Ghouling Around!

I swear to all that is holy that I had more fun this weekend helping the kids make ghosts than they did in the actual making!  From the last post, you know I found my idea for ghosts on Pinterest.  I really wanted to make the sitting ghoul, but I don’t have a baby doll (or a child that will sit long enough to let it harden – ha! Ha!) and neither does my Hannah.  I will have to make a trip to the thrift shop and find one.

Anybooo, (see how I did that?) we started out with a balloon, fabric stiffener, a couple of tall things to set the balloons on, and adhesive spray.  The last part wasn’t called for in the instructions, but I figured it would make the balloon stick to whatever it needed to, better.  More on that later.

First the kids blew up the balloons.  We used spray adhesive to secure one balloon on a tall skinny table.  NOT A GOOD IDEA!  That stuff is sticky!  It stuck to my hands and I had to wash them three times with different soaps until I could help with the project again.  Plus, it did stick to the table, but there is definitely some still stuck to it.  We put the spray away at that point.

Next we poured fabric stiffener in a large bowl.  They used two yards of cheese cloth in one yard pieces for each ghost.  That way they could drape it differently if they chose.  We tried to use gloves, we really did try, because the directions on the bottle said to – but we really couldn’t unbunch the cloth with them on!  So I tried it first without, just in case my hands burned and my skin started to fall off.  I was fine.  So were the kids.  Gaige wasn’t crazy about the goopiness of the stiffener but he got through it.

The draping was a trip but it was also the best part.  Cheese cloth looks like it is all straightened out and then you realize that it’s not and there’s more material to unravel!  Good times!  

After both ghosts were set up and drying the kids turned their attention to more important things – namely YouTube and funny cat videos.

Speaking of funny cat videos, this one is my favorite:  

https://youtu.be/0Bmhjf0rKe8

I hope this inspires you to try the ghost project.  It didn’t take long to dry and the mess really is minimal.  You don’t need a lot of stiffener, and I added some water to mine to make it easier to use.  I had a lot left over.  The kids had a good time and were happy with the finished product.

 I wish I had more cheese cloth.  I would have an army of these ghouls around the house.  Definitely a good project for a rainy or cold and windy day.  I hope you try it!  Post your pix – I would love to see them!