DIY Halloween Decor: Cheesecloth Ghosts

If you haven’t guessed already, I am loving decorating with little ghosties this year! This project is another one that I have seen all over my Instagram! I must admit, I was a bit skeptical that they would work but in the end, they turned out so good! I love the simplicity of these cute little cheesecloth ghosts. They can go on the mantle, in the kitchen window, and even on my kitchen table vignette. They would also look great if you lined them up and put some lights underneath them so they glow in the evening! Continue reading to see how I made these adorable little ghosts!

DIY Halloween Decor: Cheesecloth Ghosts

Supplies:

Cheesecloth ( Mine is decorative from Michaels but you can get it from the grocery store too)
Styrofoam balls & cones of various sizes
Other size bases (I used an empty beer bottle, a small mug, and an aluminum can)
toothpicks
Mod Podge
Water
Bowl & spoon
Wax paper
Scissors
Black felt
Hot Glue & Hot Glue Gun

Steps:

Assemble your bases. Insert a toothpick into each ball and then attach the balls to your various styrofoam cones. I only had one size ball for this project and two styrofoam cones. So, I used an empty beer bottle, a small mug, and an aluminum can. I do not recommend the can, it rusted when I left it to dry and that ghost has a little rust mark on the back, from the can. For the “ball” on the aluminum can, I used some balled-up wax paper which worked great for a different size shape.
Lay down your wax paper and place your bases on top of it. This protects your surface and the cheesecloth doesn’t stick as badly.
Drape your cheesecloth over each base to make sure it fits and that you like the way it hangs. Then trim is as short or as long as you like for each one. Keep the scraps. Make sure you have enough cheesecloth so that it will kind of pool at the bottom of your ghost. This gives them a base to stand on and I think it makes them look realistic!
In your bowl add some of the Mod Podge. Then, add a little splash of water & mix. You want a milk-like consistency.
Take the cheesecloth from your first base and dip it into the Mod Podge mixture until it’s coated. Squeeze out any of the excess mixture as well as you can. You do NOT want it to be supersaturated and drippy.
Lay your wet cheesecloth over your first base and adjust it until it is hanging the way you like. I made sure to adjust the parts that were touching the wax paper to lay the way I wanted as well. For a few of the ghosts, I took some of the scraps of cheesecloth, coated them in the Mod Podge mixture, and then draped them over the bottom layer of cheesecloth. This added some extra texture and some more realism to the ghosts.
Allow your ghosts to dry for several hours or overnight is best.
Carefully remove your bases. The cheesecloth is surprisingly easy to reshape, so if you kind of deform the “head” by removing the styrofoam ball, you can reshape it with no problem.
Cut little circles from the black felt for your eyes. Attach them using the hot glue.