31 Ghost Crafts for Kids That Cost Nothing to Start

Ghost crafts are one of those rare Halloween projects where the simplest version is also the prettiest. A scrap of tissue paper, a lollipop stick, a dab of black marker and you have something genuinely charming.

The 31 crafts here range from five-minute table fillers to weekend pieces worth keeping year after year, and they all share the same softly romantic palette: dusty pinks, warm creams, a little glitter if the mood strikes.

If you are planning a Halloween party for kids and want the decorations to look considered rather than cobbled together, this is the list.

You will also find a few crafts that suit younger children with no scissors in sight, which pairs nicely with our round-up of 16 Halloween Crafts for Toddlers With Nothing Small Enough to Swallow.

Most of these need nothing beyond a craft shop run or a rummage through the recycling bin. Where a specific material genuinely matters, the instructions say so and give you the size.

Every method is written so that a reader who has never made the thing before can follow it to the same result.

Active times are honest, drying times are included, and the one place people usually get it wrong is named in the step where it happens.

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Tissue Paper Ghost Wand

These are the crafts that actually get used at a party: a ghost on a stick that doubles as a wand, a game prop and a favour to take home.

Use blush, mauve and peach tissue paper rather than white and they photograph beautifully against any background. Finished, each ghost looks like a soft fabric doll about 12 cm tall on a 30 cm bamboo skewer.

Store them upright in a jar or lay flat in a box without stacking anything on top.

Painted Wood Slice Ghost

A wood slice from the craft shop becomes a year-round-worthy Halloween piece when you paint it in matte dusty rose and add a chalky white ghost in the centre.

This sits on a shelf, leans against a stack of old books or hangs from a door with a loop of twine. Finished, it looks like something from a boutique Halloween shop, not a craft afternoon.

It keeps flat in a box wrapped in tissue between seasons.

Lace Doily Ghost Frame

A vintage-look lace doily pinned over a dark oval frame becomes a ghost with almost no effort at all. The lace naturally drapes and gathers to suggest a figure, and the oval eye holes you cut are the only real craft step.

This piece suits a mantelpiece or a gallery wall and looks expensive in the way that thrifted things often do. Roll the doily loosely in tissue to store it and keep the frame separate.

Ghost Balloon With Ribbon Tail

A white balloon, a black marker and a handful of curling ribbon turns any corner of a party room into a ghost cluster in under five minutes. Hang three at different heights for the best effect.

The ribbon tails flutter in the slightest breeze, which makes them feel alive. Balloons are single-use, so nothing to store: let them down at the end of the party or send them home with a child.

Ghost Thumb-Print Card

A Halloween card that a child makes entirely themselves, using nothing but a stamp pad and a marker. The ghost is a white thumb-print that dries in seconds, given two dots for eyes and a wobbly hem drawn below it.

Make a stack of ten in a craft session and they become place cards, treat bag tags or gift toppers. Store flat; the ink is permanent once dry.

Ghost Peg Garland

Twelve wooden dolly pegs become twelve ghosts in about 40 minutes, and they string into a garland that works above a fireplace, along a staircase or as a backdrop for a party table.

Paint the peg heads white, add two black dot eyes and tie a small square of cheesecloth or muslin around the neck. The natural wood grain showing through the white paint gives these a slightly vintage, handmade charm.

Store them in a zip-lock bag between seasons.

Ghost Rock Paperweight

A smooth, palm-sized river rock painted white with a ghost face holds down table napkins, marks a child’s place at the party table or lines a window sill in a row.

These are the decorations that children fight over at the end of the night, so make one per guest. Rocks last indefinitely and store in a bowl or basket between uses.

Ghost Coffee Filter Mobile

Coffee filters are already the right shape for a ghost: wide at the top, narrowed in the middle and fringed at the hem.

Dye them in diluted pink and mauve food colouring, add black marker faces and hang them from a twig on a length of twine for a mobile that catches the lightest air current.

This is one of the more meditative crafts in the list: the dyeing is quiet, the drying is slow, and the result is softer and more beautiful than the effort suggests. Lay flat to store; the colour is set once dry.

Ghost Window Cling

Mix PVA glue with a tiny amount of white acrylic, pour it into a ghost shape on a silicone mat and peel it off two days later for a window cling that works on any glass surface.

These clings are translucent and glow beautifully in daylight. Make several different sizes and arrange them as a cluster on a window. They peel off cleanly, reapply repeatedly and store flat on baking parchment.

Ghost Treat Cone

A square of white card rolled into a cone, filled with sweets and sealed with a sticker or a dab of tape, becomes a ghost when you add a fringe-cut hem and a marker face.

Stack a dozen in a small basket at the party entrance and let children pick their own. The fringing at the bottom flutters as they carry it, which is half the charm.

These take about two minutes each once you have the first one as a template.

Ghost Felt Pouch

A small felt pouch shaped like a ghost holds a party favour, a handful of sweets or a tiny toy.

Two layers of cream or white felt, stitched together around the edge with pink embroidery floss, and a pair of black felt eyes stitched on the front. No fastenings needed: the top of the ghost shape is open and the contents sit inside the head.

These are washable, reusable and look lovely arranged in a row along a table runner.

Ghost Paper Bag Luminaria

A white paper lunch bag, a ghost face punched or cut out of the front, and a battery tea light inside: that is the whole project. Line five or six along a path, a windowsill or a staircase and they glow warmly all evening.

The punched eye-and-mouth holes create a dotted halo of light on the wall behind them. Use sand or rice inside the bag to weigh it down. Store flat by folding the unused bags; they last several seasons if kept dry.

Ghost Sock Doll

A white ankle sock stuffed with polyester filling becomes a ghost doll in about 15 minutes.

Tie off the neck with ribbon, add button eyes and a small embroidered mouth and you have something that looks genuinely handmade in the best sense: softly lumpy, tactile and sweet. Children carry these around all evening. Store in a cotton drawstring bag between parties.

Ghost Footprint Canvas

A toddler’s footprint in white paint on a dark canvas becomes a ghost when you add a face above the toes. The heel is the ghost’s head; the toes are its flowing hem.

These are the crafts that parents actually frame, which means making one as a keepsake while making extras as party decorations. Canvas squares store flat and last decades.

Ghost Macrame Wall Hanging

A simple ghost shape in natural cotton rope on a wooden dowel.

This is not a beginner macrame project, but it is a beginner-friendly one: the knots are just two alternating square knots and a few gathered fringe sections, and the result looks complex enough that people assume it took much longer than it did.

Finished size is roughly 20 cm wide and 35 cm tall, suitable for a bedroom wall or a party backdrop. It hangs year after year.

Ghost Egg Carton Figure

One cup from a cardboard egg carton is exactly the right size and shape for a small ghost figure with a domed head and a flared skirt.

Paint them white, add faces and arrange a crowd of twelve on a windowsill for an effect that looks intentional and theatrical.

These cost nothing to make if you have been saving cartons, which pairs neatly with the spirit of 15 Egg Carton Crafts for Kids Made From Something You Were Throwing Away. They store flat in the original carton.

Ghost Terracotta Pot

A small terracotta pot turned upside down looks remarkably like a ghost already: a rounded dome body with a flared base that becomes a hem when inverted.

Paint it chalky white, add a face, tuck a battery tea light inside the drainage hole and it glows from within on a mantelpiece or an outdoor step. These are one of those decorations where the effect far outpaces the effort.

Store stacked right-way up without the tea light.

Ghost Origami

A single square of white paper folded into a ghost that stands on its own: this is a clean, elegant table decoration that costs nothing and takes four minutes per ghost once a child knows the fold sequence.

Line them along a windowsill or tuck one into each place setting. They can be made from any paper that holds a crease, including pages from an old paperback if you want a more vintage look.

Ghost Watercolour Print

Watercolour on wet paper bleeds in exactly the right way to make a soft, glowing ghost shape. Drop pale pink and cream watercolour onto a wet page, let it bloom, then add black dot eyes once it dries.

Frame the print or use it as a card insert. This is one of the most pleasing crafts on this list and one of the least predictable, which makes it genuinely exciting for older children. Each print is completely unique.

Ghost Ribbon Wand

A length of ribbon attached to a short dowel makes a wand that streams behind a running child like a proper ghost tail. Use several colours of pale ribbon on each wand and the effect is layered and floaty.

These double as a party activity (decorate the handle with washi tape) and a favour to take home. Store bundled with the ribbons wrapped around the handle.

Ghost Pinecone Figure

A small pinecone wrapped in a square of cream cheesecloth with a cotton ball head makes a ghost figure that looks like it belongs in a woodland or a cottagecore Halloween vignette.

Group three or five together in a shallow tray with a few dried flowers and battery fairy lights scattered in. They store in a paper bag and improve with age as the natural materials deepen in colour.

Ghost Paper Plate

A plain white paper plate painted with a ghost face: the oldest ghost craft in the book, and still the most satisfying for the four-year-old doing it.

Use a large plate for the face and hang it on a door or tape it to a window, or use small dessert plates as individual place settings. The pleated edge of the plate is a natural ghost hem.

No template needed; the circle does all the work.

Ghost Salt Dough Ornament

Salt dough baked in a ghost shape is sturdy, paintable and lightweight enough to hang from a branch, a door handle or a ribbon garland. These take about an hour in a low oven and last years if kept dry.

Paint them chalky white with pink cheeks and they look almost like ceramic. Make a batch of twelve in one afternoon and you have decorations plus party favours sorted in a single session.

Ghost Bubble Wrap Print

Bubble wrap dipped in white paint and pressed onto dark card makes a textured, bumpy ghost print that looks like it was achieved with a much more complicated technique. Cut the bubble wrap into a ghost shape before printing and each impression is ready-made.

The bubbles give the ghost a scaled, almost armour-like texture that looks genuinely interesting. These work as cards, framed prints or garland elements.

Ghost Glow-in-the-Dark Mobile

Cut ghost shapes from heavy white card, coat them in glow-in-the-dark paint, hang them from a length of black string and you have a mobile that does something remarkable when the lights go out.

Charge it under a lamp for two minutes before the party and the ghosts glow green-white for up to twenty minutes in the dark. Hang it in a doorway where guests walk through and the effect is delightful.

Take down between seasons and store flat in a folder.

Ghost Yarn Pompom

A white yarn pompom with two black bead eyes and a short ribbon tail becomes a ghost that can dangle from a bag zip, clip to a garland or sit in a bowl as a table scatter.

Make a batch of twenty in an evening: they are repetitive in the most satisfying way and each one is slightly different in size, which looks intentional when grouped. Store in a bag; they squash flat and spring back.

Ghost Shadow Box

A shadow box frame with a dark velvet or card background, a small lace or tissue ghost layered in the centre and a scattering of dried florals or tiny stars around it: this is the most decor-forward craft in the list and the most giftable.

Finished, it looks like something from a boutique Halloween shop. It takes patience rather than skill, and the result lives on a shelf year-round without looking exclusively seasonal. Seal the box front with the frame glass once satisfied; no glue on the glass.

Ghost Crayon Resist Card

Draw a ghost in white crayon on white card, then brush over it with diluted dark watercolour and the ghost appears as if from nowhere. Children find this genuinely magical the first time. The wax crayon repels the watercolour wash and the ghost is revealed.

Make these as party invitations, as place cards or as a craft activity during the party itself. Keep flat in an envelope; they last indefinitely.

Ghost Tealight Holder

Wrap a small glass jar in white tissue paper, add a ghost face cut from black card and stick it on the front, then drop a battery tea light inside.

The tissue paper diffuses the light into a soft glow and the black card face casts a silhouette shadow on the wall behind it. Make a row of five or seven and they fill a table runner with warm, flickering light all evening.

Store with the tissue still on; they need no disassembling.

Ghost Stamped Tote Bag

A plain cotton tote bag stamped with a ghost shape in white fabric paint becomes a party favour that children actually use.

Cut the stamp from an eraser or a flat piece of foam, ink it with white fabric paint and press it across the bag in a repeat pattern. Add small star stamps between the ghosts and you have a design that looks considered.

Heat-set it once dry and the bag is washable. Make one per child at the party as a craft activity.

Ghost Pipe Cleaner Finger Puppet

A white pipe cleaner twisted into a small ghost shape and bent to fit over a finger: this is the two-minute craft that keeps younger children busy while older siblings work on more involved projects.

Make a set of five in ten minutes and they become a finger puppet show. Store in a small tin; they last as long as the pipe cleaners hold their shape.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the easiest ghost crafts for very young children?

The thumb-print card, dot art on black card, ghost footprint canvas and tissue paper ghost wand are all suitable for children aged three to five. The thumb-print card needs only a stamp pad and a marker, with no cutting involved.

The dot art uses cotton buds rather than brushes, so there is no fine motor skill requirement beyond dabbing. The footprint canvas involves an adult doing most steps while the child contributes the print.

Ghost lollipops and paper plate ghosts also work well from age three upward.

How long do the ghost crafts take, including drying time?

Most crafts in this list take 5-30 minutes of active making time.

The ones with significant drying time are the painted wood slice ghost (two hours total), the ghost window cling (48 hours for the glue to cure fully) and the salt dough ornament (one and a half hours including baking).

Everything else, including the tissue paper wand, the ghost lollipop and the pipe cleaner finger puppet, is done in under fifteen minutes from start to finish.

Which ghost crafts work as party favours children can take home?

The ghost felt pouch, the ghost lollipop, the ghost sock doll, the ghost yarn pompom, the ghost pipe cleaner finger puppet, the ghost ribbon wand and the ghost stamped tote bag all work as favours. The lollipop is the fastest to make in volume.

The tote bag, felt pouch and sock doll are the most kept. The pipe cleaner puppet and origami ghost can be made by the children themselves during the party as an activity, so each child finishes with their own.

Can any of these ghost crafts be made ahead and stored?

Most of them keep well. The peg garland stores in a zip-lock bag, the salt dough ornaments last years in a dry box, the shadow box frame needs no disassembling, and the window clings peel off glass and store flat on baking parchment.

The tissue paper ghosts and balloon ghosts are the ones to make on the day of the party: tissue paper creases in storage and balloons deflate. The felt pouch, sock doll and macrame wall hanging all pack away flat and last indefinitely.

Do these ghost crafts need a craft shop trip or can they be made from things at home?

A significant number require nothing beyond what most households already have: the thumb-print card needs a stamp pad or white paint; the crayon resist card needs a white crayon and watercolour paint; the leaf print ghost needs a fallen leaf and white poster paint; the origami ghost needs one square of paper; the egg carton figure uses a saved carton.

A few crafts, notably the macrame wall hanging, the salt dough ornament with a cookie cutter and the ghost window cling, do need specific materials, but each one can be sourced in a single craft shop run.