Creepy Halloween Gnome

So I found this fun Halloween Gnome, made by Kelly-N-Tony on hometalk.com. It was just too cute not to do and I wanted to share! It is so simple and quick to put together - not to mention super cheap!

·      Tomato Cage

·      Black Garbage Bag

·      Wire Hanger

·      An Old Mop Head

·      Creepy Cloth from Dollar Store

·      Large Zip Tie

·      Masking Tape

·      Witch’s Hat

·      Large Potato

Take your tomato cage and flip it upside down. Tie the 3 prongs together with a strong zip tie. I also put masking tape around this for a bit more holding power.

Fold your garbage bag so that you find the exact center and clip off the top, not too much, maybe an inch or 2 from the end. Then slide it over the prongs you have tied together.At this point, you can take your ‘creepy cloth’ from the dollar store and drape it over the garbage bag. This little extra gives the shiny plastic garbage bag a little more texture and interest.

Now get your hanger and bend it like I have in picture. Basically take the 2 sides of the hanger and bend towards each other. Leave the hook alone. Now slide the bent hanger over the top of your prongs like I show in the picture. 

Take your potato and push the hooked end of the wire hanger through the middle like I show in the picture. Push it through in a direction, so that the potato points downward like a 'nose' would. Its ok if the wire pokes out the top – the hat will cover it.

Now take your mop and pull it apart so you just have the strings. Start tying the strings around the hanger just above the potato. I just tied the strings up a few inches and varied the length of the strings. For the longer beard strands, I tied the string at the very end, and for the short pieces, I tied a long string in half. When I was done I trimmed it a bit so it looked like a long 'ZZ Top' sort of beard. For more texture, I took the strings and untwisted them. This made the beard fuller and thicker looking.

Finally, put the witch’s hat on Mr. Gnome!! 

Happy Halloween!!