Fall Halloween. September 26th, 2025

40 DIY Ghost Tutorials: Handmade Halloween Decoration Ideas

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Halloween isn’t complete without a few spooky ghosts floating around your home! Making DIY ghost crafts is fun, affordable, and perfect for both kids and adults. Ghosts are so easy and fun to create. You can simply create them with the least number of supplies. A last minute DIY ghost costume is as simple as white clothes covered with old bed sheet and fabric cutouts.

Whether you’re looking for a giant outdoor yard haunt display or a delicate indoor ghost accent, this expert-backed guide provides 40 of the best DIY ghost tutorials, covering materials, techniques, and insider craft tips to ensure your decorations are the ghostliest on the block.

Related: 100 Cute Halloween Craft Ideas

Why DIY Ghosts are the Best Halloween Decor?

Before diving into the tutorials, let’s look at why homemade ghosts consistently win over store-bought options:

Budget-Friendly: Most tutorials use inexpensive materials like cheesecloth, old sheets, wire, or Dollar Store items.
Customization: You control the size, shape, expression, and material, allowing you to perfectly match your home’s aesthetic, from cute and friendly to spooky and surreal.
Family Fun: These are excellent projects for all skill levels, making them perfect family activities.
High Impact: Large, illuminated outdoor ghosts create incredible curb appeal without the high price tag of professional props.

DIY Ghost Decorations

Let’s have a look at these Halloween crafts.

You can also find more fun ideas to theme decorate for Halloween with DIY witch halloween crafts, Halloween cupcakes, Pumpkin carving ideas and Halloween wreaths.

The 40 Essential DIY Ghost Tutorials

We’ve categorized the best ghost tutorials to help you find the perfect project for your space and skill level.

Floating and Ethereal Ghosts (The Classic Look)

These are the most popular and often involve fabric stiffeners for a gravity-defying shape.

1. Stiffened Cheesecloth Spirits:

Draping liquid-starch or fabric-stiffened cheesecloth over a form (like a balloon and bottle) creates a freestanding, spectral shape. Let it dry and then remove the base. Pro Tip: Use a double layer of cheesecloth for a more durable and opaque ghost.

2. Mannequin Head Phantoms (Expert):

Use a styrofoam mannequin head and layers of cheesecloth/stiffener for incredibly realistic, floating facial features. Suspend with clear fishing line.

3. Scary Halloween Ghost:

Make a DIY Ghost for yard with chicken wire, skull, cheesecloth and plastic black chain.

4. Hanging Tissue Paper Ghosts:

The simplest option. Crumple paper for a head, tie it off with string, and cut the ends of a square piece of white tissue paper into wispy strips. Perfect for indoor garland.

5. Floating Plastic Bag Ghosts:

A great upcycling craft! Use white garbage bags or tissue paper to cover a small inflated balloon, securing the bag with a twist tie and drawing a face with a Sharpie. Hang from trees or ceilings.

Yard and Life-Size Haunters (Maximum Curb Appeal)

These large-scale projects are perfect for making a statement outdoors.

6. Tomato Cage Ghosts:

Invert a tomato cage, top it with a foam ball for the head, and drape an old white sheet or landscape fabric over the structure. Add battery-operated string lights inside for an eerie glow.

7. Chicken Wire Wraiths:

Bend chicken wire into a life-size torso and head shape. Spray paint white and illuminate with a spotlight from below. The semi-transparent effect is terrifyingly good. (Requires safety gloves and some experience with shaping wire).

8. PVC Pipe Framed Ghosts:

Build a simple T-shaped frame using PVC pipes. Cover with an old white sheet and use a fan nearby to make the fabric waver for a chilling animated effect.

9. Glowing Lantern Ghosts:

Cover a paper lantern or an inexpensive plastic bell cloche (often found at dollar stores) with a white plastic tablecloth or a thin sheet. Draw a face and hang the lantern with an LED tea light inside.

Quick and Easy Indoor Accents

Simple projects for a subtle, spooky touch indoors or on a porch.

10. Mason Jar Ghosts Diorama:

Glue a tiny, wire-framed, cheesecloth ghost inside a mason jar, adding fake moss or cotton batting for a miniature spooky scene.

11. Mason Jar Ghost Lanterns:

Paint jars white, draw ghost faces, and place a candle inside.

12. Candle Stick Ghosts:

Drape small squares of white fabric or cheesecloth over an LED pillar candle or an empty wine bottle, securing with a rubber band around the ‘neck.’

13. Balloon and Gauze Ghosts:

Cover small, inflated balloons with white gauze dipped in fabric stiffener. Once dry, pop the balloon, leaving a lightweight, shell-like ghost to sit on a shelf.

14. Mummy Ghosts (Using Gauze):

Wrap a styrofoam egg or ball in medical gauze, adding black felt eyes to create a slightly messier, ancient-looking ghost.

15. Hanging Fabric Ghosts

Cover a ball with fabric, tie around the neck, and hang from trees.

16. Ghost Lollipops

Wrap lollipops in tissue, tie ribbon, and draw faces. Perfect for party favors.

17. Ghost Rocks

Paint rocks white, add ghostly eyes and mouths.

Creative and Unique Ghost Designs

For the crafter who wants something a little different.

18. Sherpa Fabric “Pottery Barn” Ghosts:

Use thick, white sherpa fabric draped over a round object (like a faux pumpkin or a large bowl) for a high-end, textured, “friendly” ghost look.

19. Ghostly Glass Bottle Lamps:

Drill a small hole in the back of an empty wine bottle. Paint the bottle white, add felt eyes, and insert a strand of fairy lights.

20. Hanging Paper Plate Ghosts:

Cut the bottom half of a paper plate into wispy strips and attach a small paper circle to the top for the face. Great for kids’ craft tables.

21. Foam Ball and Stick Ghosts:

Use a wooden dowel rod pushed into a base (like a potted plant) with a foam ball on top. Drape cheesecloth over the ball and secure it around the base for a ‘grounded’ floating ghost.

22. Ghostly Shadow Box:

Use black paper inside a shadow box frame. Cut out a small white ghost shape, suspend it with fishing line, and add a tiny LED light behind it for a deep, dimensional haunt.

23. Glow-in-the-Dark Paint Ghosts:

Use any stiffened ghost structure and lightly dust it with glow-in-the-dark spray paint to create an effect that charges during the day and glows faintly at night.

You can also wrap fabric around glow sticks, tie at the top, and draw spooky faces.

24. Ghostly Luminaries:

Cut out ghost faces from black construction paper and glue them onto white paper bags. Place an LED tea light inside for a safe and spooky walkway light.

25. Miniature Sock Ghosts:

Stuff a white sock with cotton or batting, tie it off, and use black embroidery floss or a marker to create a tiny, plush ghost for tiered trays or mantels.

26. Ghostly Window Silhouettes

Cut ghost shapes and tape them to windows for glowing silhouettes.

27. Recycled Milk Jug Ghosts

Paint jugs, add faces, and place lights inside.

28. Paper ghost treat bags

paper treat packs + googly eyes

29. DIY Ghost Costume

Ghost headband with ribbons.

30. DIY Ghost Feet

Ghost wall art with wooden board + acrylic paint in black and white + ribbon to hang

31. Ghost treat boxes

sharpie markers in black or black paper cutouts.

32. Halloween Ghost Topiary

Styrofoam balls +wooden dowel rod + cheesecloth

33. Stencil Ghost Pillow

Stenciled pillow of ghosts, bats, witches, spiders. Ghost stencil + fabric paint + plain pillow.

34. DIY Ghost stuff toy

polyester filling + white fleece + sewing machine.

35. Halloween ghost wreath

Make a ghosts wreath with felt + styrofoam wreath foam + scallops felt + Black beads

36. Halloween Ghost Glass Art

Make frosted ghosts on glass for decorating Halloween mantel.

37. DIY Ghost Garland

RIT dyed lighted fabric ghosts garland on the mantel.

38. Homemade DIY Ghosts Crafts

Halloween wreath made with painted ghosts on old bulbs.

39. Silly ghost garland

cotton + cardstock + googly eyes + twig or pipe cleaner

40. Yarn ghost garland

Yarn string + pom pom balls + yarn tassels

Common Questions About DIY Ghost Crafts

1. What is the best material for outdoor ghosts?

Tomato cages and white sheets/landscaping fabric for large props. Cheesecloth and liquid starch (if weather allows it to dry fully) for freestanding specters. Always use waterproof glue for facial features.

2. How do you make your DIY ghost look like it’s floating?

Use clear fishing line or monofilament for hanging from trees or ceilings. For freestanding ghosts, use a fabric stiffener (like Stiffy or watered-down glue) to maintain the shape after removing the internal form.

3. How can you make your ghost glow at night?

Place battery-operated LED string lights or glow sticks inside the ghost’s structure (especially effective with tomato cage or paper lantern ghosts). Use lights rated for outdoor use if placed outside.

4. Will liquid starch work on any fabric?

Liquid starch works best on lightweight, open-weave fabrics like cheesecloth, gauze, or tulle. Heavy sheets or fleece may require a stronger craft stiffener or Mod Podge.