DIY Patterned Clay Ghost Garland For Halloween

Boo!

Did I scare you?

Well, I hope not.


I mean it is that time of year for all things spooky, but that's not my jam.

Halloween has never been my favorite.

I'm much more of a Christmas carol kind of girl than a Monster Mash fan.

However.

If an interesting craft opportunity comes along and it just happens to involve a little chill, I'm in.

Especially if I can put a cottage stye or cutesy spin on it.

For example, I've made:

• A Wooden Ghost Sign (and he's very friendly)
• Air Dry Clay Ghost Lanterns (not spooky at all)
• Thrifted Glass Globe Ghosts (my favorites...but don't tell the others)
• Upcycled Ceiling Fan Ghost(trash to decorative treasure)
• And...Painted Paper Garland Ghosts (adorable)

Not to mention, my latest Halloween decoration, a thrift flip, Dollar Tree combo with skeletons and spiders.

Today's craft was also inspired by a thrifted item, a ghost cookie cutter I found in an adorable local shop.


It was $3 and worth every penny. My husband saw it and said, You should get this and make cookies.

Sweet guy, but he should know by now that I'm a crafts over cookie girl. So while he saw treats, I saw a ghostly clay garland.

I'm a huge fan of creative holiday banners and I hadn't made one in a while. 

Plus, I'd had a package of air dry clay in my stash just waiting for the right DIY, so I grabbed it, called my daughter come over and play with me...and collected all of my supplies.

How To Make Clay Ghosts

Supplies:

• Air Dry Clay
• Parchment or Wax Paper
• Ghost Cookie Cutter - this one is darling
• Rolling Pin - this one is for clay
• Spatula
• Straw
• Plastic Knife
• Textured Items For Patterns - you can also use patterned rollers or fondant mats
• Black Twine, Yarn or String

Step by Step:

We began by placing a piece of parchment paper on the table, putting the clay on it and then cutting it into 1" strips.


Then we rolled the strips into round balls.

Placed them on the parchment paper and rolled them out until they were about 1/4 of an inch thick.

Then we pushed the ghost cookie cutter into the clay.


When we were sure we had a nice clean shape, we lifted the cutter away and smoothed out any rough edges with our fingers.

Adding Patterns To The Clay

Then it was time for a little bit of fun. Adding patterns and some old world cottage charm to our plain ghosts!

Keep in mind you can use this idea for clay Christmas ornaments or any festive occasion.

First up, we rolled a thrift store, milk glass votive holder over the top of a ghost to create a woven pattern.


Next, we placed a fabric doily on top of another.

Then we used the rolling pin to gently press the doily into the clay.

You can see it that it was almost embedded in it.

We carefully lifted it out to reveal a delicate lace patterned ghost. I have to say, this one was lovely.


Finally, we pushed a Dollar Tree plastic serving tray onto one as well. 

You can use anything you think will leave an interesting mark in the clay or nothing at all.

We did a mix of both to make the garland a little more varied and interesting.


I will say this, nothing we used stuck to the clay, but if you are worried about that you can use a light spray of cooking oil to make sure your items will release easily.

Lastly, we used a straw to poke a hole in each ghost head so we'd be able to lace them up when dry.

Now, that drying process did take longer than I expected. It was about 2 full days...and I honestly, I suspect it takes even longer to fully cure.

In the meantime, I used an old spatula to transfer them onto a parchment covered piece of cardboard and set them aside.


As they dried, they turned color, from the gray we started with, to a crisp white. If they hadn't, I could've painted them, like I did with my gingerbread boy clay ornaments.

The final step was simple, I just strung them up with some black ribbon and hung them up on my plate rack.

To decorate my kitchen.

Joining some of the other ghosts, already perched there.

Adding some holiday flair to my cottage.