Reuse A Dryer Vent To Make Adorable Light-Up Halloween Decorations

Autumn is upon us, and crafters everywhere are getting to work. Whether you love spook-tacular fall decor or tend to go more for harvest-forward themes, now is the time to indulge your inner maker and embrace the season. There's nothing we love more than Halloween table decor you can easily do yourself using upcycled materials that keep crafting easy and affordable, and this project from Instagram creator @fray_at_home certainly delivers. By wrapping a repurposed dryer vent hose into the shape of a pumpkin, you can make lovely light-up additions that perfectly match your fall decor, whatever your style. 

When it comes to sourcing materials, you could look for signs that it's time for a new dryer vent whenever you get around to cleaning it and hold onto the old piece if you wind up replacing it. If you don't have an extra dryer vent lying around, pick one up from the hardware store for under $15. Any vent ducting will suffice, but if you are shopping specifically for this project, white vinyl vent ducts are ideal. Products like the Lambro White Vinyl Duct (available at Home Depot for $7.19) work particularly well because they do not have an interior lining and will allow the fairy lights to shine through more easily. 

Otherwise, all you need for these adorable light-up pumpkins are some fairy lights, sticks, tape, and glue. You can find simple and inexpensive fairy lights, like these btfarm Battery-Operated Twinkle Lights, but keep an eye out for lights in various colors if you are going for a specific look. Orange lights glowing through the white tube would make lovely alternatives to jack-o'-lanterns, and you could paint a face on your dryer vent pumpkin to finish the design for an even more unique DIY.

First, curl your dryer vent hose around to size your pumpkin. You don't have to be too specific here; just make sure the hose will be long enough to form a circle and the coils will look the way you want them to, not too bunched up nor too spread out. Cut the hose to size, and use a wire cutter to cut the coil. Before gluing the ends together to form a circle, attach the fairy lights to the inside of the tube at each end with tape. Make sure the light's battery pack is outside of the hose, and then glue the hose ends together to form a circle. You may want to reinforce the seal with some clips while it dries. All that's left is to find a few sticks to serve as the pumpkin stem, though you can also get playful and pop a small witch's hat on top of your faux jack-o'-lantern or put a vase or candlestick in the center to enhance the look. 

Depending on the type of vent tube you are working with, the lights may or may not be visible from the inside. If that's the case with your upcycled hose, wrap the lights around the outside of the pumpkin, securing the wire with drops of glue, glue dots, or transparent tape as needed. If you would rather nix the lights, paint your dryer vent pumpkins in autumn colors or embellish white ones with glitter. Mix these DIY Halloween decorations in with other clever upcycling projects, like cute pumpkin decor from old plastic bags, to create a sustainable, pleasing, and memorable arrangement perfectly fit for the season.