire and a 1-foot piece.

4. Thread black beads on the longer wire. Gently bend it to form a rounded handle. Position over globe leaving 2 inches of wire below neck of the globe on each side. Secure with the rubber band.

5. Wrap the shorter wire tightly around the neck of the globe and, with pliers, twist firmly. Clip off excess wire. Cut off the rubber band and discard.

6. Bend the descending 2 inches of the handle up over the securing wire and lightly twist around the handle. Cover the twist with the black beads, three on each side.

7. Peel the backing off the contact paper and stick the design on the globe, smoothing out as many bubbles as possible. With a hair dryer on a warm setting, heat the paper and smooth out the rest of the bubbles.

8. Pour a small amount of glass beads or sand in the bottom of the globe. Place a tea light in the center.

 Mini pumpkins are so easy to incorporate into your decor.  These are sold in bags at my local Costco and Trader Joe's.  Here, the stems are sprayed with a clear gloss coat for drama and Folk Art craft paint and paint pens did the stripes and swirls. White minis make a more subtle statement, but also look great with orange and black paint.

Fall color at your  entry is warm and inviting.  While these pots can be used all year long, adding seasonal mums and 'found' branches really make them festive.  For Halloween, drape the branches with spider webs and even hang 'ghosts' made from white hankies or washcloths.