As I said in my previous Halloween-themed post, I normally don’t like spending money on my DIY crafts, but I make exceptions for the holidays. In total, I spent $3 at Dollar Tree for the following three crafts. However, half of living on a college budget is being smart with your purchases. While I used paint, paintbrushes and tape in some of the crafts below, I borrowed them from friends and family.
If you need to purchase paint or brushes, supplies can be found at your closest craft store. You can swap out markers or crayons for paint if you have those on hand. Only purchase what you need to, but spend money on things that are fun and make you happy. Without further ado, here are my three, cheap dorm decorations:
Eerie Tombstones:
You Will Need:
- 1 cardboard box (you can find these for free in recycling rooms and retail stores)
- Black, white, and red paint (or another coloring medium)
- 1 foam brush (if you use paint)
- 1 thin-bristled paintbrush (if you use paint)
Cut one of the sides of your cardboard box so you’re left with a more manageable strip of rectangular cardboard. Trace a gravestone shape onto the box: start off with two vertical, parallel lines and connect with a curved line at the top.
Step Two:
Decorate! Color your tombstone gray and add details. I used a foam brush and black and red paint to add texture for a more realistic look. Search for funny epitaphs to put on your headstone and draw skulls, bones or even a zombie or two to finish it off. It’s all in the details, so take your time and have fun!
Step Three:
Tape your headstones to your door so all your hall-mates know about your unfortunate demise.
Cute Pumpkin Paper Craft:
You Will Need:
- White poster-board ($1 or less; $0.69 at Dollar Tree)
- Orange paint (or another coloring medium)
- Scissors
- Hole punch (optional)
- Green Ribbon ($1 at Dollar Tree)
- 1 green paint square (optional; free at Home Depot/Lowe’s/Walmart)
Paint (or color) both sides of the white poster-board orange. While you could buy an already orange poster-board, painting or coloring it gives the pumpkin a rustic texture. However, if you want a more modern, clean look, skip this step and pick up an orange poster-board instead!
Step Two:
After letting the poster-board dry, measure out at least 15 strips of paper, width: 1.5 in. and height: 8-12 in. If you make your strips 8in., you will create a smaller pumpkin and if you make your strips 12 in., your pumpkin will be larger. Cut out the strips.
Step Three:
Use a hole punch or scissors to make a hole on each side of the strip, big enough for a piece of ribbon o fit through. Try to make all the holes equidistant from the ends of the strips, but keep in mind they don’t have to be perfect. My strips’ holes are about 1 cm away from the ends.
Step Four:
Stack up all of your strips and align the holes as best you can. Cut a 10 in. piece of ribbon and string it through the holes.
Step Five:
Bend the strips of paper into a “U” shape, so that the ribbon becomes taught in the center, creating a “D” shape, as seen here. Tie knots at each end of the strips to secure the ribbon’s position.
Step Six:
Fan out each strip, creating a pumpkin-like shape. If you have extra ribbon on one side, you can curl it with scissors to create “vines.” Optional:You can use a green paint square to create leaves for your pumpkin! Cut out two leaf-shapes and glue them to any extra ribbon you have.)
Creepy Flying Bats:
You Will Need:
- 1 black poster-board (for approximately 27 bats)
- Scissors
- Tape
Find and trace a bat-shape off of the Internet or free-hand one yourself.
Step Two:
Trace said design onto your poster-board as many times as possible. (I fit 27 bats onto my standard-sized poster-board.) If you’re having trouble tracing, cut out one of the bats from your poster-board and use it to trace the rest of the bats. If you use regular paper, it can often be flimsy and difficult to work with, so the thicker poster-board paper may help you.
Step Three:
Cut out all of the bats and fold their wings towards you, creating a three-dimensional effect.
Step Four:
Create loops of tape and stick them to the back of your bats. Place them wherever you want around the room or in your hallway (if you get permission)!
Contact me at adersch@asu.edu or @AlexDersch with questions, suggestions or comments. The more communication I get from you the better Eye Candy will be. Thank you!
