Halloween is the time to transform your yard into the most horrifying scene to spook your trick-or-treaters; the cheapest and most creative way to do this is by creating your own DIY Halloween decorations. Not only will your yard be the talk of the neighborhood on this upcoming magical night, but you’ll have fun making your unique décor all month long. Your kids will love to help make these gruesome masterpieces as well!
Number Five: Black Light Curtains.
This decorating idea is so simple and yet so creepy. All that is necessary is a black light, and any large sheet or curtain. To set the ambiance for ghostly tricks this year, simply hang up your sheet in any desired fashion, and set a black light behind it. My favorite way to do this is to fashion this spooky décor into the corner of a haunted house garage and convince treaters that this is where the local ghosts reside. For this effect, it is best to use a black or dark blue sheet. However, you could also use a white sheet to light up the whole area.
Number Four: Closet Light Eyes.
What better way to spook the neighborhood than to make them feel as if they’re being watched? With a classic set of big, eerie eyeballs in the window, everyone will feel shivers as they pass. All you’ll need for this unbelievably easy craft is a string of white, opaque string lights and some markers. Just use your markers to draw different colored eyes on every bulb, use some red to make the eyes look bloodshot, and that’s it! You can get as creative as you want with it. When finished with your all-seeing eyes, set them alight and secure them to any window or wall with packing tape.
Number Three: Hanging Alien Eggs.
If aliens are your theme of choice for Halloween decorations this year, this is certainly the craft for you. With this craft, you can make realistic alien cocoons hang from any tree, ceiling, or other surface. Or, if you’ve ever seen the movie Van Helsing, this decoration makes an extremely convincing display of Dracula’s egg sacs. The downside to this great decoration is that you may need to prepare the materials in advance and hang them the night of Halloween. For this ultimate Halloween decoration, you’ll need glow sticks (blue, yellow, or green work best), a pack of white water balloons, and white, one-legged stockings. Pairs will also work; however, you will need to cut them in two. When it comes time to hang your sacs, begin by cracking your desired number of glow sticks. Fill each water balloon with water to desired cocoon size, and place the glow stick inside before tying. Put the filled balloon in the foot of the stocking, and tie the opposite end around the branch of a tree or hook on the ceiling. Let them hang freely, and watch the passersby be utterly grossed out by the gruesome, hanging egg sacs!
Number Two: Fishing Line “Webs.”
This trick is one of the most terrifying decorations you can produce for only pennies. This decoration works best in poorly-lit areas, where victims can hardly see in front of them. It is ideal for those who enjoy decking out their garage into their own haunted house. Simply take long bits of translucent fishing line and adhere them to any ceiling using packing tape. The strands should be long enough to hang from the ceiling and brush the shoulders of your victims. I like to use various lengths, so as to include haunts of all heights in the terror. The hanging fishing line will induce the feeling of walking through spider webs, and there’s no better way to creep out trick-or-treaters than making them walk through an interactive haunted scene to earn their candy. Not to mention, the reactions from children and adults alike are sure to be priceless. Want to make it even more horrifying? Have a spray bottle of water nearby and regularly spritz the spider webs for the ultimate trick.
Number One: Tree Bats.
If you have a large tree in your yard, there is no better way to spice it up for Halloween than with some devilish bats. Not to mention, this craft is quick and simple, and it’s a great way to occupy the kids! To fill your tree with bats, you will only need scissors, as many sheets of black fun foam as you would like bats, packing tape, and translucent fishing line. Begin by cutting the fun foam sheets into all different shapes and sizes of bats. Cut the fishing line into various lengths that would be long enough for the bats to be visible once they are hung from your tree. Then, make a small hole in the head or either wing of the bat, and lace one strand of fishing line through each bat, secured with a knot. Adhere the strings to various branches of your tree using packing tape, and let your bats fly. To scare your trick-or-treaters even more, you can spruce up your bats by giving them crazy eyes. Personally, I prefer to paint on eyes using glow-in-the-dark paint, so the kiddies feel as if their every move is being watched.