Creepy-Cool DIYs to Haunt Your House

YOU’LL NEED

12 x 14-inch shipping box

Craft knife

Thirty 3-oz. paper cups

Hot glue

Candy and/or treats

20 x 30-inch piece of black foam core

Double-stick tape

Yellow tissue or vellum paperSurprise-a-Day Calendar template

WHAT TO DO

1. Cut out one broad side of the box, leaving the side edges intact. Trim edges to 2¼ inches high all around.

2. Hot-glue the cups in 6 five-cup rows inside the box. Punch a hole through the back of the box (you’ll use it to hang the house later). Fill cups with treats.

3. Trace the house template (download it here) onto foam core; cut out.

4. Outline the back of each window with double-stick tape. Spread the paper flat onto a clean surface, then press the house onto it, tape-side down. Flip it over; press to secure, and trim excess. Gently draw bat silhouettes on the top windows.

5. With the house faceup, write numbers 1 to 30 on the windows.

6. Dot hot glue onto the corners of the box; fit the house on top so the windows align with the cups. Add glue along the seams.

Passersby will be dying for a closer look...

YOU’LL NEED

Drop cloth

Acrylic spray paint

Plastic toys

Gift wrap

Thumbtacks

Heavy-duty scissors

Plastic hardware cloth (find it in the gardening department)

Parchment paper

E6000 glue

20-lb. fishing line

WHAT TO DO 

1. On a protected surface, spray the tops of the toys with two to three light coats of paint, letting dry in between. (Don’t paint the undersides.)

2. While they’re drying, use old gift wrap to make the swarm template: Tack it to your door, and draw on your desired shape (it can be any size); remove and cut out. Use this template to cut the hardware cloth.

3. Cover your work surface with parchment paper, then place the hardware cloth on top.

4. Have the kids arrange the toys on the cloth, largest ones first. Glue them down; let dry overnight.

5. To hang, loop 8 to 10 lengths of fishing line through the top of the cloth, spaced about 3 inches apart (depending on size). Use thumbtacks to secure the loops to the door.

These are sssssssso easy the kids will want to snake-ify every room.

YOU’LL NEED

12 x 12-inch scrapbook paper

Pointy object like a blunt pencil or ballpoint pen

Adhesive jewels

Removable mounting adhesive

WHAT TO DO

1. Place the paper facedown on a padded surface (like a folded newspaper).

2. Use the pointy object to press a long, curvy line into the paper from one end to the other.

3. Cut out the snake, leaving about ½ inch on either side of the line; taper one end for the tail and cut a wide triangle on the other for the head.

4. Flip the paper over and pinch along the scored line; the snake will start to curve.

5. Add adhesive red jewels for eyes.

6. Attach snakes to the wall with removable adhesive. 

YOU’LL NEED

Two 1-liter soda bottles

Craft knife

Clear packing tape

Cheesecloth

Cotton string

Plastic spiders

Battery-operated tea lights

WHAT TO DO

1. Cut the spout off each bottle and make the hole 1¾ inches wide (an adult’s job). Cut them in half and discard bottoms.

2. Cut a vertical slit into the side of one bottle, then slip it onto the other; tape the globe together.

3. Cut the cheesecloth into a 20-inch circle. Place the globe in the center, then pull the edges up and over, tucking them into the opening.

4. Wrap the globe with string, and attach spiders.

5. Pop in the light.

Suspend these over the dining table, in your kids’ rooms—anywhere in need of a little flutter overhead.

YOU’LL NEED

Three 14-inch wood embroidery hoops

Black acrylic paint

Heavy-duty black thread

Black cardstock

Double-sided tacky tape (we used Aleene’s)

Removable adhesive hooks (optional)Bat Mobiles template

WHAT TO DO

1. Set aside the outer rings of the hoops. Paint the inner rings black; let dry.

2. Interlock the rings into a globe; secure with thread.

3. Following our template, cut out six pairs of 3½-inch single bat wings and 14 pairs of 3-inch single wings from cardstock.

4. To make one complete bat: Add tape to the straight edges of a pair of wings. Stick one to the outside of a hoop and the other to the inside. Place 3 to 4 bats on each spoke.

5. Hang from a light fixture or suspend from the ceiling with thread and hooks.

Don't forget the bathroom! Draw squiggly octopus arms on the back of black contact paper; cut them out. Punch holes along one side, then peel off the backing and stick to the clean, dry tank.