Grab some basic supplies and make a ghost scrape painting that can be on display all October!! They are the cutest Halloween decorations.
Scrape painting is also called squeegee painting or paint dragging! And its’ such a fun way to create art! Watching the picture reveal is almost like a magic trick! And today we are making a darling Halloween project!
Things you need to create a Scrape Painting
- Black paper
- White Paint- I used acrylic
- Squeegee, vinyl application tool, piece of cardboard, or old credit cards
- Tray or plastic tablecloth to protect your workspace
- Paper towels
- Squeeze bottle (optional)
- Tape
Set up for the Painting
Set up might look a little different depending on the ages of your kids!
This project can be messy- which is always half the fun! Lay down a plastic tablecloth and put your paper on a tray or a cookie sheet to help contain the mess!
You can tape the picture to the tray so it doesn’t slide around when you pull the squeegee over it!
The squeegee needs to be cleaned off between papers and maybe even in between wipes depending on how much paint is on the paper. Keeping a bowl of water and some paper towels nearby will be handy! You can cut some cardboard and use them as scrapers then you can toss them after each picture!
If your kids are little, putting the paint in little squeeze bottles makes it a little easier to control the flow of the paint!
How to make a Ghost Scrape painting
Step 1. Paint
To create the ghost, you just need one little arch of white paint. You can also add a little arch on each side to make the ghost have arms.
Step 2: Drag the squeegee
You want to ensure the squeegee is wide enough to cover the paint. If you are doing a big ghost, make sure the squeegee is large enough.
The squeegee will get paint on it, so make sure to clean it in between each picture!
Step 3: Let dry
These pictures dry quickly since you are scraping off most of the paint!
Step 4: Details
Take a black marker and add in eyes. You can also add in a mouth, eyelashes, and a little blush. You could make it so the ghost is holding a pumpkin. Be creative!
When you are done, you are left with a cute little work of art!
I got both these frames from the dollar tree! Such a great deal!
How to create a ghost family
Now that you have how to make a ghost down, let’s make a family of ghosts! We created one of our family.
The Ghost family picture is made the same way except you have to do each ghost one at a time. You don’t have to wait in between for each to dry. Just do one, cleaning your squeegee in between each swipe and then add more paint and swipe again.
It looks cool because they are a little transparent which adds to the ghost picture!
Make sure to clean your squeegee in between each ghost or you are going to end up with white smudges all over your picture!
After it dries, you can go in and add any details you want! Eyes, mouth, mustaches, hats, bows etc!
We trimmed our family portriat and put them in frames to use for our Halloween decor.
Troubleshooting Paint scraping
- You can’t see the paint: Some whites are a little more translucent! I recommend regular acrylic paint. I tried a shimmer and it disappeared when I swiped!
- I’ve got lines. When I used cardboard as my swiper, it created some lines on the ghost. I actually kind of liked it! So different squeegees are going to give different results.
- The paint is too thick. If you can’t squeeze out a good arch because your paint is too thick, you can mix a tiny bit of water to thin it out! Be careful because you don’t want it too runny either!
- I messed up. Can I go over it? I tried going over the ghost a second time. It made it less ghosty – more saturated. And it’s hard to line it up the same. It will create a different look for sure! As Bob Ross said, there are no mistakes just happy accidents so maybe you will like it!
Save for later
Too busy to get crafting today? No problem! Pin this post to remind yourself about this project later! Sharing my projects helps me reach more people, allowing me to continue sharing free content!
OTHER totally cute Halloween projects
- ghost and candy corn garland
- Halloween cut files
- Creepy Doormat
- Pool noodle candles
- Halloween sensory game
- Yard monsters
- Halloween play doh printables
- Trivia game (free printable)
- DIY spell Book
- Halloween golf
- Classroom party games
- Spooky dinner ideas with free printables
- mummy door for your front door board
- DIY witch’s broom
- Table decorations for Halloween
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