Creepy Crafts: 60 Macabre Projects for Peculiar Adults

by Ashley Voortman

Jump start your imagination with spine-tingling craft instruction from TikTok-beloved artist Ashley Voortman.

Hone your craft and fill your shelves with homemade oddities. Ashley Voortman's whimsical crafts bring a little bit of spooky spirit into the everyday with detailed instructions for out-of-the-ordinary sculpture and painting projects. Make a human heart from old books, or sculpt a spider teapot from clay and secondhand china. Craft miniatures for a tiny witch, or build a spirit board straight out of your favorite horror movie.

Voortman’s attention to upcycled materials will have you looking at your empty soy sauce bottles, broken dishware, and crushed matchboxes in a new, ghastly way. Her oil-paint and sculpting expertise ensures that you’ll make quality crafts that’ll keep you up at night. And her playful, quirky tone will encourage you to accept mistakes and embrace the strange as part of the art-making process.

Genres: Nonfiction, Crafts, How To, Adult, Halloween, Horror

224 pages, Paperback

Published October 15, 2024

Reviews

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The craft projects are-laugh-out-loud funny and manage to be kooky and creepy while also wholly unique and creative. This one is a lot of fun, and utilizes many recycled/upcycled elements.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keyzie and I had fun making Barbie and Ken headed my little pony statues and plaques. Some great crafts!

[Stella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, while this book contains very few finished crafts that I would want displayed in my house, it appears to be a "well-crafted" craft book...clear instructions, photos of the process as well as the finished projects, and good humor, too. Some of the projects are easier than others (bookmark vs. extensive clay shaping). While I might cringe at the eyeballs, teeth, ears, severed fingers, etc. others might take great joy in these art pieces. The octopus projects were somewhat appealing, though I personally wouldn't use nice bone china or destroy a book to make something. If you have some recyclables handy or cheap thrift store purchases you want to transform into something for Halloween decoration, this might be the book for you.

[Denise Mullins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly the most enjoyable DIY project book I've ever read. The ghoulish gifts and crafts are wonderfully featured in full color photos with lots of step-by-step instructions. A complete list of supplies accompanies each project and a brief humorous blurb precedes each.. While I don't know if my results would match Voortman's, I know there are at least two items that I personally worked out with results as well done as hers, which would instill confidence to try more involved items.
Even if you don't plan to try any of these projects, this was a fun and interesting read, explaining how some wonderfully exciting results can be accomplished with easily obtainable supplies.

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly creepy collection of crafts . . . and a dream come true if you're a big fan of eyeballs and teeth. The author has mad clay sculpting skills, so your results may vary. My favorite project is what appears to be a kraken emerging from a darling teapot.

Anyone fancy a cuppa?

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is weird!! If you are interested in crafts, making jewelry, accessories etc, but have a macabre streak this book is for you! Learn to make a one eyed pumpkin, a chain of severed ears, barbed wire picture frames, a haunted house, teeth buttons or jewelry, -I could go on-this book is for you! With concise and easy to follow directions, and great photos, you too can be weirdly creative. It is fun!

[Tiffany Culler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic spooktacular crafts

Love the ideas in this book. I'm all amped up to buy supplies to make these creepy crafts that I'll likely never get to! There are some good ideas I can use to finish off some previously started (and obviously never finished - thanks ADHD) Haloweeny projects as well.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

lots of fun

This is a really fun book with easy to read and follow instructions on creepy art projects. I’ve already bookmarked a few that I plan to make. It has pictures as you go along with instructions and lists materials needed which is awesome.

[Juli Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some really interesting projects here, mostly veering toward the polymer-clay side of things. Many of these were a bit grotesque for my personal taste, but they were creative to say the least!

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I my gothic nature loves the creepy crafts in this book, many are not for beginners. Still, the pictures are great to look at for those of us who will never be able to carve polymer clay into anything resembling a realistic body hard. A great creepy craft book for experienced crafters.

[MKF · Rating 3 out of 5]

Makes me wish I could do crafts or at least know someone who could make some of these for me.

[Kristen Barenthaler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is it too early to make some creepy crafts? Asking for a friend and not because I really want to make all of these immediately…

[Karrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of different crafts with lots of teeth and tentacles.

[Danielle Mccoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely creepy.

[Fiore · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun, especially with clay! I love the variety in creative reuse of objects, too. I want to run around and add eyes, tentacles, and teeth to everything around the house.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very unique crafts. Not many are super functional objects once completed. Useful for inspiration alone.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!! So many fun things to make. I work in a public library and we have a makerspace where this book can be used for our patrons.

[Kayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute and fun ideas. I'm planning to make the eyeball plant terrarium and maybe the spider teacup.

[D Reviews Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great ideas, great pictures, and great instructions. I can't wait to get started making these crafts! I highly recommend this for artsy/craftsy people who like spookiness and upcycling.

[Elysa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't work with polymer clay, but if I did, these are the sort of crafts I'd love to make.

[MzNerdy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as entertaining as her videos.

I read this in Ashley's voice all the way through. The giggles I had inserting my own little "wap-chow" finger snap magic at the few creations I attempted so far.