Building The Crowder's

Hello friends!! It’s time for another Halloween Diy and this is a good one!  Not too long ago, I was scrolling and happened upon, the cutest ghost pillow. It stopped me in my scrolling tracks, which is hard to do.  I had to have it, so I clicked the cute little ghost pillow and gasped out loud! Why, you ask? Your first clue might be, that it took me to Pottery Barn’s website. So, you may know where I am going with this?  If you have ever admired Pottery Barn’s decor or anything they sell, then you know it can be pricey.  How much was the pillow?  Drumroll, please….

Gus, the ghost pillow is $80!! 

Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love Pottery Barn, and it’s worth paying for quality items that you will keep forever.  That being said, I do not think, I will ever bring myself to pay $80 for any pillow, especially one that will only be out for one month out of the year.  So, what’s a girl to do?  Dupe it, of course!!

Supplies for Gus, the ghost

Gus, the ghost – Step One

Let’s make Gus, the Ghost! Place the stuffed animal in a sitting position and drape the blanket over it.  I made sure the hem of the blanket was touching the counter and then I pulled the hem some more, so there was some laying on the counter. I wanted to have a little excess to work with when we use the velcro. Once I had the blanket wrapped around, the way I liked it, I cut the excess off.  Doing it this way keeps the cut edge at the back of the pillow.

Gus, the ghost – step two

For the next step, I took the excess blanket and made a “bottom” for Gus, the ghost.  I laid the blanket out and placed the stuffed animal on it.  I grabbed my sharpie and drew a circle around the animal, then cut it out.  I, then, cut strips of velcro about three inches in length. I removed one side of the adhesive strip and placed the velcro around the outer edge of the circle.  Keep the adhesive strip that is on top attached, for now.

Gus, the ghost – Step Three

Now it’s time to attach the top and bottom pieces together.  Place the top blanket over the stuffed animal and arrange it exactly how you want it to look.  Next, remove the top adhesive strip from the velcro, but only one at a time.  Once the strip is removed, pull the top blanket taught and press it on the adhesive to attach the two pieces.  Then do the same thing all the way around, remembering to pull the top blanket taught.  This helps to keep the stuffed animal sitting up and makes the shape of Gus, the ghost.  

Gus, the ghost – step four

I found that the best way to do the back was to let the part that comes over the head stay how it is now. Then I took one side of the blanket and folded the cut edge under and pulled that side taught and attached it to the last velcro piece on the bottom portion. See picture below, for a visual understanding.

Gus, the ghost – step five

I fold the other side the same way and pulled it taught across the first side. I want to see where it met, so I knew where my velcro need to be placed. Once I knew, I attached the velcro and the blanket.

Gus, the ghost – step six

I continued attaching the velcro and the blanket together to create a faux seam down the back of Gus, the ghost. Once I made it to the end, I wanted to make sure the cut edge did not accidentally slip out or start fraying. I used a tiny amount of Tacky Fabric Glue and glued the blanket to itself. Then laid the last velcro piece and attached the blanket, making sure the two edges lined up perfectly. I think it turned out great!

gus, the ghost – step seven

Ok, friends we are in the home stretch! No stopping us now!! The very last step is to make and attach the eyes. I did not have any black felt on hand, so I went a different route on Gus’ eyes. I took copy paper and folded it in half. On the front side I drew an eye the size and shape I wanted, and colored it with a black sharpie. I then opened the top paper to reveal the inside of the “card” we made. On the inside of the card I colored a large section black. Once that was done I folded the card back to have the black eye on top once again. Have you figured out why I did it that way? This was the easiest way to get two black eyes that are the exact same size and shape once they were cut out.

I did go a step further and add clear contact paper to the eyes, so they would last longer. For the final step, I super glued a magnet on each eye and once they were dry I got two more magnets and went under the top blanket, on the front side, and attached the magnet from under the blanket to the magnet that is glued to the eyes.

Thats all folks!! This diy can be done in an afternoon. You could invite a bunch of your girlfriends over and everyone can make their own Gus, the ghost!! If you remake this, I would love to see! Tag me on Instagram! Happy Diying!

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