I love Halloween. Have I made that point clear yet? It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Sao every year when a new batch of fun Halloween decorations premieres, I am super excited to see what I might be able to snatch up (if I wait until November 1st for the clearance). This year, my particular obsession was a mirror and skeleton set from Grandin Road. The snag? It’s $500! No clearance sale will ever make that affordable. So I decided to make my own. He’s not as sinister as the original, but I think he’s great nonetheless.
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SUPPLIES
bag of bones
hot glue gun / glue
child’s clothing: suit jacket, dress shirt, bow tie
chicken wire
small dowel
masking tape
wire hanger
Create a small hole in the bottom of the skull, like so.
Insert a small piece of dowel into that hole.
Make a hole in the end of the spine and join to the skull’s dowel. Use hot glue to secure. Repeat these steps with two arms and hands.
Lay out the attire you intend to clothe your skeleton in. I found this jacket for $1 at the local thrift store and used an old dress shirt my daughter no longer fits. The bow tie was mine. It’s a long story. Whatever you use, make sure you have no intentions of ever wearing it again because there will likely be custom alterations required. Don’t worry. I just mean that you’re going to cut it to shreds.
Next, lay our your skeleton pieces and trim the remaining dowel into three sections, one should be slightly longer than the other two. You’re doing to lay these out to mark where your joints need to be. During this stage, trim any excessive dowel, if necessary, so that the entire stick fits within the clothing.
Next, make two small holes in the bottom of the spine bone to run the dowel through. Then secure with hot glue then wrap in masking tape.
Next, trim two pieces of thick metal wire (or a metal hanger) to about 8” long. Bend at a 45 degree angle and insert inside the arm bone, leaving half exposed. Secure with hot glue and masking tape. Repeat with the second arm.
Add a bead of hot glue to one of the remaining dowels, then while still hot, begin wrapping the exposed wire around the dowel to secure at a 45 degree angle. Add more glue. Secure with more masking tape. Repeat with second arm.
Lay the jacket out and insert a strip of chicken wire (I actually used a scrap piece of a cabbie system we had laying around - either will work). Trim to fit, if necessary. Then begin attaching the neck by tying with string. Insert the arms through the jacket and repeat attachment steps.
Finish dressing him.
Hang with command hooks. I recommend using two at the very top of the wire.
Have you met Demetri “Dem” Bones? He’s a real bag of laughs.
xoxo
Teri
