This easy DIY Halloween Lantern Centerpiece is inexpensive and perfect for spooky fall home décor! Learn how to make this DIY Halloween decoration fit your space with this step-by-step guide.
DIY Halloween Decorations
Spooky Season is the best time to adventure into new DIY projects! This Halloween Lantern Centerpiece came together with a few found and used things in my home, plus a few cheap finds at the dollar store.
This simple yet impressive Halloween decoration fits the bill because it uses very few items, can be finished within an hour, and uses objects you likely already have or can buy for cheap! Use this to dress up your home for a party, spruce up the porch for trick-or-treaters, or to add a creepy vibe to your festivities!
Halloween Lantern Materials
- One large tray — I used a glass top from an end table, but a cutting board, serving tray, or any flat, sturdy surface will work.
- One book or box — This acts as a stand for the lantern. If you don’t have an old, spooky looking book or a horror book, you can simply use a box. You can wrap the box in spider webbing or any black/spooky fabric to help it fit into the scene.
- One lantern + electronic candle — Anything that adds a little mystic feeling will work (a jar with fairy lights, 1+ electronic candle(s) without the lantern, a candelabra, etc.). Even an incense holder could be neat… The swirling smoke would add a fun vibe!
- Spider webbing — I didn’t even come close to using one full package… Maybe 1/5th of the package?
- Small Halloween decorations — I bought the plastic spiders, pumpkins, skulls, and eyeballs at Dollar Tree. You could use rocks, crystals, bouncy balls, mini gourds, etc.
Where can I find materials for Halloween crafts?
The best thing about crafts is that you can use anything as material! This project used several found or used materials.
The glass tray was actually a tabletop from a small end table that broke. Other options I considered: An old cake stand, a serving tray, the top of a hat box, a lazy susan, a cutting board.
The book was also used. I wanted something that just looked old, but I lucked out with this old copy of Edgar Allan Poe stories! Perfect for the spooky vibes this season. Go to any Goodwill, and you’ll find old books that would make great decorations. You can often scratch off the words on the spine for a more generic look, too.
Lanterns are easily found in hobby stores, dollar stores, in the Target dollar spot… Pretty much anywhere! They can come very basic or intricate and beautiful. It’s easy to scuff up a lantern that looks a little “too new,” or you can tidy up a chipped lantern with some sanding and paint.
The spider webbing and all other decorations came from Dollar Tree. It’s cheap and they have a decent selection, so you might as well not waste your money elsewhere.
How to Make a DIY Lantern Centerpiece
In the center of your tray (in my case, the glass), place your book on its back. Place the lantern on top and attach it to the book with a few foam adhesive squares (also available at Dollar Tree) if you’d like more stability.
Take a small amount of your spider webbing, and begin stretching it. You want thin whisps to stretch across the centerpiece. Take one bit, wrap one of your decorations in it (just a light covering — This will help hold it in place), apply a bit of hot glue, then glue on the edge of the tray. Continue stretching the webbing and adding the decorations around the entire tray.
Webbing should be added in layers to get a more accurate spider web effect. It can require a little patience to work with such small bits of webbing at a time, but the overall project is pretty quick!
Finally, add your large decoration — For me, it was a skeleton spider I had (again, Dollar Tree). I wish I had a raven due to the Edgar Allen Poe book, but this was fun enough!
Tips & Tricks
- Less is more — When applying hot glue, try 1-2 small dots to prevent seeing large dried clumps. When stretching spider webbing, work with very small pieces at time and add layer after layer.
- Customize it — If you don’t have an old book, replace that with a box (old girl scout cookie box?) and wrap it in webbing. No lantern? Add just an electronic candle, a jar with fairy lights, an incense holder… Anything that will add a little mystical flavor.
- Make it reusable — If you don’t want to use hot glue, you can use foam adhesive dots/squares to attach the decorations. This makes it easy to reuse your tray, lantern, or decorations elsewhere!
More DIY Halloween Projects
- Replace the plastic spiders on this lantern centerpiece with these DIY Halloween Spiders! A few Easy DIY Bats would be a nice touch, too.
- Turn your yard into a creepy cemetery with these DIY Halloween Tombstones! It’s a great pallet project, just like this Pallet Wood Jack-O-Lantern!
- Another super inexpensive decoration is this beautiful DIY Corn Husk Wreath! Preserving corn husks is a great, cheap way to secure a lot of craft materials without breaking the bank!
Want more? Check out this list of the BEST DIY Halloween Decorations!