Eerie but Easy Halloween projects

I can hardly believe that for 17 years I've been a contributing crafts editor designing original Halloween and fall projects for Good Housekeeping magazine.

Halloween Spider

With the season of Halloween magic at our front door, I wanted to share a few of my favorite projects that I created.  Halloween is such a creative time but it does not have to consume you. These projects are based on getting an effect when time is limited. You may not believe this at first glance but this effect below is really easy to get with little effort.

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent

Halloween is all about the entry . You can conjure up some drama easily with bare tree branches and a selection of pumpkins. I  simply cut a small hole in the top of the pumpkins and pushed the tall branches down and into the pumpkin to hold. Then place your woodland path and add those menacing black crows. Add spiderwebs  and creepy crawlers if you really want to go to town. I like simplicity!

Styled  by Karin Lidbeck Brent

Imagine this eerie creature in your entry hall. A friend's dress form caught my eye one day, and it sparked this idea! The carved pumpkin sits on top of the dress form covered with torn and tattered cotton cheesecloth.  It's spooky but still playful which is definitely my style for Halloween.

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent

                                                                        

I also love to use bags of spidery webbing ripped, pulled and stretched for creating the haunted look over curtains and windows. I made these light weight black paper bats cut outs with folded wings.  Use the webbing to hold the bats in place.

If your looking for a small project, take a closer look at the spidery votives pictured at the top of this blogpost! This is a great hostess gift! 

Cut a hole in the top of the gourd to hold the tea light. The legs are black pipe cleaners pushed into the gourd.

Projects above were created for Good Housekeeping magazine 2007