Ghost Family
Ghost Family
Hand-Wrapped on a Front Porch in Millbrook, Ohio
Bonnie Whitfield, 63. Twelve Octobers ago she bought cheesecloth, twine and a couple of dowels because she couldn't stand another dollar-store skeleton. She has wrapped every ghost by hand since. This is her final batch. The garage workshop closes when she moves this winter.
"I never set out to sell a single one. I just wanted my own porch to look like Halloween used to feel: a little spooky, a little sweet, made by hand. People kept asking where I got mine. Eventually I stopped saying 'nowhere' and started saying 'right here.' These are the last."
Bonnie Whitfield, Millbrook, Ohio
What You Receive
Everything That Ships With Your Set
Three Ghosts, One Family
A tall, a medium and a small ghost, styled after the original trio on Bonnie's own steps. Each one wrapped and shaped by hand.
Hand-Painted, One at a Time
Every pair of eyes is painted by Bonnie herself. No stamps, no stencils, no two faces exactly alike.
Hand-Lettered Kraft Tags
"Boo," "Haunted," "October 31," lettered by hand and tied on with real jute twine.
Money-Back Promise
Set them up on your porch. If they don't feel right, send them back for a full refund.
Why This Set
Six Things You Won't Find on a Store-Bought Ghost
Every detail below came out of twelve years of testing the same thing on the same porch, through wind, rain and one memorable squirrel.
Real Cheesecloth, Doubled and Knotted
The bargain kind frays apart at the first good rain. Bonnie doubles the wrap and knots it so the edges hang tattered on purpose, not falling apart by accident. It drapes and moves in the wind the way thin printed fabric never does.
Hand-Painted, Not Stamped
Nothing ages a porch faster than a ghost with a face that was clearly stamped out by a machine. Every face here is painted individually, which is why, as Bonnie puts it, not one of her thirty ghosts a year ever looks quite the same.
Weighted Base That Actually Stands
You've seen the other kind, face-down in the mulch by Halloween morning. These use a real wood dowel set into a sliced log base with enough weight to hold against wind. Bonnie's have stood through actual storms, and through an Ohio derecho.
Shaped So It Sits Straight
Cheap ghosts use a ball that's too light or sized wrong for the fabric, so the first good wind leaves the head tilted off to one side. These heads are weighted and shaped to the wrap, so they sit upright and stay that way all month.
Jute Bows and Lettered Tags
Small thing, but it's the difference between a decoration and something that looks like it has always belonged on your porch. Real jute twine, kraft tags lettered by hand, tied on one ghost at a time.
Built for More Than One October
Customers three towns over have had theirs standing through multiple seasons of Ohio wind without tipping. Pack them away in November, set them out again next fall. They are not the kind you replace every year.
◆ Maker's Note
"None of it is complicated. It's just that most people making these to sell cheap are trying to save time. I was never trying to save time. I was trying to make my own porch look right. The heads sit straight, the bases hold, the cloth is doubled, the faces are painted one at a time. That's the whole secret. It just takes longer, and nobody making them by the thousand is willing to do it."
Bonnie Whitfield · Twelve seasons of hand-wrapped ghosts · Maple Street, Millbrook, Ohio
Where They Go
Made For These Corners of the Home
Quality Promise
Five Things You Get With Every Set
100% Money-Back Guarantee
Set them up on your own porch and see how they hold up. If you're not happy with the quality, the craftsmanship or anything else about them, send them back for a full refund. No hassle and no hard feelings. Bonnie would rather you be honest than stuck with something you don't love.
◆ A Note From the Workshop
Bonnie finishes and inspects every ghost before it leaves the garage. Slight variations in the drape of the cloth, the tilt of a head and the shape of the painted eyes are a natural part of hand-wrapped work. No two are exactly alike, and that is the point. The cloth is wrapped by hand. The faces are painted by hand. The tags are lettered by hand. These are not flaws. They are the maker's hand at work, twelve Octobers of it.
The Details
Product Specifications
| Material | Real cheesecloth, doubled and knotted · weighted shaped head form · wood dowel · sliced log base · jute twine · kraft tags |
| Construction | Hand-wrapped and knotted cloth, hand-painted faces, hand-lettered tags, dowel set into a weighted wood base |
| What's Included | Set of three ghosts: one tall, one medium, one small |
| Structure | Free-standing on a sliced log base. No wire spike, no plastic frame |
| Faces | Painted individually by hand. No two are identical |
| Tags | Hand-lettered kraft tags: "Boo," "Haunted," "October 31," tied with real jute |
| Placement | Porch · steps · entryway · walkway · mantel · planters |
| Care | Built for outdoor use through the season. Bring indoors in heavy storms, store dry over winter, set out again next fall |
| Maker | Bonnie Whitfield, twelve seasons of hand-wrapped ghosts, Millbrook, Ohio |
| Final Batch | Remaining stock from Bonnie's last season, at close to half her usual price. No reorders once it sells through |
| Guarantee | Full refund if you're not happy, no hassle |