Halloween Headstones and outdoor decorating ideas

Halloween is just around the corner and you may be thinking of doing something for your yard to decorate. For my family, Halloween has always been a great source of fun, everyone getting into the mix. Someone is always coming up with a new idea for decorations in the outdoors.

We try to keep it low cost, as much as possible. One of the favorite things we did that was requested time and time again (when we lived on a block with neighbors) was making headstones for all.

The reason for the request? Each new headstone had the requestors name on it with some really cool saying! “Here lies Lug - Alive no more, shot in the chest with a 44”

You can do it, you know the people who you would write about. Make it rhyme and make it gory.

What you will need:

Styrofoam - 1 ½ to 2 inch wide.  Larger holes are fine (make it cheap)
Gray spray paint - (cheap stuff works best)
Jar of black paint - with small paint brush
Carving tool - Knife works just fine
Wire coat hangers - straightened and cut in half.

The steps you will need to make the headstones.

Starting with an 18 x 12 block of Styrofoam, cut 2 corners off of the ends, rounding them. You will NOT need sand paper for this, just use your hand to smooth it out. Shape it to look well worn, cutting or breaking little chunks out.

Use your carving tool to write what it is that you want to say “Here lies… ‘Mat’” (yeah, that was a bad joke, but we had a Matthew)

Using the black paint, paint inside your words, so they show up nicely.

Now this is the tricky part, the spray paint. You will want it darker toward the edge and lighter in the center. The paint will sort of ‘eat away’ at the Styrofoam that is why you need to take care. You don’t want too much eaten away, you still want to be able to read it.

Go ahead, experiment with shapes! No one says they ALL have to be one shape.

Stick the wire coat hangers through the bottom, one on each side and carefully stick into the ground. Make lots, so you have a good graveyard!

If you happen to have a tree nearby where your visitors will be walking this would be a great place to put them. Get a little ‘spider web’ from your local dollar store to add to the spooky effect.

Hanging ‘Ghosts’ in the trees just adds to the effect a little more with your spooky graveyard.

To do this;

The cheap dollar store garbage bags works best. Using some leaves from your yard, fill the end of the bag slightly, tie it off with white string. If you like, make the edges of the bag jagged, for a spookier effect. Hang the ghost to the tree from the top of the bag. The plastic will rustle nicely when your guests walk by.

If your clever with a drill you can hang some bones for the clacking effect.

What you will need;

Beef bones or pieces of wood, various shapes and sizes.
Drill
Twine or string.
Square or round piece of flat wood, 6 x 6 is fine.

With your drill, drill holes in the flat piece of wood for as many ’bones’ as you have.  Plus 4 extra holes for hanging.

Then carefully drill a hole in 1 end of the ‘bone’.  With the twine or string, thread through the hole, making the string slightly different lengths.   Do this with all of your ‘bones’.

Thread the string through the holes in the flat piece of wood. Tie off at the top.  With 4 pieces of string (same length) thread through the extra holes of the flat piece of wood, bring them up together and tie all 4.  Hang in your tree for some nice 'bone clacking' sounds.

Go ahead give it a try Halloween only comes once a year, make your outdoor decorations something that everyone will want to see! You can be assured that you will get a request from someone for their very own headstone!

"Here she lies, for the world to see... you knew her as: Sweetsusieg"

My husband came home and had this to say "Here lies Susan a 'big' lovers dream, she wouldn't have died, if it weren't for that LAST Krispy Kreme"

Feel free to add your own below!