• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Polka Dot Chair logo

  • SEWING
    • Free Sewing Patterns
    • Bag Sewing Patterns
    • Costumes Sewing Tutorials
    • Apparel Sewing Patterns
    • Learn to Sew
    • Beginner Friendly Sewing Projects
    • Hand Embroidery Patterns
    • Tips & Techniques
    • All Sewing
  • QUILTING
    • Quilt Block Patterns
    • Learn to Quilt
    • Free Quilt Patterns
    • Quilt Patterns
    • All Quilting
  • CRAFTS
    • Disney
    • Cricut
    • Printables
    • All Crafts
  • HOLIDAYS
    • Seasonal Projects
    • Valentine’s Day
    • Easter
    • 4th of July
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • All Holidays
  • TUTORIALS
  • ABOUT
    • About Me
    • My Fabric Collections
    • Published Books
    • Press
    • FAQ’s
    • Contact
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • SHOP
menu icon
go to homepage
  • SHOP
  • TUTORIALS
  • SEWING
  • QUILTING
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • CRAFTS
  • HOLIDAY PROJECTS
  • ABOUT
    • Published Books
    • My Fabric Collections
  • CONTACT
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • SHOP
    • TUTORIALS
    • SEWING
    • QUILTING
    • SUBSCRIBE
    • CRAFTS
    • HOLIDAY PROJECTS
    • ABOUT
      • Published Books
      • My Fabric Collections
    • CONTACT
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Holidays » Halloween

    DIY Floating Witch Hat Luminaries

    Updated: Sep 14, 2022 by Melissa Mortenson · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · 92 Comments

    Add a bit of whimsy to your Halloween Porch decorations this year with these Floating Witch Hat luminaries! They even light up, making them a fun and only slightly eerie Halloween decorating idea.  

    If you like this project, you might also like these DIY Halloween Porch Decorating Ideas!

    black witch hats hanging on front porch

    (FYI: Images from this site are copyrighted. DO NOT use them without permission.)

    Table of Contents
    • Halloween Porch Decorating Idea: How to Make DIY Floating Witches Hats
    • Video Instructions
    • How to Get all of our Free Halloween Crafts Ideas!
    • How to Hang Candlesticks on our Porch for Halloween
    • Supplies
    • How to Hang the Hats
    • A Few Tips if you are making these to decorate your porch for Halloween

    Halloween Porch Decorating Idea: How to Make DIY Floating Witches Hats

    Video Instructions

    We’ve made a short video of the process to hang the hats on your porch. We used LED light pucks for the video. You can watch it playing on this page or view it on our YouTube channel.

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    This post has been updated from a previous version to include all of the wonderful tips and tricks shared by readers who have made these Hanging Witches Hats.

    Our front porch has a section that is long and narrow.  It’s not quite wide enough for furniture, but I still love to decorate it.  Last Christmas, I hung giant stars from the ceiling of that section of the porch- (see the stars hung at Christmastime)

    It always made me smile a little bit when I’d drive by at night and find them lit up.

    Hanging paper stars on front porch at night
    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    Since I’m always looking for clever front porch decorating ideas for Halloween. Building on that same idea, one year on Halloween I hung floating light-up Witch Hats along the porch (btw, is it Witch’s Hat as in a hat that belongs to a witch? Or is it Witches Hat as in multiple Witches with hats??) I’m not sure, I think both. If you disagree, I apologize for my grammatical infraction in advance, there is no need to offer your opinion 🙂

    The Floating Halloween Witch Hats project is really simple and adds a fun and unexpected element to our front porch for All Hallows Eve. Let me show you how to do it. If you’re a Harry Potter Fan like we are, then I think you’ll agree that they add a special “Hogwarts-Inspired” touch to our front porch.

    How to Get all of our Free Halloween Crafts Ideas!

    How to Hang Candlesticks on our Porch for Halloween

    If you’d like to learn how to hang floating candlesticks on your porch as well, you can check out our Floating Candlestick Tutorial.

    LED candles floating on front porch with black witch hats at night

    The neighborhood kids always get a big kick out of the decor when they are out trick or treating. They would also be great to use as decorations for Halloween parties.

    Supplies

    Inexpensive Black Witch Hats — available on Amazon

    Fishing Line

    Long Needle

    Light Options:

    • LED light sticks – (linking to the product category on Amazon, not the specific item since the sellers keep raising the prices based on visits from this post, you want an LED light stick with a clip that is battery-powered and lightweight. )
    • A reader told me they used battery-powered tea lights and they worked well. They tied the fishing line around the wick. Someone else also suggested using glow sticks.
    • In the video, I used LED Light pucks. I like these best since they have a hole in the backplate to run the fishing line through. They also have a remote and an auto-timer setting, so you don’t have to remember to turn them on and off each night. I did notice that the LED light pucks did not hold up as well to the weather as the light sticks, and I recommend using light sticks instead.

    Safety Pins (don’t need if you’re using LED light pucks)

    Outdoor Command Hooks for Lights

    How to Hang the Hats

    Before you begin, you must decide how many hats you’d like to hang on your porch and where you’d like them to be. I recommend laying the hats out on the floor of your porch to determine the number and spacing.

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    Step One: Attach Command Hooks to the Ceiling

    After you’ve figured out where you’d like the Witch’s hats to hang, attach one command hook to the ceiling in each spot. Let the hook set up for about 10-15 minutes.

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    Two: Add Fishing Line to the Witch Hats

    String about 2-3 feet of fishing line onto the needle. Feed the needle through the point of the Witch hat on the outside of the hat. Bring the fishing line through to the interior of the hat. DO NOT pull all the fishing line through the hat; leave it on the outside of the hat.

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    Remove the needle and tie the fishing line around a safety pin.

    Three: Add the Lights

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    Use the safety pin to attach the fishing line to the light stick. It can be LED or the temporary kind you can find in the Halloween section of stores.  Just make sure it’s lightweight. I’ve had readers tell me that they used glow sticks or tea lights.

    UPDATE: Since this post was first written, the quality and brightness of LED lights have significantly improved. You should be able to find a lightweight LED light easily.

    Now just tie a loop at the end of the fishing line on top of the hat and hang it on the command hook.

    If you want to make these with LED light pucks instead of light sticks, you can find a video on my YouTube Channel.

    A Few Tips if you are making these to decorate your porch for Halloween

    1. Most LED light bulbs will not last for 30 days straight. If you want to hang these up on Oct 1st and leave them on all month, that probably won’t work.
    2. I turned mine on and off each night. I did not plan for them to last all of October without burning out. In addition, one year, I only turned them on Halloween night. They look great lit up simultaneously as the jack o lanterns on my front steps.
    3. You can adjust the height of the hats as you like; just lengthen or shorten the fishing line.
    4. Even though we did this on our front porch, I think it would be adorable inside of the house too!

    Want even more fun ideas? Follow me on Instagram to get your daily dose of creative inspiration! 

    black witch hats hanging on front porch. Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!
    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!
    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    UPDATE: LOOK how cute they are on Ali Edwards Front Porch (image from Instagram) !!!

    Instagram screen shot of witch hat luminaires on a front porch with pumpkins.

    More Halloween Decorations & Projects You May Like:

    15 Frightfully Fun Ways to Decorate Your Porch for Halloween

    Witch Costume Ideas for Kids, Teens & Adults

    FREE Printable Non-Candy Halloween Treats

    Recipe for Exploding Eyeball Cookies

    Free Printable Fall Bucket List

    Free Printable Halloween Treat Bags

    If you love to quilt or sew, you might like:

    Halloween Haberdashery Quilt by Melissa Mortenson - a cute Witch's Hat Halloween Quilt pattern

    Halloween Haberdashery Quilt Pattern

    More than 25 Cute Things to Sew for Halloween

    More than 25 CUTE things to sew for Halloween!

    Clever decorating idea for a porch for Halloween, floating Witch's hat luminaries, they even light up at night!

    More Projects You May Enjoy

    • Halloween quilt and vintage Land Rover with pumpkins outdoors
      Introducing the Spooky Shelfie Quilt Pattern
    • glass potions bottles on black table
      How to Make a Halloween Potions Centerpiece & Free Printable Potions Jar Labels
    • floating cheesecloth ghosts on table
      How to Make Floating Cheesecloth Ghosts
    • trick or treat bag free pattern
      How to Sew a Simple Trick or Treat Bag

    • Share
    • Email

    About Author

    Melissa Mortenson

    Melissa Mortenson is a blogger, designer, and content creator. She is the Polka Dot Chair blog founder and has been sharing fresh and creative ideas with readers since 2008. She is the author of “Project Teen, Handmade Gifts your Teen will Actually Love.” Her work and designs have been featured on HuffPost, TODAY, Pioneer Woman, HGTV, BuzzFeed, Better Homes & Gardens, and many other established publications. Her first fabric line, “Derby Style,” debuted in January 2015 through Riley Blake Designs.  Additional fabric collections have followed it in subsequent years. A mom of 3, she considers herself lucky to be living in Kentucky.

    Primary Sidebar

    Hello! It’s nice to meet you.

    I’m Melissa. I like to design things, like fabric, printables, and projects.

    I’m also a Mom and a Maker. I am like most of you, just trying to do my best every day. Some days I succeed, many days I fail.  I find joy in creating, if you do too, then I hope that you find something here bring a little “happy” to your life.  Find out more about me here.

    COPYRIGHT POLICY

    All my images and text are copyrighted. You may NOT use any images from this site in any kind of Video (this includes YouTube). If you would like to feature my work, you may use ONE (1) NON-COLLAGED image and must “follow” link back to my original blog post. You may NOT edit, crop, or change my images in any way without written permission. You MAY NOT print out or copy and distribute any text, images or patterns from this site. All patterns, content, instructions, and templates are for personal use ONLY! Thank you! Violators will be reported.

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimers
    • About Melissa
    • Instagram
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Pinterest

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • FAQ
    • Press
    • Published Books
    • Fabric Collections

    Welcome to the Polka Dot Chair! Here you’ll find easy, step-by-step, sewing, quilting, and crafting projects. We design projects for Makers of all skill levels. Beginners are welcome!

    DISCLAIMER:

    While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the content on this website, the information is made available without warranty of any kind. The Polka Dot Chair accepts no responsibility or liability, whether direct or indirect, as to the currency or accuracy of the information, nor any consequence of its uses. This website is not intended to substitute the advice of a professional.

    Copyright © 2022 Polka Dot Chair

    [ Placeholder content for popup link ] WordPress Download Manager - Best Download Management Plugin