25 Easy Day of the Dead DIY Projects

The Day of the Dead or Día de Los Muertos is a traditional Mexican holiday that celebrates the lives of our family members and loved ones who have passed away. Here are 25 easy-to-make Day of the Dead DIY crafts. Some of these are so easy they will only take a few minutes to make. Many of these Day of the Dead crafts would make incredible decorations for your altar or for a party or celebration.

1. Pumpkin Sugar Skull Candle Holders

These Day of the Dead sugar skull candle holders are an easy Día de Los Muertos craft project. A DIY pumpkin will make a stunning centerpiece, ideal for a Day of the Dead altar. Your kids will love decorating these colorful holders with flowers and candles as the focal point for your altar.

2. Embossed Prayer Candle by Crafty Chica

Painting and glittering prayer candles will give your Day of the Dead altar a cheery feel! The flame represents eternal life, and people use certain scents to lure the dead. Adding a prayer candle to your Dia de Los Muertos celebration is a simple and creative way to honor our loved ones that have passed away.

3. Glow in the Dark Skull Lanterns

These non-toxic glow-in-the-dark Day of the Dead lanterns are so easy to make. They are a great Dia de Los Muertos craft to make with kids. We like to make this every year and the kids will sometimes use them as night lights. They are so much fun to create!

4. Painted Skulls

Try this original activity that the whole family will have a fantastic time doing! Get those creative juices flowing by painting these skulls. You can use them as decoration for the altar or for a  Día de Los Muertos party.

5. Sugar Skull Balloons

Cute sugar skull balloons that are so easy to do and will make your wall pop! The best part is how affordable and simple this Day of the Dead craft is, and it only takes a few minutes to make.

6. Dia de los Muertos Garland by MamiTalks 

A playful Día de Los Muertos craft that will look great as part of your altar or as a Day of the Dead-themed decor in your home. Pin it on the side of the table for the perfect Day of the Dead decoration.

7. Easy Kid-Friendly Skull Lanterns

This Día de Los Muertos lantern is not only a quick craft but also an affordable and kid-friendly option for your altar. This is an easy activity you can enjoy doing together as a family.

 8. Dia de Los Muertos Ribbon Bracelet

You won’t believe how a sugar skull bracelet could be so cute! Hop on the beading train and whip up a batch of bracelets for Dia de Los Muertos! Check out the video on how to make this easy and fabulous craft!

9. Day of the Dead Piñata

Make your own Sugar Skull Piñata and fill it with delicious Day of the Dead goodies! Let your imagination fly, and use different colors and designs to decorate these amusing piñatas!

10. Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Tree

Inspire your children with an appreciation for those family members who are no longer with us. Take advantage of this holiday to talk about death in a positive light with a sugar skull-inspired Día de Los Muertos tree. This easy DIY project will liven up your altar and looks great next to the Day of the Dead pumpkin sugar skull candle holders.

11. Papel Picado Pumpkins by Crafty Chica

Here is a super cool series of glittered papel picado pumpkins themed around Mexican pop art, perfect for the Dia de Los Muertos altar. Colorful and glittery this is such a fun Day of the Dead craft to make!

12. Stone Sugar Skulls By Alisa Burke

Looking for the perfect project to create unique Day of the Dead crafts? Gather those rocks your kids have collected over the years and make these incredible stone sugar skulls! It is a fantastic activity to do with your kids on Día de Los Muertos.

13. Easy Skull Box Craft

These easy crafts are a great DIY idea and these will look beautiful decorating a Día de Los Muertos altar. You can create unique designs and paint these in so many different ways. Your family will enjoy making these little boxes, and they look so cute!

14. Day of the Dead Goodie Bags by Casa Artelexia

Surprise your kids with a decorated Day of the Dead-themed lunch bag! Your kids will love reading encouraging messages inside this adorable sugar skull-themed goodie bag.

15. Day of the Dead Planters by Creative Kismet 

These Day of the Dead Calavera (skull) planters would make great decor for a Day of the Dead party or given to friends/family as gifts to celebrate life. The plants make great hair or fancy hats! Sugar skulls, and other decorated skull-like things, are often offered to the living and the dead during the Dia de Los Muertos holiday.

16. Sugar Skull Dolls by ZingZing Tree

Make these cute Sugar Skull dolls that will look fantastic as stand-alone ornaments and look amazing added to table centerpieces for your Día de Los Muertos party. They turned out so beautifully and they are easy to make.

17. DIY Day Of the Dead Catrina Craft for Kids

This simple and adorable Catrina is a fabulous craft to make with the kids, ideal for decorating an altar. Día de Los Muertos is all about celebrating the lives of loved ones that have passed away and bringing ancestors “to life” by remembering and telling their stories.

18. Easy Day of The Dead Skull Mask Craft

Gear up to the Dia de Los Muertos holiday with lots of incredible crafts for a Day of the Dead party at home. You can use anything to decorate these sugar skull masks. Use bright and vibrant colors to make them more fun!

19. Felt Skulls from Artelexia

An adorable, fuzzy take on traditional sugar skulls, these felt skulls are perfect for the Día de Los Muertos. So let your kids go wild, matching colorful pieces of felt, and add a few embroidery stitches to create your own felt sugar skulls!

20. Day of the Dead Wreath by Persialou

Make a beautiful Day of the Dead craft inspired by the colorful sugar skulls and ofrendas (offerings) used to celebrate the holiday. The marigold is a popular Día de Los Muertos symbol These pretty orange flowers are used to decorate altars made for loved ones. Marigold tissue paper flowers are used as the base for this beautiful wreath.

21. How To Make Sugar Skull Tutorial from Sugar and Charm

Here is an imaginative take on the traditional art of Mexican Sugar Skulls which usually include beautiful and colorful designs. These vibrant decorations are so easy to make too! Great for Day of the Dead festivities.

22. Day of the Dead Skull Sun Catcher with Melted Beads from Artful Parent

Your kids will love this Day of the Dead sugar skull suncatcher! This homemade suncatcher with plastic beads would work well as a Día de Los Muertos ornament. Stick them on your kids’ bedroom windows and watch the colors shine through!

23. 3-D Calavera Masks

These colorful 3D Calavera or careta masks are a great new idea to add to your Day of the Dead party kit. Use this colorful craft as a costume or as part of your decorations.

 

24. Day of The Dead DIY Noise Maker

There’s not a child that doesn’t love to make noise! This easy and colorful Day of the Dead-inspired noisemaker is a cheery craft for kids. It’s sure to be a hit at any Day of the Dead party or celebration. 

This sparkly noisemaker is a beautiful way to introduce kids to the meaning behind El Día de Los Muertos. You can celebrate the memory of loved ones by creating a DIY project that incorporates Day of the Dead symbolism.

25. Shrink Plastic Jewelry by Tried & True

I love participating in Craft Lightning projects. This is a  fun Craft Lightning project that is a blast! They stretch the creative muscles by pushing you to come up with an ingenious project that only takes 15 minutes to make.

 

These fantastic and easy DIY Day of the Dead projects are perfect for celebrating this important holiday. Get creative and have a blast with all of these Dia de Los Muertos crafts which can be used for bringing your altar to life or simply as decorations or as a whimsical project. 

Let me know if you make any of these and make sure to add some more in the comments if you made a cute Day of the Dead DIY project yourself or find an awesome one out there.

Sharing is caring!