How to Create Your Own Halloween Props on a Budget

Making your own dead Betty for Halloween is very simply and very inexpensive. You can use the ideas I give you to make some great Halloween props that are sure to bring a haunting presence to your yard this Halloween season.

Being a paranormal investigator, I of course love Halloween. It's the time of year when everyone else joins in on the fun and doesn't look at me like I am nuts for talking about ghosts and other ghastly things. Two years ago I wanted to spice up my yard and deck for Halloween but I am usually on a pretty tight budget so I surfed the Internet for hours looking for some awesome Halloween ideas that wouldn't break my piggy bank. I ran across a website that was all about making your own props for Halloween, from bloody eyeballs to heads in urchins and other disgusting Halloween props.

Although I cannot find the website I was on two years ago, there are plenty of similar websites on the Internet about making your own Halloween props. They range from very inexpensive to super-costly, but you are sure to find some great ideas either way. So two years ago, I set out to find a way to make a dead corpse for my yard, and succeeded in finding a way to do it that didn't cost me a fortune. Most people who make corpse props use pvc piping because they make it with corners and such that come in handy for the arms and legs. I didn't realize that pvc pipes could be so costly, so I had to find another way. I found a shovel. Yes, I said shovel! Here is what I used to make dead Betty come to life.

Materials Needed

1. Styrofoam head that I found at the beauty supply store. They are plain white and only cost a few dollars.

2. Some acrylic paint that I already had laying around the house that I had used for various projects.

3. An old black dress that was sitting in my closet collecting dust.

4. An old lace curtain that had holes in it that I used for her veil. (I keep things even when they have holes...guess that comes in handy sometimes!)

5. Old blue or black bed sheet or piece of fabric

6. A regular old garden shovel from the shed.

7. Wire coat hanger

Making Dead Betty's Face

I brought the head home from the beauty supply, and following the directions from the website, I cut out two holes for eyes. (They come with flat eyes, so you need to 'hollow' out the eyes first). Then I did the same with the mouth. If you choose to do so you can add fake teeth later on, but I just hollowed out the mouth and left it that way.

Next I took my acrylic paint and started painting. Oh what fun that was! I did a base coat of gray, and then added some darker shades of black, and mixed in some white for some highlights. You could add some browns also, or any other color that strikes your fancy. I shaded the eye sockets and mouth in a darker grayish/black color. Then when that was dry, I added red drips down her face with the paint brush to make her face more 'icky'.

Making Dead Betty Come to Life

Since I didn't have any 2 X 4's for a body, or any pvc piping, I had to think of how I could make Betty 'stand up" in my yard. After thinking for a bit, I found the garden shovel and thought, "hmm, yes this can work!". I secured the end of the shovel into the ground and then placed dirt around it (like I was planting a shrub), securing it further with rocks around the base. Then I took a wire coat hanger and bent it out so I could form what would be her arms. I wrapped the coat hanger around the top of the shovel which was sticking out of the ground. At this point, the whole thing looks like a T .

Next, I cut a hole in the bottom of the head so it would be able to sit on top of the wooden end of the shovel. Note- you might want to try adding some glue before you stick the head on, it will secure better on days with rain and wind. After securing her head, I put the dress over top of the shovel-body and made sure her head was straight. I had also bought some cheesecloth and used some cotton balls that I ripped up for use as her hair. I added the old dress,draped the old black sheet and veil over top, and I had an instant 'dead' Betty!! I took the spotlight that I already had and put the light down at the bottom of Betty so the light would shine on her beautiful face each night for people to see. I have received quite a few comments about how great she is, and she has become quite the addition to our family at Halloween!