Cheesecloth Ghost

Are you looking for a fast and easy Halloween craft that looks spooky and classy at the same time? Well, take a look at this cheesecloth ghost tutorial! These cool DIY ghosts check all those boxes!

Hey guys! We are switching gears for a moment from fall to Halloween decor since it is right around the corner. I am super excited to bring you this cheesecloth ghost tutorial today! I think these little ghosts turned out fabulous! I love how realistic they look and how they look like they are floating in midair! Although, now that I think about it, how realistic can a ghost look? Ha!

This is not a new craft, in fact it has been around for decades, but it is new to me and I am betting a lot of you have not tried it either. I would say it’s about time you do! This would be a great craft to do with your kids or grandkids, as it is not hard and I’m sure they would love getting their hands “dirty” while making the fun ghosts.

Quick Halloween Craft

One really great thing about these DIY cheesecloth ghosts is how quick they are to make. They only take about 10-15 minutes, the hardest part is letting them dry overnight! Mine dried to touch after a few hours, however I left them alone for 24 hours just to make sure they were totally dried before moving them.

I placed a couple of the cheesecloth ghosts on stands, but also made one that looks like it stands on the ground. In the video included in this post, I show how to make the ghosts both ways.

I love that these ghosts made of cheesecloth look stylish too. I am not a fan of cheesy looking Halloween decor, or any decor for that matter. These ghosts could easily fit into any decor. They would look great with some vintage Halloween decorations. I think the multiple layers of cheesecloth on the ghosts is what makes them look so great compared to others that I have seen done before.

WATCH THE QUICK VIDEO

Don’t want to read all the instructions? I have included a video in this post showing you how to make a cheesecloth ghost. If you can’t see the video, turn off your ad blocker. Also, if you ever want to slow down the video, just click on the three dots in the lower right hand corner of the video and you can change the playback speed. If you want more detailed instructions, continue reading.

Supplies to make a cheesecloth ghost

*There are links to products in this post that I use or are similar to products I use. If you buy something from one of these links, I may make a small commission (with no additional cost to you) from the purchase. I will not recommend anything that I would not buy myself.

Cheesecloth
Foam balls
Mod Podge
Scissors
Wood dowels
Wood craft rounds
Pipe cleaners
Tin Foil
Black acrylic paint and small paint brush

PREPARE SOME WOOD DOWELS AND WOOD ROUNDS

If you are a regular subscriber, you may recognize the wood stands the ghosts are on. I used them on both my felt Christmas trees and standing hearts crafts. I love when I can reuse materials from previous projects. You don’t have to use these wood rounds for the stands, you could use any kind of wood base. I will show you how to make these stands though if you want to recreate them.

You will need to prepare some wood rounds by drilling a hole the same size as your dowels into the center of the circle. In this case, my dowels were 3/16″ in size. So Mr. Wonderful used a drill press to add some 3/16″ holes in the centers. If you don’t have a drill press, you can just use a regular drill too.

The wood dowels I got were 12″ long, which were too long, so I also had to cut those down. Using a small hack saw, I cut them into varying lengths of 6″, 8″ and 10″ long. Lastly, just press the dowel into the hole on the wood round.

How to make a cheesecloth ghost

After you have assembled the wood stands, take a foam ball and push it onto the top without going all the way through. I used balls that were about 1.5″ and 2″ in size.

Take your cheesecloth and drape a corner over the wood stand to see how big you need to cut your cheesecloth.

Fold the cheesecloth in half to make cutting faster. Then cut that piece in half. Make sure to also cut off any finished edges on the cheesecloth. I also ran the edges through my pinched fingers to fray them a bit. I think this added to the raggedy and spooky look of the ghosts.

Make a stick figure form for your ghost

You will want to add a couple things to the wood stands to give your cheesecloth ghost shape, otherwise it will look like a drowned rat. 😉 Take one of the pipe cleaners and wrap it around the wood dowel to make a stickman with arms sticking straight out. Place the pipe cleaner about 1.5″ below the foam ball. Next, roll the ends of the pipe cleaner in and arrange them until the stickman looks like he is flexing his muscles. You can arrange the arms however you want. Try different placements for each ghost to give them each a distinct look.

Next, you will add a piece of tinfoil to the wood dowel and make it look like a skirt. This is what will help the ghost have a floating in midair look to it when the glue dries. The glue will not stick well to the tinfoil so you can remove that later. Cut a piece of tin foil that is about 12″ long and fold it in half. Pinch it in the middle.

Wrap the tin foil around the lower part of the wood dowel and spread it so it flows out all around the ghost. Take a piece of tape and attach the tin foil to the wood dowel so it stays in place.

Prepare a glue mixture

You will need to make a glue mixture to dunk the cheesecloth into. This is what makes the ghosts “freeze” in a floating motion. I mixed equal parts (1 cup of each) of Mod Podge and water together in a big plastic dish. You can also use regular Elmer’s glue, or even starch will work, to give the same effect. I think regular glue may be more inexpensive to use but I had the Mod Podge on hand, so that is what I used. It worked very well!

For each ghost, I used 3 pieces of cheesecloth. Dip your first piece of cheesecloth pieces, on into the glue mixture and ring it out.

Straighten out the cheesecloth and lay it over the foam ball, try to keep it centered over the ball. Arrange the cheesecloth so it is spread out over the tin foil.

Next, take the second piece of cheesecloth and repeat the last step. I angled the cheesecloth differently than the first layer, so you could see the layers on the bottom better.

Lastly, apply the third piece of cheesecloth using the same method. This time you will want to form the cheesecloth around the arms a bit so that they are more defined.

Lay out a piece of tin foil to set the cheesecloth ghost on as it may drip a little from the ends as it dries. Set it aside for 24 hours!! This is the hardest part.

Paint some eyes on your cheesecloth ghost

After your ghost has dried for 24 hours, it is time to remove the tin foil and pipe cleaners from underneath the ghost. The cheesecloth may stick a little to the tin foil but it easily pulls off. Place your ghost on a steady surface, or hold it in your hand, so you can add some eyes and a mouth, if you want to. I used some black paint, but you could also use a black marker if you don’t have paint around. The holes in the cheesecloth make it a little hard to paint on the eyes. It did not allow for a smooth edge as you can see below. Just try to have a steady hand when doing it. 🙂

Decorate with your DIY ghosts

I was so pleased with how these little ghosts turned out. Even my boys thought they were super cool. It is hard to impress them with the crafts I make sometimes. Ha! Then again, Halloween has always been their favorite holiday to decorate for so these had a slight advantage. 😉

I have decorated with these cute ghosts on our media console table but they could easily work on a mantel, in a table centerpiece or even on the kitchen counter! These ghosts would be a perfect way to add some Halloween flair to your home if you don’t go all out with Halloween decorating.

You also may enjoy these fun Halloween crafts

I also made an art piece for my Halloween mantel using this same method. It turned out so great! I will share that with you next, so stay tuned! Chat soon friends!