5 Halloween Decoration Ideas*
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DIY Life - Size Prop
Materials:
PVC Pipe:
- 2 10 feet x 3/4 inch PVC Pipes
- 2 3/4 inch 90 Degree Elbow’s
- 2 3/4 inch 45 Degree Elbow’s
- 5 3/4 inch Tee’s
- 1 3/4 inch Cross
- 2 floor flange’s 3/4 inch
- 2 3/4 inch PVC Nipple’s for the Flange’s
- Ratcheting PVC Pipe Cutter
More Materials:
- Styrofoam Wig Head
- Acrylic Paint
- Foam Pool Noodle
- 8 Wood Screws
- 1 2 x 2 Square Sheet of Wood
- Drill and/or Screwdriver
- Newspaper or small throw pillows, floral wire
- Men’s flannel or oversized long sleeve t-shirt
- Men’s jeans or long pants
- Men’s or women's work shoes
- Gardening gloves
- Halloween Mask
Step 1: Start by cutting the PVC pipe down to these dimensions with a PVC pipe cutter:
- Neck: 3 inches
- Shoulder Blade, cut 2: 6.5 inches
- Top Arm, cut 2: 13.25 inches
- Bottom Arm, cut 2: 11 inches
- Spine: 16 inches
- Hips, cut 2: 5.5 inches
- Top Leg, cut 2: 15.5 inches
- Bottom Leg, cut 2: 24.5 inches
Step 2: Put the figure together as shown in the image below.
Step 3: Add a pin on either side of the tee holding the spine to the hips. Drill a small hole in the tee when pipe is inserted. Drill all the way through the pipe and add a nail or screw, to keep the figure from falling forward. You can also use PVC pipe adhesive to glue that joint so it won’t move.
Step 4: Once your hips and legs are put together measure and mark the wood board to add the floor flanges. Add the PVC flange nipples into to the flanges and attach the rest of the PVC pipe figure. Use a hammer to tap the pipes together so that they will fit tightly and not come apart.
Step 5: To add bulk to the figure, cut sections of a foam pool noodle to fit the shoulders, arms and rib cage. Slit one side of the foam with a sharp knife and place over/around the pipe. Paint a dark mask in the eye area of the foam head with acrylic paint. Now you can take a Halloween mask and cover the foam head with the mask.
Step 6: Now you can dress up your life-size prop. Place some work shoes in front of the floor flanges. Pull pant legs over the top of the shoes and secure them with zip ties or safety pins to the pipe. Stuff the arms and chest with newspaper, plastic bags or even small throw pillows to give your prop more human-like features.
Step 7: That’s it! Now it’s time to display this spooky like-size prop in a creepy scene and he is all ready for Halloween! You can even put this figure out on display Halloween night for trick-or-treaters.
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Painted Pumpkins:
- Caramel Apple Pumpkin
- Materials:
- Round medium sized pumpkin
- Apple coloured craft paints (ex. Red, green, yellow)
- Golden caramel craft paint
- Hot glue gun
- 3/4-inch by 12-inch dowel
- Industrial-size coffee filters
Step 1: Remove the stem of a medium sized pumpkin.
Step 2: Use an apple coloured craft paint, such as red, green or yellow, to paint the top of the pumpkin, or another apple colour of your choice.
Step 3: Once dry, use craft paint to paint the bottom of the pumpkin a golden caramel color.
Step 4: Hot-glue a 3/4-inch by 12-inch dowel where the stem was.
Step 5: Display in a large, industrial-size coffee filter.
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Window Silhouettes
- Materials:
- Black bristol board
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Glue
Step 1: Simply look online for a silhouette you like.
Step 2: Draw the silhouette you have chosen on a black bristol board.
Step 3: Cut out your silhouette and you’re done! Now you can tape your silhouette in your window for display.
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Pumpkin Animal on the Wall
- For the bear:
- Materials:
- A large wood round
- A small pumpkin
- A small round wood piece (for the snout)
- Dark brown acrylic paint
- Hot glue gun
- An acorn (for the nose)
- 2 small round leaves (for the ears)
- Two small red beads (for the eyes)
Step 1: Remove the stem from a small pumpkin.
Step 2: Stain a small round wood piece dark brown, and hot-glue an acorn top to the wood piece to create the nose; glue to the top of the pumpkin.
Step 3: Hot-glue small, round-ish leaves to the back of the pumpkin to create the ears and small red beads above the nose for the eyes.
- For the moose:
- Materials:
- Small pumpkin
- Small oval wood piece
- Dark brown acrylic paint
- Hot glue gun
- 2 small beads (for the nose)
- A needle
- 2 large oak leaves (for the ears)
- 2 small nuts (for the eyes)
Step 1: Remove the stem from a small pumpkin.
Step 2: Stain a small oval wood piece dark brown, and hot-glue small beads toward the bottom to create the nose; glue to the top of the pumpkin.
Step 3: Use a needle to poke small holes in the back sides of the pumpkin, and insert large oak leaves to create the antlers.
Step 4: Hot-glue small nuts above the nose to create the eyes.
- For the fox:
- Materials:
- White acrylic paint
- Tiny twigs (for the whiskers)
- Hot glue gun
- 2 small pointy leaves (for the ears)
- 2 black map tacks (for the eyes)
Step 1: Paint the lower half of a small orange pumpkin white; allow to dry.
Step 2: Poke three small holes on each side of the stem, and insert tiny twigs to create the whiskers.
Step 3: Hot-glue small, pointy leaves to the back of the pumpkin to create the ears; insert black map tacks for eyes.
Step 4: Drive a long nail, at an upward angle, through the back of each large wood round and into the pumpkin to secure.
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DIY Graveyard
- Materials:
- Cardboard boxes
- Black permanent marker
Step 1: Flatten several shipping boxes.
Step 2: Use a black permanent marker to draw tombstone shapes. You can make a few rectangular, cross, and oval tombstones to give my graveyard some variety.
Step 3: Cut the shapes out of with a pair of scissors.
Step 4: Paint the shapes a dark grey and allow the paint to dry.
Step 5: Once dry, add on sayings like “R.I.P” or “Humpty Dumpty - Sat on a wall and had a great fall” to the front of each tombstone.
Step 6: Glue a wood or plastic yard stake to the back of the tombstone and plant it into the ground.
*Sources: https://bit.ly/2ngYf7d; https://bit.ly/30NQnI0; https://bit.ly/2o5KkS7; https://bit.ly/3332bHZ; https://bit.ly/2yCAGd6
