Learn how to make a milk jug skeleton with your family for Halloween! This is such a fun, easy, and budget friendly activity for your decor. Includes a free template.
Skills Required: None. You’ll be drawing a pattern onto plastic milk containers with a Sharpie, then cutting out the pieces with a craft knife. Then you will make body parts and tie and glue it all together. This is a fun family activity, or older kids can probably do it alone.
Each year I’m always looking for unique Halloween crafts – something I haven’t tried before! This year I wanted to make a Halloween craft for kids that I could make with recycled materials. AND hang on the front porch!
But the other thing is that whatever I make can’t be made out of paper, because we get a lotttt of rain here. And even though it’s covered under the front porch, it’s going to get wet.
Say hello to the milk jug skeleton!
If you or your children like skeleton crafts, this is a fun one! And the best part – you don’t need any crafting skills to do it. Even if you’ve never crafted before, you can make this Halloween decor.
Actually I was wrong. The best part of this project is the compliments you’re going to get when people see it on your front porch! I have it up already for the season, and I’ve even gotten a compliment from a delivery driver. And they never notice my decor!
In addition to showing you how to do the project, there’s also a free template I’m excited to share. It makes it super easy to do this project because all the templates are there for you.
If you’re ready to dive in, learn how to make this cute skeleton below! Then let me know what you think in the comments.
Milk Jug Skeleton
Learn how to make a skeleton for your Halloween decor out of old milk jugs! This is a budget friendly holiday activity.
Materials
- Milk jugs (6-8)
- Skeleton pattern
- Sharpie
- Clear twine
- Rubbing alcohol
- Paper towels
Tools
- Scissors
- Craft knife
- Hole punch
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Instructions
- Gather the supplies for your skeleton. You’re going to need about 6 plastic milk jugs, scissors, a Sharpie, craft knife, hole punch, clear thread/floss, painter’s tape, and a hot glue gun.
- Print out the pattern on 8.5 x 11 sheets of paper.
- Starting with the face, cut out the portions of the pattern you are going to trace with a craft knife. Cut out the eyes, nose holes, and teeth slots.
- Pick up a milk jug, turn it upside down and to the back. The opening that is normally at the top should be facing down towards the neck. Tape the pattern to the center back of the jug with the painter’s tape. Trace with a Sharpie.
- Remove the paper, leaving the pattern behind. Begin cutting out those areas of the plastic jug with a craft knife.
- Use rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover and a paper towel to remove the Sharpie marker lines.
- Repeat the same process above with the rib pattern and another milk jug. Then grab a third milk jug for the hips and turn it upside down. Tape the pattern to the jug as shown.
- Trace the pattern onto the jug with a Sharpie.
- Cut the hip piece out from the jug using the craft knife and scissors. Remove the marker with rubbing alcohol.
- This is the only portion of the project without a pattern. Take two milk jugs and trace shoulders around the handles with the Sharpie. It doesn’t need to be exact.
- Cut out the shoulder pieces and remove the marker lines. Save the jugs for the remaining body parts. You can cut those out at this time. You will need two hands, eight bones, two round knees, and two feet. Set the pieces aside.
- Warm up the hot glue gun. Begin by hot gluing the head to the neck. Apply a line of hot glue around the top of the rib carton and attach it to the neck of the head. Hold until the glue solidifies.
- Next attach the hips to the base of the ribs. You will apply glue all over the top of the hips, keeping the long bone pieces on the side.
- Attach the two shoulders you cut out with hot glue as shown. They should fit snugly against the top of the rib carton on either side. Hold in place until they cool.
- Punch holes in the shoulders at the bottom, and in the base of the long bones on the sides of the hips.
- The last step is to tie everything together using the clear floss or twine. You’ll use single loops for the shoulders and top of the hips, and then use double (two) loops of twine to make everything else hang flat.
- Hang your skeleton inside or outside underneath a covered area.
Now that you’re done making this skeleton, here are some other ideas you need to check out:
Connie
Friday 20th of October 2023
The skeleton was fun. I outlined mine with sharpie.
Amy
Friday 20th of October 2023
Yay glad you liked it!
Paula
Thursday 24th of August 2023
Another very clever idea!