DIY Wooden Block Halloween Decorations (Made from Inexpensive Landscape Timbers!)

by Julie Wilson

Did you know Halloween spending measures in the billions? Billions! I started making these wooden block Halloween decorations way back in August, and they were in my booth by September 1. By the time the candy aisle was half empty, I’d sold around $200 worth.

Each set of five characters went for $39.95, and the pumpkins (no faces) came in trios for $19.95. My shop owner asked me to price them individually too, and that’s when I lost count of exactly how many sold. A good problem to have.

All of these started as plain ol' landscape timbers—nothing fancy, just a bit of paint, a cruise through Pinterest, and a custom stencil I designed and had created on Etsy.

I still have a few stencils left if you're interested.

Ghostly Trio đŸ‘»

The first video in the series was the Ghostly Trio. I thought this one would fly off the shelves. I even made a full kit with little re-poured jars of Black Velvet, Vintage Linen, and Crystal Clear Chandelier Liquid Patina, plus the faces stencil and pre-cut blocks.

Want to guess how many kits I sold? Exactly zero. Not one. Apparently the ghosts were too shy for the internet.

For something that started as a few scraps of landscape timber, these little ghosts cleaned up surprisingly well. They’ve got just the right amount of charm and imperfection, like they’d float in and say, “Boo,” but politely. A couple coats of paint, a quick patina, and you’ve got instant Halloween personality.

 

Pumpkins & Jack-o-Lanterns 🎃

The next video landed on Debi’s Design Diary’s DIY A-gogo YouTube channel. These pumpkins are the fanciest of the bunch—orange blocks, black faces, and ribbon stems (courtesy of my dangerously large Costco ribbon collection).

I used Summer Crush, Black Velvet, and Crystal Clear Chandelier to seal them up. The pumpkins without faces sold right alongside the jack-o-lanterns. Without the faces, the decor can can hang out as your table’s centerpiece for an extra month. This appeals to the part of me that has trouble completing projects.

 

Frankenstein 🧟

This was where I got a little creative—or indecisive. I couldn’t choose between Gypsy Green and Fancy Farm Girl, so I used both. The middle guy in the thumbnail wears Fancy Farm Girl, and he definitely won the beauty contest.

After painting most of the block in green and letting it dry, I added the hair and face with Black Velvet and Vintage Linen, then sealed them all with Crystal Clear Chandelier. You don’t have to seal them, but if you pack yours away for next year, it helps keep the paint from rubbing off on its friends.

 

Black Cat & Mummy 

These two shared prep with the other characters, so I paired them in one video. The cats are done in Black Velvet, the mummies in Vintage Linen. I made the cat whiskers by pulling threads from a burlap coffee sack—because why not—and sealed the cats with Crystal Clear Chandelier for that nice finished look.

 

What I Learned for Next Year

Starting early was the smartest move. Halloween buyers start hunting in late summer, and by September 1, spooky season is in full swing. The pumpkins sold best, followed by Frankensteins. The Ghostly Trio kits? Not a single one. Sometimes the experiments flop, so we learn and move on.

Next year I’ll probably price the characters individually sooner and see how that goes. The nice thing about landscape timbers is you can buy a few pieces, cut them down, and turn them into whatever characters your imagination (or caffeine level) allows.

When you’re ready to make your own spooky set, grab your DIY Paint favorites right here at Purple Monkey Manor and let your inner mad scientist take over. Tag me on social if you make one — I’d love to see it!

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