We've found all the creepiest DIY crafts that monsters of all sizes will love making this Halloween…
We’re never happier than when our kids want to break out the craft kit: we confess it’s one of our fave ways to spend time with the kiddos without a whole heap of fuss! And with Halloween on the way, we’re turning our minds to some skele-fun with these spooky arts and crafts ideas for kids. Some of them would make the perfect Halloween decorations too!
Little crafting tip: Help younger kids with cutting and keep small craft pieces out of little mouths. Grown-ups should handle carving, spray paint, hot glue and heating steps.
18 Halloween arts and crafts for kids
1. Paper plate creations
Best for: Spooky paper plate decorations
What better way to decorate for spooky treats than with these un-boo-lievably fun Halloween-themed paper plate creations?! Don’t forget to use Google Translate so you don’t go batty deciphering the Spanish instructions! Once done, you’ll have these cute Halloween decorations up in no time!
2. Mummy mason jars
Best for: A Halloween decoration project with grown-up help
Let’s get the party startled, folks, with these oh-so-cute mummy mason jars by It All Started With Paint! They’re using mason jars, but we reckon clean jars or cans with no sharp edges could work too. The tutorial uses spray paint and rubber bands, so leave the spraying to a grown-up and allow plenty of drying time.
3. Paper pumpkin jack-o’-lantern
Best for: No-carve Halloween lanterns
Let’s face it, Halloween pumpkins here in Singapore can be eye-wateringly expensive! So we’re loving this paper jack-o’-lantern alternative. Add battery-operated LED tealights for extra Halloween pizzazz! The perfect Halloween decoration!
4. Paper bag monsters
Best for: Puppet play with toddlers and preschoolers
Gather your wee ghoul-friends and make these cute paper monster puppets. It’s the perfect Halloween craft for toddlers with a little grown-up help — easy-peasy clean-up and super kooky too! A good use for clean takeaway bags too, we say! For little ones, draw on the eyes instead of using small googly eyes.
5. Pineapple jack-o’-lantern
Best for: A tropical Halloween decoration carved by a grown-up
Celebrate Halloween with the kids Singapore-style by throwing a relaxed party (complete with fun spooky snacks) with a tropical twist. Cue the perfect fruity Halloween decoration: the pineapple jack-o’-lantern! Let the kids design the face while a grown-up does the carving.
Method:
- Have a grown-up cut off the top of the pineapple and trim the base if needed so it stands securely. Using a small paring knife and a spoon, carefully remove the flesh, leaving approximately 2cm of flesh inside the skin. Save the edible flesh for a snack.
- On paper, draw shapes for your jack-o’-lantern’s eyes and mouth — let your imagination guide you! Cut the shapes out, then use them to mark the design on the pineapple. Have a grown-up carefully carve out the shapes.
- Place a battery-operated LED tealight inside the pineapple and enjoy the fruits (groan) of your labour! Sit it on a plate to catch any juice and display it shortly before your party.
6. DIY easy spooky hats
Best for: Simple paper hats for Halloween dress-up
Pumpkins make a great failsafe option for younger kids, so why not get busy crafting a classic pumpkin hat? A printable pumpkin headband keeps things simple — perfect for time-crunched mums. You can also give your little captain of the sea a hat to complete the Halloween pirate look! Simply print out a pirate hat template, follow the instructions and let the kids score their own creative treasure by colouring the skull and crossbones. An easy-peasy Halloween craft for kids!
Pumpkin hat:
Pirate hat:
7. Easy-peasy Halloween outfit
Best for: Last-minute DIY Halloween costumes
A DIY spider headband makes for an easy, adorable DIY Halloween costume. Add a black or orange top and bottoms and your child’s costume is complete with zero drama. Hurrah! Fancy going green? Turn ’em into Frankenstein’s monster! Use a printable template to create your own monster crown.
Spider headband:
Monster headband:
8. A classic witch’s costume
Best for: A homemade Halloween costume with grown-up help
If the kids love Halloween arts and crafts, why not try a DIY costume too? One of the easiest Halloween looks to nail at home? A witch’s costume, of course!
Method:
- Gather the supplies for your chosen hat tutorial, plus a black shirt, tulle, elastic and black shoes.
- First, create a witchy hat. The PBS tutorial uses a party hat, cardboard, black paint and hot glue, so a grown-up should handle the glue gun. Don’t forget to jazz it up with decorations — try orange polka dots or zigzags for a spooky Halloween hat!
- Next, put together this simple no-sew tulle witch’s tutu. Try mixing black and orange tulle to make it extra Halloween-y!
- When it’s finally time, dress your little witch up in a black shirt, the witch’s tutu, black shoes and, last but not least, that super scary witchy hat!
Top tip: Halloween experts should add a witchy broom and striped stockings for added fear factor!
Witch’s hat:
Witch’s tutu:
9. Halloween handprint keepsake
Best for: A personalised Halloween keepsake
Kids grow up so fast, don’t they? Here’s a fun activity that you can do AND preserve a childhood memory! Follow the instructions and you’ll have something that you can hang up during Halloween. The tutorial uses air-dry clay, so allow time for it to dry before painting. Idea: Adapt this for the other holiday seasons or just do it as a standard keepsake.
10. Clay Halloween pins
Best for: Handmade accessories and gifts
Here’s another Halloween craft that’s just super adorable! The kids can wear these on their school bags or clothes, or turn them into hair clips. Handmade Charlotte has the tutorial if you’re keen to do these with your younglings. It uses oven-bake clay and hot glue, so grown-ups will need to handle the baking and gluing. Psst, we reckon these can also be good as gifts!
11. Rainbow paper tube bats
Best for: Colourful decorations and trick-or-treat favours
Halloween doesn’t have to be orange, black and/or white. How about adding more colour to the season? Grab some paper in your favourite colours, paper tubes and googly eyes, and create your own paper tube bats. These are good for decorations and can double up as trick-or-treat favours too — simply pop wrapped treats inside!
12. Halloween watercolour drawings with sugar
Best for: A Halloween art activity with a twist
Who would’ve thought that sugar could be used for art too? We certainly didn’t! We followed these instructions and colour us impressed! The kiddos will have a fun time discovering the hidden images in this Halloween craft for kids.
13. Puffy ghosts
Best for: Halloween crafts for toddlers and preschoolers
This cute craft is simple enough that little tykes can get involved with adult help. Download and print the template and get to work with scissors, glue and cotton balls. Tip: cut out a smile when making the face so that it’s a friendly ghost! If you want, tape some yarn or string on the back so that you can hang it around the house, out of little ones’ reach.
14. Spider pencils
Best for: Spooky stationery for school-age kids
Here’s another Halloween craft that’s perfect for school-age kids! Follow these very easy instructions to make some spooky spider pencils. Use your imagination by mixing and matching the pipe cleaners in various colours, using googly eyes of different sizes and even varying the leg lengths.
15. Pumpkin suncatcher
Best for: Colourful Halloween window decorations
Spruce up your windows with this colourful Halloween craft. You’ll need crayons, wax paper and coloured cardstock, plus a sharpener, glue and a hairdryer. Check out the detailed instructions on how to create these suncatchers, with a grown-up helping to shave and melt the crayons. Let everything cool before handling, and display them away from direct sunlight and hot windows so the wax doesn’t melt again. You can also do up other designs if you feel like it.
16. Bat bottle cap magnets
Best for: Upcycled fridge decorations
Here at HoneyKids, we’re all about upcycling and recycling — and this idea is one that we’ve enjoyed doing the most! Plus, the final product can be used on the fridge as both Halloween decorations and to put stuff up the rest of the year. Ingenious! This one’s best for older kids with adult supervision: use clean caps with no sharp edges, secure the magnets firmly and keep them away from younger children.
17. Paper plate ghost craft
Best for: Easy hanging Halloween decorations
Another ghostly Halloween craft idea! Turn an ordinary paper plate into an adorable ghost with the kids. This plate ghost makes a cute decoration and is super easy to make with a little help cutting. Check out the deets on how to do it — without too many materials involved!
18. Halloween black cat wreath
Best for: A spooky front door decoration
How about kicking off the spooky festivities with a “frightful” wreath? Who says wreaths are just for Christmas? Kids Craft Room has a purr-fectly spooky cat wreath that’s sure to meow-gically transform your front door. This Halloween craft will have the little ghouls and goblins howling with delight (or maybe fright!) when they come knocking for tricks and treats.
Love this list of Halloween arts and crafts for kids? Check out our fave craft stores in Singapore!
