A couple weeks ago I had an email from Katelyn, on behalf of Jo-Ann, asking if I wanted to make a fun Halloween craft. In case you don’t know… Jo-Ann is like my second home. I own practically their whole fabric department. Okay, not quite… but if I had an endless wallet, I so would. Of course, I was all over the craft opportunity. I got to choose a craft from their Halloween and Fall Projects. Their were lots of great options, but I settled on the Ghostly Dress Decor.
I waited excitedly and was totally giddy when my box of supplies arrived. I looked at the directions once again and went to find my dress form… I searched EVERYWHERE. And, I still don’t know where it is. Gah, I hate moving! I’m still so disorganized. So… now what? Well, I decided that I would simplify the project a little and make do with what I had…
– 2½ yds of 36″ wide gauze or gauze-like fabric (I used tulle)
– Aleene’s® Stiffen Quik™ spray
– 16 oz Stiffy® fabric stiffener
– 2 Balloons
– 2 sticks (a set of chopsticks would work great!)
– Scissors
– Hot glue gun & glue sticks
– Packing Tape
– Large Bowl or something to tape the balloon to (I used a small lamp with the light bulb removed)
– Baker’s twine or other string
– Fishing line
Directions:
1. Blow up your balloon until it’s nice and full. Tape the balloon to the overturned bowl (or to the lamp base).
2. Cut a strip of tulle to 27″ in length. Drape it over the balloon and fluff a little until it lays nicely. Tie some of your baker’s twine around the base of the balloon where it meets the bowl (or lamp base) to create a head shape.
3. Use Stiffy fabric stiffener and a paint brush to paint a layer over the balloon. Let it dry completely.
4. Spray a thin layer of Aleene’s Stiffen Quik over the balloon and let it dry.
5. When it’s dry, untape the balloon from the bowl and set it off to the side. It will hold your tulle in shape while you form the arms/body. Blow up another balloon and tape it to the bowl, just as in step 1.
6. Tape the sticks to the bowl (or lamp base) to create the arms.
7. Take the remaining 27″ of fabric and cut it in half (each piece should be 13.5″ long). Tape the tulle to the balloon and over the sticks. Adjust and drape the fabric so it lays nicely.
8. Spray the tulle with 3-4 coats of Aleene’s Stiffen Quik, letting each coat dry thoroughly. I let mine dry about 2-3 hours between each coat and then gave it a nice good spray and let it dry overnight.
9. Pop your first balloon and remove all the pieces from the tulle. Drape your shaped tulle over the second balloon. Fluff and arrange until your tulle lays nicely and all pieces blend together well.
10. Use a hot glue gun and secure the pieces of tulle together. Secure the shape of your ghost with a few drops of hot glue. If necessary, tie a piece of baker’s twine around the balloon to reshape the head portion. Spray with Stiffen Quik and let dry again. Confession time: I also added a layer of spray fabric startch, mostly just because I had it laying around and figured a little more “umph” to hold the shape couldn’t hurt.
11. When everything is good and dry, trim any extra long pieces. Use a piece of fishing line to tie a loop and hang your spooky friend.
Disclosure: Jo-Ann Crafts and Fabric Store provided all the supplies to me for use in creating this project and I was given a $50 gift card to Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores. Jo-Ann also provided the $50 giveaway gift card. However, all content in this post is 100% my own original words and opinions. All links were placed at my choice and discretion. I receive no compensation from any click-through.
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