(Donna Erickson)

Invite a ghost, a monster and a smiling pumpkin into your home this month with this super-easy and, yes, just a little messy, craft project that kids and adults of all ages will enjoy.

You'll be repurposing old vases and tossed jars from your recycle bin, cutting up colorful tissue paper and messing around with lots of sticky glue to create spooky "stained-glass-like" votive candleholders that will bring light and color to your Halloween decor.

When the glue has dried, line 'em up and light 'em up to welcome a spooktacular Halloween holiday spirit at your house.

HERE'S WHAT YOU'LL NEED

  • Tissue paper in black and bright, traditional Halloween colors like orange, lime green and purple.  
  • Empty, medium-size, clear glass pasta or pickle jars with labels removed, old wide-mouth vases and even fish-bowls that are collecting dust and ready to be repurposed.  
  • Household white glue, such as Elmer's all-purpose white glue.  
  • Small bowl.  
  • Paintbrush and scissors.

    HERE'S WHAT TO DO

    Cut the plain-color tissue paper into 1-inch squares, triangles and rectangles. Older kids and adults can use the black tissue for cutting specific shapes for the features of a Halloween character, such as circles for the eyes and mouth of a white tissue-paper ghost. Or the zigzag mouth and triangle-shape eyes and nose of an orange pumpkin.

    Squeeze white household glue into the small bowl

    Advertisement
    and dilute it with a few drops of water. Brush a light coat of the glue mixture on the outside of the glass container. In an overlapping pattern, apply the tissue shapes over the glue, applying the background colored shapes first. Smooth out each piece with your fingers as you go along. When working with young children, you might want to apply glue to the glass a section at a time, so fingers don't get too gooey to handle the paper.

    When the outside of the glass is covered, apply another coating or two of the glue mixture over all of the tissue paper. Let dry for several hours. When dry, the tissue paper will look bright and colorful again.

    Set a battery-operated votive candle inside and display on a windowsill or use as a table centerpiece at a Halloween party.

    Donna Erickson's award-winning television series, "Donna's Day," is airing on public television nationwide. Watch it in the Twin Cities at 7:30 a.m. Fridays on tptLife on channels 13 and 17. Sign up for Donna's e-newsletter at donnasday.com. Her latest book is "Donna Erickson's Fabulous Funstuff for Families."

     

     

     

     

     

    •