The Spooky Season is upon us all!
I decided to kick off my blog with a project I just recently finished, which is this gloriously fantastic Skeleton in a cage! The whole project came out to just under $20 for the cost (minus paint costs, but we'll discuss that in a bit), and I made mine to be weather-ready! As much as I love the idea of lugging in my creation every time it rains in Wisconsin, I figured it was more realistic to create something that would last instead.
Thus far; Gregory, our wonderful volunteer, has weathered two storms, and is still doing beautifully!
Alright - let's begin!
Materials Required
From Dollar Tree: a 2 pack of spiders, 3 chunks of chain, 1 spooky cloth, and 2 laundry baskets.
Other Items: zip ties (I used about 10), a skeleton/cage-inhabitant, and spray paint
If you're curious what exactly I used, I will include links and pictures at the bottom of this post.
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| Example of cutting the spaces in the basket |
Time to get to work!
- Basket Prep: I decided to take my laundry baskets and cut every other line of plastic out to increase the distance between the 'bars' for better viewing. I then cut out two holes at the bottom of the basket for Gregory's legs to stick through.
- Painting the Basket: I spray painted the basket silver first, then deciding it needed to look a little less shiny, added flecks of matte black spray paint. I picked the spray paint cans up from Menards for maybe $4.25 a piece, but I've used them for multiple projects! A gal always has to have some spray paint!
- 8 Legged Freaks and Zip Ties: While the baskets were drying, I spray painted 8 zip ties the same metallic silver color as the basket, and two zip ties black for attaching my spiders. I had thought about hot gluing the spiders on the outside of the 'cage,' but since I wanted to keep this outside through the season, I figured zip ties would be more weather-resistant. I also spray painted the two pack of spiders from Dollar Tree black, so that the zip ties would be slightly less noticeable.
- Waiting to dry: WAIT AT LEAST 24 HOURS AFTER SPRAY PAINTING TO ENSURE EVERYTHING IS GOOD TO GO! They say patience is a virtue, but not for this girl - I was rearing and ready to go!
- Constructing time!: First I cut up some of the creepy cloth and placed it at the bottom of one of the baskets, pulling it through some of the holes to make it hang underneath. I zip-tied one of the chains to the bottom of that basket in the center, and placed Gregory in there, with his legs hanging out the bottom. Then I zip-tied my two baskets together, top to top to create the cage. I suggest zip-tying them with even spacing between all four to ensure it stays together. Again, I had thought about hot-gluing the baskets together, but decided against it for longevity. Next, I zip-tied two more chains to the top with the silver zip ties and attached my spiders with the black zip-ties. The last silver zip tie was utilized for making sure Gregory stayed where he belonged.
- Hang that bad ride: Hang it somewhere for the world to see!!!!
Zip Tie Placements: 4 silvers to keep the two baskets together. 3 silvers to attach the chain, 2 at the top, 1 at the bottom. 1 silver to keep your skeleton in place (optional, if you choose a different caged critter). 2 black zip ties to attach your spiders for a total of 10!
He looks really good swaying in the wind from our planter holder by the steps up to the second floor!
Products I Used with Links
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Special Thanks To
This post from The Navage Patch for giving me inspiration for this project, and doing most of the hard work for me! ;)
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