Bookish Halloween: DIY Book Page Garland with Ghosts

I have enjoyed decorating the bookshelves for the holidays over the past couple of years. So, this year, I thought, “Why not do a whole bookish Halloween theme?”

I’m kicking off this theme and this series with a DIY book page garland featuring the cutest little ghosts!

It’s a cheap and easy DIY that adds the perfect amount of whimsy to my bookshelves.

Here’s how I made it:

ULCH Hocus Pocus Book of Spells Hocus Pocus Decor Hocus Pocus Halloween Decorations Book of Shadows and Spell Book with Lock Witch Decor And Perfect for Spooky Gifts And Spooky Decor 8 x6 InchesFramed Vintage Library Ghost Reading Poster Print Retro Spooky Bookish Wall Art Gothic Victoria Dark Academia Halloween Canvas Oil Painting Wall Decor Aesthetic for Bedroom Office 8x12inch

 

Step 1: Draw a Ghost

The first step is the most difficult (at least for me). While I’m crafty and love making things, I am not an artist. My drawing skills are pitiful, at best.

So, I traced ghost outlines from templates on Pinterest, instead of trying to freehand them.

These are the ones I used:

• boy ghost
• girl ghost

I traced the ghosts directly from the computer screen because I was too lazy to fight with my printer (that thing never wants to work). And honestly, tracing them this way turned out to be the perfect size!

Step 2: Make a Template

After your ghosts are (messily) traced onto your paper, cut them out.

Now, you have a template to work with.

150 Sheets of Scrapbook Paper, Vintage Journaling Supplies Craft Kits for Bullet Journals Junk Planners Aesthetic Room Decor Wall Art Collage Album Cottagecore Picture FramesJunk Journal Pages Vintage Handmade Scrapbook Sheets, Including Magazine, Newspaper, Sheet Music and Kraft for Scrapbooking Decoupage Background DIY Craft Decoration 120PCS

 

Step 3: Trace & Cut Out Ghosts on Book Pages

Use the ghost template to make outlines on your book pages.

Since I was using a small vintage book, I could only get one ghost per page. With a bigger book, you could fit two per page.

However, I didn’t want my ghosts to have ’empty edges’, so I made sure that I didn’t trace them into the blank margins of the paper. That way, words cover the entire ghost.

Once the ghost is traced onto the book page, cut it out.

You might be able to see some of the outline, but you can always flip it over and use the other side for the front of your garland.

(The entire ghost is completely covered since I didn’t use the margins.)

Step 4: Draw Faces & Accessorize

Once your book page ghosts are cut out, it’s time to draw them some cute little faces.

Thankfully, this is pretty easy to do!

(Such a cute little ghost gang.)

In addition to their cute little faces, I also accessorized some of my ghosts with hair bows! They just looked a little too plain to me, but the bows help. So, now I have ‘girl ghosts’ and ‘boy ghosts’ for my Halloween garland.

Scary Ghost Hands Bookshelf Halloween Room Decor, Halloween Indoor Decorations for Bookshelf, Gothic Demon Claws Bookmarks Decorations for Book Lovers3 Piece Halloween Indoor Decor Figurines Sitting Skeleton Statue Halloween Decorations mini Reading Skull Figurine Home Decor for Living Room Table Shelf Ornament

 

Step 5: String Them Up!

The last step to making your DIY book page garland is gluing them to a string. I used some jute twine that I already had, but you could use yarn, string, or ribbon too.

Simply put a little dot of hot glue on the back of your ghost and attach it to the string.

(I also added some yarn tassels to my garland to add some color.)

You could get really precise and measure the distance between the ghosts and tassels, but I simply did a hand’s width apart.

After all of the ghosts and tassels are glued and tied on, it’s ready to be hung on the bookshelves!

I can’t wait to get out the rest of my Halloween decorations and finish decorating these shelves!

I’m super excited to try a bookish Halloween theme and hope that my vision comes together. Not only will it be super cute, but it will also be budget-friendly.

Follow along to see what I come up with next!