Sharing all my Tips & Tricks for How to Make the Best DIY Scarecrows for Halloween to decorate your yard with on a budget including step by step instructions & pictures of our DIY Halloween scarecrows.
Creating a DIY Scarecrow for Halloween is a fun craft or DIY project because it gets the whole family involved & excited to decorate for Halloween.
And… it’s a great way to re-use old Halloween Costumes your kiddos can no longer fit in.
Sharing my scarecrows for Halloween along with 7 of my #Homeforthefallidays Instagram friends to bring you 8 different Halloween Crafts.
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DIY Scarecrows for Halloween
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Some people think scarecrows are just for fall but we love to use ours to decorate for Halloween too.
I am not really into scary decorating for Halloween.
Skulls, witches, bloody fingers are not really my thing.
One decoration we do look forward to putting out every Halloween night along with our Jack O’ Lantern is our scarecrows for Halloween.
We started making scarecrows a few years ago when we entered a local fall scarecrow contest.
After the contest is over we get our scarecrow back right before Halloween and we love to put it out for the trick or treaters that come to our house.
The kids coming for candy really enjoy it when they can recognize what characters the scarecrows for Halloween are.
Supplies Needed to Build Scarecrows for Halloween
Size for Scarecrow is 6 Feet Tall by 3 Feet Wide
- 6 foot pressure treated board
- 3 foot pressure treated board
- exterior screws
- old Halloween costume
- small bale of hay
- vine wrap wire (for head)
- twine & safety pins to keep it all together
Instructions for How to Make Scarecrows for Halloween
(this year our scarecrow is Pablo Picasso Painting…not sure the trick or treaters will figure that one out 🙂
Step ONE – Create the Wood T – Shaped frame for the Scarecrow
You start with a simple T shaped frame, roughly 6 feet tall by 3 feet wide.
Cut your pressure treated boards. One 6 feet long & 1 at 3 feet long.
If you use pressure treated & exterior screws you can use the frame year after year.
Step TWO – Create a Scarecrow Head Form out of Wire
We made our head form (when we don’t use burlap) from a wire wrapped with vine.
Like this one, 40 Feet of Vine Wrapped Rustic Feel Craft Wire
I personally like the look of the straw head form in place of the burlap.
It’s quick, it is actually the shape of a head so hats fit fine, and you can re-use it year after year after year.
Step THREE – Add Straw to Your Scarecrow Head Form
Stuff your head with straw.
We have used this head form for many a scarecrow!!!
Step FOUR – Dress your Scarecrow for Halloween & Stuff His Body with Straw
Dress your scarecrow & stuff the body with straw.
Step FIVE – Add Twine & Safety Pins to Keep your Scarecrows for Halloween Together
Tie off legs with twine or the wire & pin the top & pants at the waist with some safety pins.
Step SIX – Display your Scarecrows for Halloween as a Yard decoration
You can either screw your scarecrow to a fence post in your yard (this is what we do) or you can stake a foot long piece of wood in the ground and screw your scarecrows for Halloween into it.
Scarecrows for Halloween from the Past
Peter Pan & Captain Hook
A few years ago we used our Peter Pan & Captain Hook scarecrows for Halloween flanking the walkway to our house where the kids had to walk under them dueling in order to get their candy.
It was a hit!!!
Harry Potter Playing Quidditch
Below is Harry Potter playing Quidditch flying on his broom catching the snitch.
This was the first scarecrow we ever made… (we definitely improved in our scarecrows for Halloween building skills in future years!
The best thing about this project is once you have made the frame of the scarecrow all you need from year to year is some straw & a retired Halloween costume.
I hope this inspires for how to make the best scarecrows for Halloween a try!
by Tara Lehman
Some More DIY Halloween Crafts from my Friends
- Flourish and Knot – Día de Muertos Luminaries – http://flourishandknot.com/?p=3034
- Little bits of Home – Textured Jute Pumpkin – http://littlebitsofhome.blogspot.com/2015/10/homeforthefallidays-halloween-craft.html
- Our House Now a Home – Boo Pumpkins – http://www.ourhousenowahome.com/2015/10/diy-boo-pumpkins-home-for-fallidays.html
- Pocketful of Posies – Boo Sweater Pumpkins http://www.pocketofposies.com/journal/2015/10/5/boo-sweater-pumpkins
- Lehman Lane – Https://lehmanlane.net/diy-scarecrows-for-Halloween/ (you are here:)
- Beauteeful Living – Spooky Chandelier – http://beauteefulliving.com/diy-spooky-chandelier/
- Oh the fun – Spider and Bats Wreath http://ohthefun.com/2015/10/spiders-and-bats-and-cobwebs-oh-my/
- Shabby Grace Blog – Spooky Halloween Village http://shabbygraceblog.com/diy-spooky-halloween-village/
Some More DIY Fall Ideas you Might Enjoy
Your scarecrows are so great! I love that the kids love doing it too. Great idea!
Thanks Sara! It really is a fun family activity we do every fall!
Tara,
I love this tradition! What a fun festive way to reused old costumes! Plus the whole family is involved! I may have to steal you idea next year when our little one is old enough to understand. Thank you so much for joining in on all the fun! It’s always a pleasure to read your posts!
Cat
Thank Cat! It really is a fun fall family tradition we have. I bet your daughter would love a small princess scarecrow;). Thanks so much for organizing this Halloween craft hop, such a great idea!
You have a Harry Potter scarecrow. My head just exploded with so much awesome!!! I LOVE IT!!!! (Not sure if you can tell but I am a GIANT HP nerd.) K, off to make myself an HP Quidditch scarecrow RIGHT NOW.
Ha Sarah! I had no idea you were such a Harry Potter fan:).
OMG, I love that you guys have been making scarecrows! They are super cute! So are your kids! :). My favorite is that Captain Hook one. So fun! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for stopping by Tee! So glad you like our Halloween scarecrows:)
They all look great – and it’s good to see the kids helping – They’ll all grow up to be “crafties” like their Mother – Good job !!!
Thanks Bess! So glad you stopped by to check them out! Take care, Tara
What a cool tradition and I love that you can reuse their old costumes because those things aren’t cheap, amiright?! 😉 Love these!
Thanks Samantha! Nope those Halloween costumes aren’t cheap, gotta get your money back somehow:)
I love this! such a happy project.. I love to have one here in my garden to scare away the deer from eating my flowers, i still have flowers here in the south.
Maria
Thanks Maria! We have deer here too, they definitely come into my yard more the colder the weather gets and they love to eat my shrubs and trees. Although I think our labradoodle, Moose scares them away more than our scarecrows do:).
Tara, these scarecrows are so creative! I love that it’s something the whole family can participate in and it’s total genius to reuse the kids old costumes as clothes for the scarecrows. That is too cool. Hugs, CoCo
Thanks CoCo! So glad you like our scarecrows:).
Oh I miss those days so much I can’t tell you !
Enjoy these years they fly by ( as I’m sure you know )
LOVE your scarecrows – but love seeing your kids standing in front of them the best ♥
I know my kids really are growing up too quick! I used to roll my eyes when people said that when they were little but with two in middle school now I see just how true and right that is! Thanks Suzan!
What a fun idea for Halloween decor! I’m sure your trick or treaters will love it! Thanks for linking up to The Creative Circle 🙂
Jen thank you so much for checking out our scarecrows and for hosting the Creative Circle!