Need some last-minute Halloween decorations for your dorm or apartment? Mackenzie has some super-quick and easy DIY projects that will help you make your living space look super festive at a small cost! Check out the videos below. And while you're getting in the Halloween spirit, you can give yourself a good scare with our Campus Ghost Stories: Beware of These School Spirits! article while your glue is drying.
Scary mason jars
What you’ll need
- 3 mason jars
- Orange, black, and white ribbon
- Black, white, red, and orange paint
- Two paint brushes (one small brush for designs and a larger brush to paint the jar)
What to do
- Start by painting each jar: one orange, one white, and one black. You may need to put on more than one coat of paint.
- Once the paint has dried, it’s time to put faces on; draw a jack-o-lantern face on the orange one, ghost eyes and a mouth on the white one, and a vampire face (don’t forget the fangs) on the black one. Feel free to make the designs your own!
- Wrap the ribbon around the mouth of each jar, wrapping it twice around before tying a bow.
Related: How to Have the Best Halloween as a College Student
Bat wall
What you’ll need
- Bat template with a minimum of two different-sized bats (you can find these easily online!)
- Sheets of black construction paper
- Scissors
- Tape
- Pencil
What to do
- First, cut out the bat templates and put them on the construction paper.
- Trace the templates onto the construction paper, then cut them out.
- Use the bats you just cut out as your new templates and trace them onto another piece of construction paper. Try to fit as many as possible onto the paper.
- Stack a few pieces of construction paper so you can cut out multiple bats at one time, then cut them out.
- Bend the middle of the bats a little so it looks like they’re midflight, attach a rolled piece of tape (or dorm-approved sticky adhesive), and stick each bat to the wall. Do this on an angle so it looks like they’re flying up the wall.
- Repeat until you’re out of bats!
Flying ghosts
What you’ll need
- 3 styrofoam balls (6-inch, 4-inch, 2-inch)
- Three sheets of cheesecloth
- Three eye screws
- Black paint
- Paintbrush
- String
- Command strip (or something else to hang them off of)
What to do
- Paint a pair of eyes on each ball; you may need a couple of coats of paint.
- Once the paint has dried, put the cheesecloth over each styrofoam ball. Make sure it covers the whole thing pretty evenly.
- To make sure it stays in place, put an eye screw on top through the cheesecloth so it keeps the cheesecloth attached and makes it easy for you to hang the ghost up.
- Cut some of the string and loop it through the eye screw.
- Hang your ghosts off something on the wall (like a Command hook or thumbtack). You can make the strings longer or shorter so they’re hanging at different levels.
Related: How to Throw an Awesome Halloween Party on a College Budget
Glow-in-the-dark eyes
What you’ll need
- Empty paper towel rolls or empty toilet paper rolls
- Glow sticks
- Pencil
- Tape
- Scissors
- Any color paint (optional)
What to do
- If you’re using paper towel rolls, make sure to cut the roll in half.
- Draw a pair of eyes on each roll, and try to make them all different designs.
- Cut the eyes you just drew out.
- If you want the eyes to look fancier, you can paint the rolls any color you want.
- When the paint dries, tape a glowstick to the inside of each roll. Be sure to snap the glowsticks before you put them in.
- Tape the rolls to the wall using a piece of tape or adhesive.
Mummy door
What you’ll need
- 2 pieces of black construction paper
- 2 pieces of yellow construction paper
- White streamers
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Tape
What to do
- Draw a crescent on one piece of yellow construction paper. Put the other piece underneath it and cut them both at the same time.
- Tape the crescents onto the black construction paper, with one crescent per piece of paper.
- Tape the two black pieces of construction paper together.
- Tape the eyes to your door.
- Once the eyes are up, take pieces of the white streamers and start taping them randomly so it looks like your door is wrapped up like a mummy.
Related: Creative and Cheap Halloween Costume Ideas You Can Pull Off Last Minute
We hope you have a fun, creative, and spooky Halloween season! College is a great time to explore ways to express yourself year-round, but it's especially fun getting into the holiday spirit with your friends on campus. Stay safe and spooky this fall, friends!
Let us know how your crafts turn out! If you complete any of these projects, send us a picture on social media by tagging us @CollegeXpress. Happy Halloween!
