Easy Yarn Ghost Halloween Garland

Halloween garland is a staple Halloween decoration.  Garlands are perfect for decorating mantles, shelves, walls, kids' bedrooms, windows, mirrors or any place that needs some Halloween fun.

When it comes to Halloween decorating, I am always on the cute side rather than the scary.  So I wanted a fun garland to hang around without spending a fortune.  Yarn ghost garland came to mind using a few basic on-hand craft supplies.  This craft didn't cost me a penny so I want to share it with you. 

Get ready to add a little adorable spook to your Halloween decor with this super easy, super cute Halloween Ghost Garland craft tutorial.

QUICK AND EASY HALLOWEEN GARLAND 

Grab leftover yarn, beads, black felt and ribbon from your craft stash, a DVD and a pair of scissors...then get ready to whip up your own yarn ghost garland.

Watch our video tutorial and read on for photo step-by-step instructions on how to make this DIY Halloween garland.

Our Halloween and Fall-Themed Fabric Garland is a popular project that anyone can make, even kids.  Speaking of kids, we have a lot of FREE ideas on our  Kid's Halloween crafts page.

INSTRUCTIONS for making Halloween ghost garland

STEP 1: how to make the yarn ghost

Yarn ghosts are normally made with white yarn.  For my ghost garland, I wanted a little splash of color so I used white and orange yarn ghost.

Gather all the yarn ghost supplies listed above.  As a template for the yarn ghost, I used a DVD box.  But you can use a book or cardboard that measures approximately 5 1/2".

Place the end of the yarn at one end of the box and wrap the yarn around the box 50 times.

Once you've wrapped the yarn enough times, cut the yarn end with a scissor.

Cut a piece of yarn about 12 to 15 inches long and slip it under the yarn wrapped around the box and slide it to the end of the box. This will be the top of the ghost head and will be used to attach the ghost for hanging to the beaded string.

Tie the yarn with a surgeon's knot.  To make the surgeon knot cross the yarn over and wrap it twice, pull, wrap yarn again and pull tight.  As extra security and so it will not come loose, tie another knot. Confused? Watch our Surgeon's Knot Video Tutorial.

Gently slide the yarn from the box being careful to keep the loops together. It should look like this.

Carefully slip the scissor through the loops.  Holding the top knot (top part) pull and cut through all the bottom loops.

Next, let's create the ghost head.  Lay the bundle of yarn on a flat surface and straighten out the strands of yarn.

Cut another piece of yarn 12 to 15" piece long.  Slide the yarn under the yarn bundle about 1 1/2"  from the top knot.  Tie the piece of yarn around the bundle to create the head with a surgeon's knot and extra knot. Let the tail pieces blend in with the rest of the ghost by cutting them even with the bottom.

Now the ghost needs eyes.  From a piece of black felt cut two eyes.  The eyes can be round or oval.

Grab the glue gun and place a little dab of glue on the back of the eye and place it on the head.  Do the same with the other eye.

Note: Of course, googly eyes could be used if you have them on hand.

The yarn ghost is done.

Make as many as you need for the yarn ghost garland. If the bottom of the yarn ghosts are straggly, the bottom can be trimmed even. 

STEP 2: preparing garland string

It's bead time!  Grab your beads and decide if you'll create a pattern with the beads or just randomly string them. 

For this project, I am using an orange ribbon.  But you can use twine or cord.

Decide how long you want the beaded garland string.  This depends on where you display it and how many pony beads you have.

Before threading the ribbon or cord through the eye of a tapestry needle, make sure the needle will fit through the hole in the beads. Then, thread the needle.

Begin stringing the beads.

Continue stringing beads until the beaded garland is long enough or no beads are left.

After all the beads are stung, the beads need to be anchored. To anchor the beads, take the needle and skip the first bead and thread the needle through the hole in the second and third beads. Pull the ribbon.

Then, take the needle, skip the third bead and go through the first two and pull the ribbon. The beads are secure on the ribbon and will not move.

Then, tie a loop for hanging at the end of the ribbon with an overhand knot. 

After one end is completed, push all the beads together and use the identical process to anchor the beads and make a hanging loop on the other end. The garland beaded string is complete.

STEP 3: attach yarn ghost to beaded garland string

Use the yarn tails at the top of the ghost head to attach it to the beaded garland string with a triple knot.   

Keep adding ghosts, spacing them evenly apart. Hang them and enjoy!  I absolutely love these spooky friends.

Pretty simple, right?

This no-sew yarn and bead Halloween craft idea is a great one for everyone in the house. It’s Kid Friendly (with supervision) too!