Alright friends, buckle up because today's project got messy, just like my kitchen table right now. Remember that pile of old junk I mentioned last week? Finally put it to good use making some seriously creepy creatures for Halloween. Figured I'd walk you through exactly how it went down, warts and all.
Starting Simple: The Trash Bag Zombie
First idea felt dumb easy – a zombie rising from the ground. Grabbed some old newspapers, crumpled them into a vague body shape. Rummaged in my garage, found these cheap black trash bags. Tore one open and tried wrapping the newspaper bundle like a mummy. Looked pathetic, honestly. More lumpy trash ghost than terrifying zombie.
Got stubborn. Took another bag, this time stuffing it loosely with newspaper to puff it up. Used packing tape, the crappy kind that barely sticks, to sorta seal the head part. Dragged it out to the yard. Tried staking it with garden wire – snapped immediately. Ended up using rusty wire coat hangers I straightened out, jamming them right through the bag into the dirt. Looked kinda stupid in daylight.
But later? When I turned on the cheap orange safety light I found in the basement? Total game changer. The shadows made the lumpy bag look properly decayed. Left it flapping in the breeze. Kid walked past yesterday, jumped a foot. Success!
Pipe Cleaner Spiders (Glue Gun Warfare)
Next up: spiders. Thought pipe cleaners would be easy peasy. Found an ancient pack covered in dust. Started twisting four together for legs. Kept unravelling. Got annoyed. Remembered I had a glue gun buried somewhere. Fought with the plug, glue was old and stringy, burnt my finger like always. Slapped some goo on the joint where the legs met the body (just a big clump of black pipe cleaners). Held it together long enough. Messy, but functional.
Strung fishing line through the body. Spent twenty minutes trying to tape them dangling from the porch roof. Wind kept tangling them. Neighbor saw me cursing at a spider. Looked crazy. But at night? Shone a flashlight under them. Silhouettes looked legit creepy swaying up there. Worth the glue gun scar.
Glow in the Dark Skeleton Fiasco
Wanted something glowy. Had an old cardboard box. Tried sketching a skeleton outline with chalk. Big mistake. Smudged everywhere. Grabbed a spare can of white spray paint. Mistake number two. Wind picked up. Got more paint on my pants than the cardboard. Finally slapped on some glow-in-the-dark paint I bought ages ago.
Hung it on the shed. Looked awful up close. Kids called it "blobby ghost man." But pitch black? That glow paint actually worked! Shapes were vague, just spooky enough. Learned my lesson: embrace the blur.
Plastic Bottle Monsters & Unholy Glitter
Time for the monster mash. Collected empty soda bottles, juice cartons, anything weirdly shaped. Cleaned them out poorly; one still smelled faintly of apple juice. Goal: Mutants.
- Eyes: Used those googly eyes. Glue dots failed miserably. Hot glue again saved the day.
- Tentacles: Cut up an old pool noodle. Spray painted it slimy green. Paint peeled. Looked gross by accident.
- Fangs: Found some white plastic forks. Broke off the prongs, glued them sticking out of a bottle cap mouth. Deranged.
- The Mistake: Used glitter glue for "ooze." Never again. Sticky mess got everywhere. Still finding specks on the cat.
Piled them all together. Looks like colorful trash. Exactly what I wanted.
The Fabric Ghost Surprise
Last minute idea. Found an old sheer curtain panel in the linen closet. Pretty sure it came with the house. Definitely stained. Perfect! Grabbed a cheap foam ball.
- Plonked the ball on a pole stuck in a flowerpot filled with rocks.
- Draped the sheer fabric over it.
- Used safety pins to shape a droopy face – totally uneven.
- Hit it with a black light bulb from the garage.
Honestly? Easiest one and the most effective. Swear it looked like it was drifting. No complicated crap needed.
So yeah. That’s the dirt. My fingers are sticky, the yard is full of suspicious lumps, and I probably inhaled too much spray paint fumes. But hey, spooky season demands sacrifice, right? Let me know if you try any of these train wrecks!
