Halloween may be just around the corner, but I’m one of those people. Subtle touches of the holiday are all over the house, all year long! Will Smidgen be a Halloween lover? Will she lean more toward the winter holidays, or be partial to summer celebrations? Time will tell!
In the meantime, I thought I’d make a fun decoration that can be out with the pumpkins and bats now, then add another dash of appeal to her nursery once we turn our thoughts to chillier days. What can be so multi-purpose around here? Ghost Pokemon! Let’s make Gastly, one of the original 151, to hang from the ceiling or decorate a wall. Looking for the whole lineup with Haunter and Gengar? Stay tuned!
The best part of this project? The whole family can get involved! You can easily swap out construction paper instead of felt, and tissue paper instead of tulle.
YOU WILL NEED:
- Felt sheets in the following colors:
-Purple
-White
-Pink
-Black - Light purple tulle
- Glue- Fabric glue will work best, though I managed with plain old Elmer’s with a little effort.
- Scissors
- Yarn or clear string for hanging
- Marking tool (white pencil, etc.)
INSTRUCTIONS:
This step is optional, but can be useful if you want to make multiple Gastly!
– Trace your pieces onto a piece of cardstock. You’ll need a circle for the body, a smaller circle for the mouth, and an even *smaller* circle for the eyes. Don’t forget a tiny oval for the pupil, and a small triangle for the teeth. In these instructions, I’ll refer to this stencil. Refer to the images below:
(I got quite the kick out of the goodies I used to trace! Coffee, an Oktoberfest stein, a candle, and fish oil for the eyes!)
With Our Stencil Done, Let’s Go!
On a white sheet, trace and cut two of the ‘eye’ circles. Cut each in half for a total of 4 semi-circles. Save the rest of the white for details!
Using the tooth stencil, trace and cut 4 teeth into the white sheet. This is a great use for scraps!
Cut the ‘mouth’ circle in half, for two semi-circles. Fold one of these semi-circles in half again, and cut around to make it slightly smaller. Refer to the image below. This will make sense in a moment!
On a sheet of pink, trace and cut two of the *larger* semi-circles.
Using black, cut four of the small ovals for the pupils. You should now have all of your Gastly pieces cut!
Using the *smaller* mouth semi-circles, trace and cut the shape on both of the purple body pieces. Whichever sides you trace on will be the insides of our dual-sided Gastly.
On the inside of each body, glue the pink mouth over the open mouth space. The larger, pink mouth covers the smaller space with room to glue!
On the same side of one Gastly, arrange the tulle around the edge, gluing down the inner portion. This is his gas cloud!
NOTE: I shamelessly used tape to help keep the tulle down, as the glue soaked right through. You may want to sew it in with purple thread! If using tissue paper, glue shouldn’t be an issue.
Flip your Gastly bodies over to the ‘outside.’ Glue the white, semi-circle eyes down, at a slight angle and protruding from the edge of the body.
Glue down the pupils, and glue the teeth into the mouth.
Once all of your glued pieces have dried, center your yarn or string vertically in the center of one Gastly. If adding Haunter and Gengar (coming soon!), leave plenty of length out of the bottom. Leave enough from the top, as well, for the hanging loop!
Sandwich and glue your Gastly together. It may help to add weight (such as a book) to help flatten it, and help the glue stick.
Tie a loop up top, and hang your Gastly friend wherever you please!
If you make this little friend, please post your photos, and let me know how it went! If any instructions need clarifying, also let me know! The easier to understand, the better for everyone. Have a great day, and I’ll see you in the next post!
-Tay