Easy Halloween crafts don’t need a craft room, expensive equipment, or seventeen specialty supplies you’ll use once and then shove into a closet until 2031.
Sometimes you just want to make something spooky.
Maybe you’re decorating the house. Maybe the kids are bored. Maybe you’re getting ready for a Halloween party. Maybe you need a little something for a Boo gift.
Or maybe you just looked at an empty cardboard box and thought, Surely I can make something out of this.
You absolutely can.
These Halloween craft ideas range from ridiculously simple to slightly more involved, but they’re all designed around the same basic philosophy:
Use what you have. Keep it affordable. Don’t overcomplicate it. Make it yours.
And no, you do not need a Cricut.
🎃 Want to start with six easy projects? Grab SPOOKY STARTER: 6 Easy Halloween Crafts to Get You Making free.
Before You Buy Anything
Before you head to the craft store, shop your house first.
Cardboard boxes, empty jars, toilet-paper tubes, old socks, fabric scraps, leftover ribbon, yarn, paper and even things you’ve been saving in the junk drawer can become perfectly good Halloween craft supplies.
You don’t need the exact supply listed in a project, either. Improvise. That’s half the fun.
And if you do need something, keep the shopping list short. The goal here is to make something spooky—not accidentally spend $74.83 doing it.
👻 Halloween Crafts for Your House
1. Paper Plate Spiders
You’ll need: paper plates, black paint or markers, scissors, glue, yarn or pipe cleaners, and googly eyes.
Paint or color a paper plate black and let it dry. Cut or prepare eight legs from yarn, pipe cleaners, cardstock, or whatever you have available and attach them around the edges. Add googly eyes—or draw your own—and hang your spiders around the house.
Make it yours: Make giant spiders for the wall, tiny ones for shelves, or let every kid create a completely different species.
2. Witch Hat Door Hanger
You’ll need: black cardstock or poster board, scissors, tape or glue, ribbon, and Halloween-colored scraps.
Cut a large cone from black cardstock and create a simple brim underneath it. Secure the cone, decorate it with ribbon or paper accents, and add a loop of ribbon to hang it.
You don’t have to make it perfectly symmetrical. In fact, a slightly crooked witch hat looks appropriately witchy.
Budget trick: Use a recycled cardboard box as the base and cover it with black paper.
3. Halloween Potion Bottles
You’ll need: small recycled bottles or jars, paper, markers, ribbon, and optional colored water.
Create ridiculous potion names on homemade labels:
- Bat Wing Brew
- Zombie Juice
- Witch’s Brew
- Spider Venom
- Dragon Drool
- Definitely Not Poison
Attach the labels to clean bottles or jars. Leave them empty, fill them with colored water, or add decorative materials that won’t spoil.
Important: If children will be around them, clearly label anything that isn’t intended to be consumed and keep decorative bottles away from food and drinks.
4. Monster Door
You’ll need: paper or lightweight cardboard, scissors, removable tape, and markers.
Turn your front door into a giant monster.
Make enormous eyes, eyebrows, teeth, horns, ears, or whatever ridiculous features you want. Arrange them on the door with removable tape.
This is especially fun because the door becomes the decoration. No storage bin required when Halloween is over—just take everything down and recycle it.
5. Paper Pumpkin Fans
You’ll need: orange paper, scissors, glue or tape, and string or ribbon.
Fold a sheet of orange paper back and forth like an accordion. Fold the accordion in half and secure the center, then fan it open into a pumpkin shape. Add a paper stem and leaf.
Make several in different sizes and string them together for an inexpensive wall or party decoration.
Try: orange, white, black and purple pumpkins instead of making every one traditional orange.
6. Halloween Paper Chains
Paper chains are old-school for a reason: they work.
Cut strips of black, orange, purple, green or white paper. Loop one strip and secure it, then thread the next strip through before securing it.
Keep going until you have a chain long enough for your mantel, doorway, party table or bedroom.
Make it more Halloween-y: Draw tiny faces on some of the links before assembling them.
7. Halloween Cupcake-Liner Garland
You’ll need: Halloween-colored cupcake liners, string or twine, scissors, and tape or glue.
Flatten the cupcake liners and fold them into simple shapes—fans, flowers, pumpkins, or little circles. Stack or overlap several together and secure them to a string.
This is a fantastic “I bought these cupcake liners three years ago and apparently never used them” project.
8. Halloween Party Hats
You’ll need: cardstock, scissors, tape or glue, ribbon or elastic, and decorations.
Roll cardstock into a cone and secure it. Trim the bottom edge if needed, then decorate with paper shapes, markers, stickers, ribbon or scraps.
Make witch hats, monster hats, pumpkin hats, or completely ridiculous Halloween crowns.
These are great for birthday parties, classroom celebrations or family Halloween photos.
🎃 Halloween Crafts for Kids
9. Pumpkin Seed Art
You’ll need: clean, dry pumpkin seeds, cardstock, glue, and markers or paint.
Draw a simple Halloween picture—a pumpkin, ghost, bat, monster or spider. Cover portions of the drawing with glue and arrange pumpkin seeds to create texture.
You can leave the seeds natural or paint them first.
Bonus: This is a great project to do after carving actual pumpkins because you’re using something you’d otherwise throw away.
10. Monster Pencil Toppers
You’ll need: cardstock or construction paper, scissors, glue, markers and pencils.
Cut tiny monster faces from cardstock. Make a small slit or folded tab at the bottom so the face can sit on top of a pencil.
Add crazy eyes, teeth, horns, hair or whatever your monster requires.
These make inexpensive Halloween party favors or classroom treats.
11. Ghost Paper Lanterns
You’ll need: white paper, scissors, tape or glue, markers and battery-operated lights if you want them to glow.
Create a simple paper lantern shape by folding a sheet of white paper and cutting evenly spaced slits without cutting all the way through. Form it into a cylinder and secure the edges.
Add a ghost face.
If you’re adding a light, use battery-operated lights only.
Make several and group them together for a little glowing ghost display.
12. Pumpkin Bowling
You’ll need: empty plastic bottles, orange paint or paper, black markers, and a small soft ball.
Decorate the bottles like pumpkins, monsters or ghosts. Set them up like bowling pins and let the kids knock them down.
This one doubles as Halloween décor and an activity, which means you’re getting more than one use out of the craft.
13. Halloween Paper Fans
You’ll need: colored paper, scissors, glue or tape, and string.
Fold paper accordion-style, secure the center, and fan it open.
Make black fans with orange centers, pumpkin faces, ghosts, monsters, or whatever your Halloween brain comes up with.
Hang several together for a simple party backdrop.
14. Spiderweb Table Placemats
You’ll need: black paper or inexpensive black poster board, white pencil or chalk marker, scissors, and optional laminating sheets.
Draw a giant spiderweb across the paper.
That’s basically it.
Cut the edges into a fun shape if you want, or leave the paper rectangular and use it as a spooky placemat underneath Halloween snacks.
For something reusable, laminate it after decorating.
🍬 Halloween Crafts for Parties & Treats
15. Witch Broom Treat Sticks
You’ll need: pretzel rods, shredded paper or thin strips of tissue paper, and ribbon or twine.
Bundle the shredded paper around one end of a pretzel rod and tie it securely with ribbon.
Now you have a tiny edible witch broom.
Make a bunch for party favors, snack tables or classroom treats.
Planning a Halloween party? Our Halloween Party Planner can help you take care of the rest—from food and activities to decorations and party prep.
16. Ghost Lollipop Covers
You’ll need: individually wrapped lollipops, white tissue paper, ribbon or twine, and a marker.
Place a square of white tissue paper over the top of a lollipop and gather it underneath the candy. Tie it with ribbon and add a ghost face.
That’s it.
You’ve just turned a regular lollipop into a tiny Halloween ghost.
17. Pumpkin Napkin Rings
You’ll need: cardstock or craft foam, scissors, glue and napkins.
Cut small pumpkin shapes from cardstock or foam. Add a slit or attach a simple paper ring behind each pumpkin so it can wrap around a rolled napkin.
Make each pumpkin a different expression and you’ve got a cheap Halloween table setting that looks much more intentional than simply throwing napkins into a basket.
18. Spider Ring Napkin Holders
You’ll need: black cardstock, scissors, glue and paper towel or toilet paper tubes.
Cut thin rings from the cardboard tube. Cover or color them black.
Cut eight tiny spider legs from cardstock and attach them around the ring. Add eyes.
Slide the finished spider ring around a rolled napkin.
No fancy table décor required.
19. Halloween Confetti
You’ll need: paper scraps, scissors or basic paper punches.
Turn leftover scraps into tiny Halloween shapes.
Cut out:
- Bats
- Pumpkins
- Ghosts
- Stars
- Leaves
- Circles
Scatter them across a party table, tuck them into cards or use them inside gift packaging.
This is one of those crafts that costs almost nothing because you’re literally using scraps.
20. Monster Gift Tags
You’ll need: cardstock scraps, scissors, markers, hole punch and ribbon or twine.
Cut cardstock into rectangles, circles, tags or whatever shape you like. Add monster faces and punch a hole at the top.
Write:
BOO!
For You!
You’ve Been Boo’d!
Something Spooky Inside!
Tie them onto treat bags, gifts, Boo baskets or Halloween party favors.
🕷️ Five More Easy Halloween Crafts to Try
Now let’s get into a few ideas that show how much you can do with inexpensive materials.
21. Glowing Ghost Jars
Recycled jars, a little paint or tissue, and battery-operated tea lights can become adorable glowing ghosts.
The trick: keep the materials simple and let the light do most of the work.
Want the full project? You’ll find it in COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY.
22. Cardboard Haunted Houses
Shipping boxes and cereal boxes make surprisingly good haunted-house building materials.
Cut doors and windows, add roofs and spooky details, then create a whole little haunted neighborhood.
Want the full step-by-step project? You’ll find it in COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY.
23. No-Carve Scrap-Fabric Pumpkins
Instead of carving pumpkins, wrap inexpensive pumpkins in scrap fabric.
Plaid, flannel, burlap, old clothing and fabric remnants can all give pumpkins a completely different personality.
Want the complete instructions? They’re waiting inside COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY.
24. Tin-Can Monsters
Clean empty cans can become Halloween monsters with paint, paper and imagination.
Make Frankenstein, a mummy, a pumpkin—or invent your own creature.
Want the full project? It’s one of the 20 projects in COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY.
25. Halloween Rock Painting
Smooth rocks make tiny Halloween canvases.
Paint ghosts, pumpkins, eyeballs, bats, monsters or anything else you can fit onto a rock.
Display them around the house, leave them outside or give them away.
These are just a few of the projects inside COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY. The full book includes 20 projects covering home décor, pumpkins, creepy-cute crafts, parties, treats and Boo gifts.
26. Mini Boo Buckets
Small cups, pails or containers can become tiny Halloween gift buckets.
Fill them with candy, snacks, little toys or inexpensive surprises and give them to neighbors, friends, classmates or anyone who could use a little spooky cheer.
Want to turn your little bucket into a full Halloween surprise? Check out the Boo Basket Guide for ideas, budgets and easy ways to build a Boo gift without spending a fortune.
And if you’re ready to go full bookish Halloween, Boo-k Baskets has ideas for readers of every age.
Make a Halloween Craft From Your Junk Drawer
Yep.
I’m serious.
Grab three things you already have that were never intended to become a Halloween decoration.
Maybe:
- A cardboard box
- Some leftover ribbon
- A paper grocery bag
Now ask:
Can I make a ghost? A monster? A pumpkin? A bat? A treat holder?
Give yourself 20 minutes.
Don’t Google it.
Don’t go shopping.
Don’t worry about whether anyone on Pinterest has already done it.
Make something.
That’s actually the whole point.
🎃 You Don’t Need to Buy a Whole Craft Store
Before you head to the store, shop your house first.
Look in:
- The recycling bin
- Your kids’ craft supplies
- The junk drawer
- Your fabric stash
- The wrapping-paper leftovers
- The pantry
- The garage
- The box of random stuff you refuse to throw away
You may already have cardboard, paper, jars, cans, fabric, ribbon, yarn, containers and other perfectly useful craft materials.
And if you don’t have exactly what a project calls for?
Improvise.
A craft isn’t a failure because you substituted a cereal box for cardstock.
That’s called budget crafting.
👻 Want Six Easy Crafts to Start With?
If you’re new to Halloween crafting—or you just want six easy projects you can actually make without going down a three-hour Pinterest rabbit hole—I’ve got something for you.
SPOOKY STARTER
6 Easy Halloween Crafts to Get You Making
It’s free.
You’ll get six simple Halloween projects using inexpensive supplies and everyday/recycled materials.
No Cricut.
No fancy equipment.
No craft room required.
Just six projects and a reason to start making something spooky.
🎃 Ready for the Full 20?
If you liked the ideas here and want complete instructions for even more projects, that’s where COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY comes in.
COME MAKE SOMETHING SPOOKY
20 Easy, Affordable Halloween Crafts for Homes, Kids, Parties & Boo Gifts
Inside the full craft book you’ll find:
👻 Spooky home décor
🎃 Pumpkin projects
🕷️ Creepy-cute crafts
🍬 Party and treat projects
🎁 Boo gift ideas
And the whole thing was designed around the same basic rule:
You shouldn’t need a craft room, a Cricut or a ridiculous supply budget to make something fun.
More Halloween Fun at Sarandipity’s
Looking for more ways to make Halloween a little more fun?
- Halloween Party Planner — Get the party organized without losing your mind.
- Boo Basket Guide — Build a fun Halloween surprise on a budget.
- Boo-k Baskets — Halloween gift ideas for readers.
- You’ve Been Boo’d — Grab the printable kit and start spreading some Halloween cheer.
- Halloween Bookmarks — A free printable for your spooky-season reading pile.
Want the whole Boo collection?
Grab the Ultimate Halloween Boo Bundle and get the Halloween gifting goodies together instead of piecing them together one product at a time.
Make Something Spooky
Halloween crafting doesn’t have to be perfect.
It doesn’t have to be expensive.
It doesn’t have to look like it came out of a professional craft studio.
Sometimes you just need a pair of scissors, some glue, a pile of stuff you already own and the willingness to see what happens.
So raid the recycling bin.
Pull out the craft stash.
Put on some Halloween music.
And make something spooky. 👻
