Cheesecloth Ghost without Starch

I love the cute cheesecloth ghosts that everyone makes, but most of the tutorials I read required using starch to give the ghosts their shape. I didn't have starch on hand, so I was thrilled when I found a different technique that uses corn starch (which is still probably technically starch, but not the stinky spray kind)!

I found the idea at Love and Laundry...and I'm so glad I did. My kids had a blast making these ghosts.

Toddler Fun: Cotton-Ball Ghost

My daughter has been running around saying something to the effect of aw-oooo, but it took me forever to figure out that she was making a ghost sound! Now that Halloween's almost here, we've started crafting in full-swing and she adored making this cotton-ball ghost recently!

Just cut out a ghost from paper or card-stock and put some glue on it (or if you're feeling brave, let them spread the glue). Let your toddler place the cotton ball's to their heart's content.

Once the cotton balls have dried in place, you can cut out some black eyes and have them glue those on too!

My daughter loves carrying her ghost around with her and is SO PROUD of it! I hope your little one loves it too.

Happy Halloween!
PS Thanks Thriving Home for the fun idea.

Footprint Ghost Sign

This time with my baby girl is going by WAY TOO FAST! I'm trying to just enjoy every stage but they pass all too soon. I wanted a way to preserve this time with her (and, of course, my boys) so I made this footprint ghost sign that I can pull out every Halloween...

I just sanded a random piece of wood we had in our house. Then I painted it black. I covered each of my children's feet with white paint and put their footprints on the board. Then I took some more white paint and filled in where their arches were and touched up any other spots. After the white paint was dry, I painted on ghost faces and added "Boo!" and "2014" in orange. To preserve it, I will spray it with a paint sealer.

All-in-all a simple project that took me one afternoon to complete, but it's something I will enjoy for years to come!

I’ll be linking up to Works for Me Wednesday, Mom’s Library, Clever Chicks Blog Hop, Share It Saturday, The Mommy Club, Fine Craft Guild,  Whatever Goes Wednesday.

Frugal Holloween Décor: Ghost Garland

After my 5 year old saw the bats on our front door, he declared that we had to have ghosts as well. Thankfully, I was reminded of last year’s ghost garland and was able to quickly cut out some friendly little ghosts while he was gone…
His face lit up as soon as he saw the ghosts hanging in our front windows and I knew that was 20 minutes well spent!
So…if you need some quick decorations for a party or just to get in the Halloween spirit, head over to Fine Craft Guild :)

Trick-or-Treat Bag

The Halloween festivities are in full swing and if you’re like me, you may be tired of just giving your kids a plastic shopping bag to take trick-or-treating. All you need to make your own adorable trick-or-treating bags is some felt and a sewing machine…
I cut some black felt double the size I wanted for the bag, and cut some strips of black felt for the handles (double the width desired). The ghost and pumpkin were free-handed, though you could easily search for templates online, and machine stitched on.
Put right sides of the bag together and sew along the sides and bottom of the bag. Take your strips and fold in half lengthwise. Sew along the edge of your handles.
Fold the top edge of the bag inside the bag and pin in place. Pin the handles to the inside of the bag and sew around the entire top of the bag.
Now your kids can trick-or-treat in style and they have a unique bag that won’t be mistaken for the bunches of other plastic bags at Halloween functions!

Ghost Garland

Feeling like your home just isn’t quite up to Halloween snuff? Refuse to spend more money on decorations? Liven up your home and get in the Halloween spirit with these simple ghost garlands:

Go to Fine Craft Guild for their cute ghost template and directions on how to make one of your own.

Footprint Ghost

I honestly cannot figure out where I first saw this adorable idea, but loved it so much, I think we have a new Halloween tradition…footprint ghosts! What a fun way to record your child’s foot size each year, or make super cute cards to mail to grandparents.
Just cover your child’s foot in white paint and press it down on black construction paper. My boys loved this and kept begging me to paint their feet more :).
After the paint is dry, use black paint or a marker to draw eyes and a mouth. You can hang this up or cut it out to make a card. Like I said, adorable, right?!
I’ll be linking up to Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays, Anything Related, Works For Me Wednesday, Penny Pinching Party, Hoo’s Got Talent, Kids Get Crafty, What Are Little Boys Made Of? ,and Preschool Corner Friday.

Paper Mache Ghost

I have been seeing these adorable cheesecloth ghosts all over bloggy land and was dying to try it, but since we didn't have cheesecloth, I thought I would give paper mache a try!
This is cheap, easy, messy and fun for your kids, especially if they actually want to help :). I had fun at least...