When the kids want to do craft at the drop of a hat and I need a simple and quick solution, I grab some empty toilet paper rolls from our stash. They're free, readily available {without leaving the house} and there's so many different crafts you can make with them. Literally hundreds, and for any theme. Today I'm going to show you how to make 25 Halloween kids crafts using toilet paper rolls {or cardboard tubes if you don't want to use toilet paper rolls}.
These Halloween toilet paper roll crafts are all really simple and can easily be done by preschoolers or school children as a classroom art project. Make these cute ghosts, monsters, black cats, bats and even a haunted house. Use them to decorate the classroom for Halloween or take them home to use in Halloween small world play.
Before you get crafting you'll need to have some basic supplies on hand. Each of these crafts will require scissors, glue and toilet paper rolls. If you don't want to recycle used toilet paper rolls you can use paper towel rolls or buy cardboard craft tubes online. A lot of the crafts will also require either coloured paint or coloured paper and googly eyes. You can find all of these easily at stationary stores, dollar stores or online in my Amazon store.
MORE HALLOWEEN CRAFTS: 49 Halloween Crafts For Kids
GHOSTS & MUMMIES MADE FROM TOILET PAPER ROLLS
If you love Casper the friendly ghost you'll love these cute toilet paper roll ghosts. Use the ghost template at The Craft Train to create your own friendly ghosts.
Make these adorable ghost treat buckets from empty toilet paper rolls like Red Ted Art. There's also instructions to make alien and pumpkin versions. The best part is they're small enough that the kids won't be overloaded with treats so no massive sugar high {hopefully}. They'd be a cute way to hand out treats to trick or treaters on Halloween night or display lollies at a Halloween party.
These toilet paper roll mummies are my kids favourite Halloween craft. We make a few new ones each year and use them as decorations and in Halloween play. To make your own follow my easy Halloween mummy tutorial here.
TOILET PAPER ROLL BATS
Grab some toilet paper rolls, coloured paper and sticky or googly eyes and make these cute toilet paper roll bats. Even though they have fangs, they're more cute than creepy. Follow the instructions at Simple Everyday Mom to make your own toilet paper roll bats.
These cardboard tube bats are so goofy and full of character. I love their mismatched eyes and toothy grin fangs. Follow the instructions and download the free printable bat wing template from The Best Ideas for Kids to make these cool guys for your home.
If you want a cute way to hand out lollies to trick or treaters then make some of these Halloween bat pinatas. Making them is a fun craft activity then you can fill them with Halloween treats and hand them out on Halloween night. Follow the pinata instructions over at Red Ted Art.
This flying paper tube bat doubles as a hanging Halloween decoration as well as a craft activity. Make some flying bats following the instructions at Mombrite then hang them on a Halloween tree or over a haunted house.
MONSTERS MADE FROM CARDBOARD TUBES
If you have lots of yarn scraps that need using up then try these toilet paper roll yarn wrapped monsters. Make them in any colour combination you like by following the instructions at Danya Banya.
Use the monster template at Joy of Sharing to make these tissue paper toilet roll monsters. Mix and match the pieces from the template and some googly eyes to create some unique monsters.
I love these quirky, colourful toilet paper roll monsters. These guys are definitely more cute than scary and would be a great Halloween decoration. Follow the instructions at Kids Activities Blog to create your own.
These fine motor toilet roll monsters from Taming Little Monsters use a combination of different techniques including tearing paper, painting, drawing, cutting paper and twisting pipe cleaners to create these adorable monsters. These are all great ways for children to work on their fine motor skills while getting creative for Halloween.
Paint and decorate some toilet paper rolls to create an awesome monster mobile like Happy Hooligans. Follow these instructions to turn your paper roll monsters into a decorative hanging mobile.
Ok so these aren't technically monsters, but these cardboard tube aliens are still a great Halloween craft {and perfect for space week too}. Grab some pipe cleaners, pom poms and googly eyes and follow the instructions at Artsy Craftsy Mom.
FRANKENSTEIN TOILET PAPER ROLL CRAFTS
This toilet paper roll Frankenstein is so simple, yet so effective. The addition of golf tees as the bolts in his neck is a genius idea and the spiky hair makes him really come alive. To make your own creepy Frankenstein, follow the instructions at No Time For Flashcards.
This paper roll Frankenstein has super funky black cupcake liner hair. It reminds me of when Frank gets turned into a human with lush long hair in Hotel Transylvania Transformania. If you don't have cupcake liners though, there are plenty of other alternatives for his hair, follow the instructions to make him at Non Toy Gifts.
This printable 3D toilet paper roll Frankenstein is super easy to make, simply get the Frankenstein printable from Happy Paper Time, print it and then cut and glue it onto a toilet paper roll.
This printable paper roll Frankenstein comes blank so children can colour or decorate it however they like. Once they're done glue the template to a toilet paper roll and add some googly eyes. Get the printable Frankenstein template from Conserva Mom.
This cardboard tube Frankenstein craft also comes with a free printable template. The template can be jazzed up with some googly eyes and pipe cleaner bolts. Download the Frankenstein printable from Simple Everyday Mom.
TOILET PAPER ROLL WITCHES, VAMPIRES AND MORE
This toilet paper roll witch looks amazing and is easy to make following the tutorial at Red Ted Art. You'll need some yarn, paper and googly eyes. There's also instructions to make her a little black cat and a broomstick.
If you prefer a more traditional creepy witch, there's these spooky toilet paper roll witches with big glaring eyes and a long crooked nose. It just needs a wart on the end of the nose! Get the printable witch template from The Inspiration Edit.
Check out our witch crafts post for more ideas including paper plate witches, witch's hats and their spooky haunted houses.
If the black cat above doesn't take your fancy then try these 3D toilet paper roll black cats. They look like they'd be tricky to make but they're actually cut using a really simple free template from The Craft Train. They can be made from toilet paper rolls or paper tubes then simply paint as you like.
If you want to make a whole group of Halloween toilet paper friends, get the printable Halloween toilet paper roll templates from the Printables Fairy. The templates include a vampire, Frankenstein, a pumpkin, a zombie, a mummy, a witch, a bat, and a cat.
Vampires don't always have to be super scary looking, just look at this cute toilet paper roll vampire. With a few pieces of coloured paper, paint and googly eyes you can create a cute Count Dracula by following the steps at Artsy Momma.
Did you know you can build an epic haunted house made out of paper rolls and cardboard? It's so easy and would make a great classroom activity. Collect a cardboard box and some paper tubes from the recycling and follow the tutorial at Crafts By Ria.
If you make the haunted house above then you'll need some spooky Halloween trees to decorate the grounds around it. These haunted trees will make the perfect addition to any Halloween small world. Follow the instructions over at Taming Little Monsters to make your own.
MORE TOILET PAPER ROLL CRAFT IDEAS
To keep up to date with my latest posts, play activities and book lists you can sign up to my email list or follow me on Instagram, Pinterest & Facebook. I'd also love for you to join parents from all around the world in our Facebook group.
Disclosure - This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience which means I may earn a small commission, at no cost to you, should you make a purchase.