Hi! I’m Shatzi and I blog over at Love and Laundry! I’m a mom of 3 kiddos and I love to craft, cook, sew and definitely play with my kids! But I really don’t love laundry (that’s kind of a joke!), although I do loads and loads every week. I’m still a newish blogger, but I’ve completely found my passion! I’m SO excited to be here on eighteen25 today! I’ve been an avid reader for years. After reading for so long, it’s pretty awesome to actually be a part of Spooktacular September! Today, I’m going to share a fun and easy Floating Ghost project!
When I was a little girl, my mom had a couple of these cute ghosts on our piano during Halloween. I remember thinking they really floated not knowing that it was starch that held them up. This year, I decided it was time to make some for my kids to experience. I called my mom to get the how-to. She said she used liquid starch, which is kind of hard to come by. Plus, it’s a lot of money to spend on a ghost or two. So, I found a better and cheaper way to make these.
Here’s what you need:
Cheesecloth (I just found mine in the baking section of the grocery store and it was about $3. I used the whole package for one ghost. I cut it in half and used 2 layers to make it sturdier)
-Black felt
-Cornstarch
-Water
-Any kind of “make-shift” stand to support the cheesecloth while it dries out
First, you start by making homemade liquid starch
Pour 2 cups of water into a microwave safe container. Then, add one cup of cornstarch and mix it really well.
Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in-between, until it gets thick. Mine took about 2 minutes total. This is kind of what you’re going for:
Set that aside and let it cool off a little bit. You don’t want it to get cold, though.
Meanwhile, set up your “make-shift” stand. You can use cups, balloons, Styrofoam balls. Whatever you can find to make the right shape and size. You just want to make sure you can pull it out from under the cheesecloth once it’s dry. Balloons are nice because you can pop them. I didn’t have any balloons on had, so here’s what I used:
I put some freezer paper on the table so that the ghost would have something to sit on (besides the table) while it dried.
Next, I cut the cheesecloth in half. I wanted to make my ghost a little sturdier. Coat each piece of cheesecloth with the cornstarch. It took a little bit of working it in. You want to make sure it is completely coated.
Drape the pieces of cheesecloth one at a time over your make-shift stand and make sure you arrange it how you want it. Once it’s dry, you can’t really change anything.
Once you’ve got it perfect, allow it to completely dry. Mine took overnight. When it’s stiff, carefully remove the cheesecloth from the mold and glue on two felt eyes.
It’s really hard to capture on camera, but the ghost is completely see-through and looks like it’s just floating!
Thanks, girls, for letting me hang out here today! It was super fun!!! And if you like what you see, pop on over to my blog Love and Laundry. Or you can find me on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!
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This post is sponsored by:
I'm Jen Sedillo, one of the bloggers behind Eighteen25. I love creating and crafting, reading good books, visiting new places and being with family!
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These are super cute Shatzi! Thank you for sharing you are so creative 🙂
xoxo, Tanya
So adorable! Love my girl, Shatzi! This has been a fabulous series so far!
Take care,
Trish
These are so fun! I'm pretty sure my Mom made some when I was little as well. I think I'll need to give them a try! 🙂
I absolutely love this! I will for sure be doing these with my kids! So very cool.
Love this idea!!!
I absolutely LOVE these! My mom still has the ones we made as kids and I was going to make some last year but didn't get around to it. I'll definitely be making some this year. :] Thanks for sharing.
I just wanted to say this ghost is super adorable! I really wanted to make one, so I bought the supplies last night. I'm wondering about the cheesecloth I bought. It's 2sq. yards and very long and narrow, only about 12 inches wide. It doesn't seem like it would work for this project. Do you mind me asking what kind you used? I feel like I would have to make a very tiny ghost with the stuff that I bought.
Thank you for this tutorial!! I have made 11 of these today! I am a SRC (student representative council) Advisor (teacher) for our high school and we are putting on a haunted house for the children in our community! These are going to be a ghostly addition!! I have made them of varying heights. The largest one is about 4 1/2 feet tall!! Thanks again for sharing!!
IDEA:
What about adding glow-in-the-dark paint to the starch mix and putting them outside on the porch?
I love, love, love these. Can’t wait to make them! So cute.
I am really looking forward to making this ghost.
Will they ruin if they get wet?
I don’t think it would be a good idea to get them wet, but I’m really not sure?? sorry. 🙂
Thanks for the idea and the tutorial. I tried it out, but in Switzerland it’s impossible to find cheese cloth, so I used cloth diapers. So our ghosts are a bit less translucent than yours. Have a look at the ghost family: http://www.rebekkascraftroom.blogspot.ch/2015/10/des-fantomes-dans-la-maison.html
They turned out great Rebekka!! Love yours! 🙂