As fall sets in and the nights grow longer, there’s no better time to get crafty with DIY Halloween decorations that reflect your style, budget, and spooky spirit. Whether you’re decorating for trick-or-treaters or planning a haunted gathering, these easy, fun, and cheap ideas are designed for the average American household. From indoor apartment tricks to clever outdoor illusions, we’ve curated hauntingly creative ways to deck out your home this Halloween — all with materials you might already have on hand. Let’s explore ideas that are not only aesthetic, but also doable and family-friendly.
1. Cardboard Tombstones for Outdoor Yards
Transform your outdoor yards into a creepy graveyard with cardboard tombstones painted in gray and black. These are low cost accessories that fit its part on front porches or yard and can be decorated with scary names. Children especially find delight to walk between these creepy headstones and more so those that glow during the night or ones with humorous writings. It’s a simple, weather-resistant DIY that brings humor and horror in equal measure.
2. Toilet Paper Roll Bats Inside
Empty toilet paper rolls make perfect inside Halloween bat decorations. Cut out paper or felt wings and paint black and flatten down. They are sweet and inexpensive and amazingly simple–perfect to hang in a doorway or cluster over mantels. This is one of the best things you can do to occupy your kids on a weekend and be both excited and productive. Design influencer Elsie Larson often includes this hack in her seasonal home guides.
3. Pool Noodle Archway for Front Porches
Repurpose pool noodles into a creepy archway across your outdoor yards front porches easy setup. Lay noodles across your porch rails and swathe them with black tape or gauze and stick cobwebs and plastic snakes to them. It is a dramatic entrance which is difficult to assemble but surprisingly a cheap large scale one. Referenced by DIY queen Liz Marie Galvan, this is a standout curb appeal piece for spooky season.
4. Beetlejuice-Inspired Lawn Display
A quirky take is a Beetlejuice-themed display with distorted tombstones, striped poles, and bizarre props. It is suited to outdoor yards and it is eye catching to the people passing by. This tribute is experientially cinematic in a way that cardboard and spray-painted plastic pumpkins have a way of feeling like, particularly to the viewers who grew up watching spooky comedies in the 90s. Think dramatic, weird, and theatrical!
5. Indoor Plastic Pumpkin Lanterns
Brighten your indoor spaces with plastic pumpkins turned into lanterns. Exercise faces cut out and place in battery candles within so that there will be a gentle glow. They can be tossed easily down bookshelves or countertops and add holiday cheer to inside dollar tree junks. Use a metallic marker for stylish designs. Perfect for small spaces or apartments that need Halloween charm without clutter.
6. Toilet Paper Mummy Door
Wrap your front door in toilet paper rolls to mimic a mummy’s wrapping. Add googly eyes for personality. It is inexpensive, not much than 30 minutes, simple and fun. You can do it in the house or in side apartment, and this funny image is one of the most popular things in Pinterest because it is funny and does not cost much. It’s also one of Country Living’s top picks for 2025.
7. Outdoor Giant Spider Made from Trash Bags
Craft a terrifying outdoor giant spider using black trash bags, wire hangers, and zip ties. Position it crawling over your garage or porch. It is a major visually rewarding diy-outside get that does not cost more than 10 dollars. This is a kid-friendly, albeit creepy, movie that doesnÂt cause one to become nauseous because it is not that gory. Blogger Kara Whitten featured this in her annual decor roundup.
8. Cute Ghosts from Dollar Tree Supplies
Using cheesecloth, balloons, and Dollar Tree LED lights, make floating ghosts to hang inside easy your hallway or entry. It is both spooky and cute in sound, which is a success among children. They are light enough that you could tape them to hang, they sway with movement of air to create a terrifying effect. Influencers like The Spruce team frequently feature these in their Halloween guides.
9. Aesthetic Indoor Paper Bat Wall
If you’re after aesthetic vibes, cut out black paper bats and stick them in a swirling pattern up your indoor wall. This subtle but striking effect adds dimension without clutter. It is easy, trendy and one of those social media friendly aesthetics adopted by interior designers such as Emily Henderson. Ideal for minimalist Halloween style.
10. Outdoor Pallet Grave Fence
Turn an outdoor pallet into a makeshift fence or haunted perimeter around your yard. Stencil scary signs, paint using pale colors and add the moss or false bones. Outdoor yards simple barriers are cheap when you get them out of hardware stores or the old deliveries and can add some dimension to lawn scenes. Great for defining spooky zones in your Halloween setup.
11. Paper Plate Monster Masks for Kids
Turn ordinary paper plates into silly monster masks with googly eyes, yarn hair, and jagged paper teeth. This easy craft is ideal for kids, whether you’re throwing a party or need a rainy-day project. Make use of any remaining materials and invent your spooky character. These lightweight masks are great for decorating windows or pinning to walls inside simple homes.
12. Cheap Dollar Tree Potion Bottles
Create spooky potion bottles with inside dollar tree items like recycled glass jars, food coloring, and handwritten labels. Add glitter, faux spiders, or floating eyeballs. You can get these mini props at a low price, are surprisingly stylish and can be placed in a book shelf or any mantle. Perfect for an aesthetic yet budget-friendly vibe that looks like something out of a witch’s apothecary.
13. Ghost Garland Using White Paper
Cut out smiling ghosts from white paper and string them into a fun garland. This is ideal to hang over a mantel, a doorway, or down your indoor walls, as it is adorable, affordable and easy to create. Add blush cheeks or bow ties for personality. Popular with crafters like Handmade Charlotte, it’s a family-friendly look for any room.
14. Pool Noodle Skeleton for the Lawn
Make a life-size skeleton out of cut-up pool noodles and wire it together for display in your outdoor yards. Strike it sitting down in a chair, or leauling against the wall. It is an easy, friendly, and a funny project and it has a lot of character. Great for parties or photo ops, this lightweight structure is a Halloween showstopper.
15. Spider Egg Sacks from Pantyhose
Use old white pantyhose, cotton stuffing, and plastic spiders to create creepy spider egg sacks. Hang them on the railings or trees in the exterior yards front porches. Its drooping shape is a nightmare under darkness and its view appeals to lovers of horror movies. This cheap easy trick is one of the most viral Halloween DIYs on TikTok.
16. Inside Broomstick Chandelier
For a witchy centerpiece, hang a broomstick horizontally from the ceiling and dangle candles or Halloween trinkets from it. This al fresco casual concept leaves a touch of a sulky atmosphere on a dining room or kitchen. It’s inspired by rustic decorators like Liz Fourez and gives a gothic, aesthetic elegance using thrifted materials.
17. Creepy Cardboard Window Silhouettes
Cut scary figures — witches, zombies, cats — from black cardboard and tape them to indoor windows. At night, backlighting makes them appear as dark shadows. This is a low cost, simple and highly effective external project. It’s an old-school favorite revived by Apartment Therapy’s Halloween guides.
18. Hanging Hat Ceiling Display
Suspend witch hats from the ceiling using fishing wire for a floating illusion. This optical illusion creates a magical effect in an internal interior area such as entryway or hall. Many use thumbtacks or Command hooks for easy removal. Referenced by decor bloggers like Bless’er House, this look feels whimsical and seasonal.
19. Cheap Pallet Coffin Lean-To
Using an old outdoor pallet, build a leaning faux coffin with a hinged door. Place it against your house or porch railing. Add bones or a skeleton inside for dramatic effect. This outdoor diy idea brings haunted house vibes without professional tools — ideal for Halloween lovers who like bold statement pieces.
20. Pumpkin Stack Using Plastic Pumpkins
Stack plastic pumpkins vertically to create a totem-like tower near your outdoor yards front porches. Make holes in them and insert a dowel or PVC pipe through the middle as a stabilizer. Add fairy lights or hats for flair. A cheap, reusable decor that becomes more charming every year.
21. Haunted Mirror Frame with Cardboard Accents
Turn a thrifted mirror into a haunted relic using spray paint, black lace, and cardboard cutouts of ghosts or spiderwebs. It is a mantel piece would look wonderful on mantels, or over entry way tables. It’s a cheap transformation that adds drama with very little effort.
Conclusion
Whether you’re an avid crafter or just looking to make a spooky statement with cheap easy materials, these DIY Halloween decorations offer endless inspiration. We’d love to know which styles you’re using this year — tell us in the comments below and don’t forget to share your own spooky setups and ideas with the community!
