Hitchhiking Ghosts Mirror

Bring the hitchhiking ghosts home with you with this incredible hitchhiking ghosts mirror! This impressive Halloween decoration is so easy to make!

Guys, I am soooo excited to be sharing the coolest Halloween mirror that I made with you!

I didn’t tell my husband what I was working on out in my crafting studio.

When I showed him the final project, he literally said “How the hell did you make that?”

Mission accomplished.

Don’t miss our DIY ghost wreath (just like Pottery Barn’s!) and our light up ghost tutorial!

Hitchhiking Ghosts Mirror

Our family is pretty obsessed with Disneyland, especially during the Halloween and Christmas season.

We are annual pass holders (and have been for years now), and we go there a LOT.

I’ve always had a love for the haunted mansion and the haunted mansion hitchhiking ghosts at the end of the ride.

It’s always fun to see which ghost will be going home with you in the haunted mansion mirror at the end.

If you haven’t been on the ride, you ride past a mirror and see yourself with one of the hitchhiking ghosts projected in the doom buggy with you.

I wanted to make my own Halloween mirror with the three ghosts on it that I could display in my house for Halloween.

This Halloween mirror decoration turned out even BETTER than I imagined!

The hitchhiking ghosts not only look translucent like ghosts (and like the ride), but they actually glow and light up, but in a natural ghost-y way.

I’m so proud of this Halloween craft!

VIDEO: Hitchhiking Ghosts Halloween Mirror

I highly recommend you watch the video below to see EXACTLY how I made this Halloween mirror.

There is a part one and part two. Watch both for the full tutorial.

Then read below to get the step-by-step directions and links to everything I used.

You can also watch the video with music on my YouTube channel. I’d love for you to follow along and join me there!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links, which means I make a small percentage of any purchase made at no extra cost to you. Thank you!

Hitchhiking Ghost Mirror Supplies

Here are the supplies you’ll need to make your own Halloween mirror decoration:

Shadow box frame

You’ll need a shadow box frame that is a few inches deep because we will be adding lights to the back of the frame, so you need some depth for those lights.

I scored a shadow box frame at the thrift store for $7.99.

Check your home first and see if you have anything you can use. If not, head to the thrift store or Walmart for something inexpensive.

Decorative wood appliqué 

You’ll want a large wood appliqué piece to make the shadow box frame look gothic and fancy, like it’s straight out of the haunted mansion. I scored mine on Amazon in a set for cheap and the larger one worked perfectly!

One way silver privacy film

This privacy film is what turns our glass into a mirror and gives us the effect we need for our Halloween mirror DIY.

It’s the exact one I used and it worked perfectly because the ghosts are visible yet subtle with the lights off.

However, when our lights go on, these ghosts just shine perfectly!

Remote controlled puck lights

I went through a couple different lights before finding this puck light set from Amazon that was just perfect!

It came with four different lights and had four different remotes.

The best part is that it flashed just white lights (instead of the rainbow colors like the other sets) and you can pick from tons of different color options for the still non-flashing lights (blue worked best for me).

Hitchhiking Ghosts Picture

You’ll need to find a hitchhiking ghosts picture that you like online, or use your own. Keep reading for the details on this one!

Black spray paint

A flat black spray paint works best for this project.

Gold Rub n Buff

Rub n Buff is a gilding wax that comes in a tiny tube and it’s an incredible crafting supply!

A tiny bit goes a long way and it’s going to transform your frame. I used the color Antique Gold. 

Haunted Mansion Hitchhiking Ghosts Mirror

Are you ready to make some magic?

Let’s get started on our haunted mansion Halloween mirror!

Prepare the Frame

First, we need to take apart the shadow box frame and separate the mat, the glass, and any extra pieces.

For me, I had to do a little surgery and some prying to pull apart all the pieces.

Once everything was removed, I cleaned the front and back sides of the glass with window spray and a paper towel.

Wood Scroll Mirror Detail

I wanted to upgrade my frame and make it look a little fancier, like it came straight out of the Disneyland haunted mansion ride.

To do this, I hot glued a large wood scroll piece to the top of the frame (the link to the one I used is in the supply list above). 

Then I took it outside and spray painted the entire frame with a few coats of matte black spray paint.

Make sure to use light coats, and make sure to let the paint dry thoroughly between each coat. 

Apply the Privacy Film

Place the silver privacy film under the piece of glass, then use a pen to trace around the glass.

You want the privacy film to be the same exact size as the piece of glass.

Cut out the silver one way film with scissors.

If you use a different privacy film than I did, please refer to the specific directions for your film to apply them to your glass.

If you are using the same privacy film that I did, then remove the clear protective plastic piece from the film.

Spray one side of the glass AND the shiny silver side of the film (the side you peeled the clear piece from) with water.

I used my natural window cleaner instead of water since I already had it sitting right next to me, and it worked great.

Next, place the wet side of the privacy film on top of the wet piece of glass.

Line up all the edges so it is straight and even.

I like to start in one corner and diagonally place the film down nice and slow, so I can avoid air bubbles.

Once the film is flat and even, take a debit card, or something similar (I used a Cricut tool I had), to smooth the film from the middle out to all the sides.

This will help remove small air bubbles and remove some of the excess liquid you sprayed.

Tip: Make sure you put a towel or paper towels underneath to soak up the extra liquid!

Hitchhiking Ghosts Picture

To make the hitchhiking ghosts picture, I did a quick Google search and found a picture that I liked that was clear and bright. 

I wanted the background of my photo to be black behind the ghosts, so I imported it into Canva, then made the background black.

You can also do this in Photoshop or other photo editing programs.

This part isn’t essential, but I feel like it really made those ghosts pop!

If you don’t know how to do this, you can always ask a friend to help. 🙂

Next, I uploaded the edited photo to Walgreens.com and had a print made that fit my frame.

Make sure the print is big enough for the frame- even a little bigger if your frame is an awkward size.

You can always cut the extra off the picture, but it will be a problem if it isn’t big enough.

Assembling the Frame

Place the glass down into the frame with the film side facing inward, so the smooth mirror surface is on the outside.

Next, place your trimmed hitchhiking ghosts picture down so it shows through the glass.

Put the frame back together with all of the pieces except the backing.

Use tape or hot glue if necessary (depending on your frame) to hold it all back together.

I used black adhesive felt that I cut into thin strips to attach the photo on the sides to the inside of the glass and frame.

Add the Lights

Now for the fun part- this is when the Halloween mirror really comes to life!

I originally was going to use just one light, but ended up using three, one light per ghost.

This really made those ghosts light up perfectly and gave each of them a nice crisp glowy outline.

The lighting makes them look just like the real hitchhiking ghosts from Disney’s haunted mansion ride!

I placed the wood backing down flat on the table, then put the three lights (turned on) where I thought they should go.

Next, I placed the assembled frame piece over the top to help me figure out where the lights looked best.

I moved the lights around until I had the perfect placement that made those ghosts shine brightly.

Check out our light up pumpkin DIY that uses a remote too!

I traced around the lights with a pen, then hot glued each light onto the wood backing.

Make sure to use plenty of hot glue, then hold the lights in place for a bit.

The great thing about this is that I can still switch the batteries to the lights, since the top part screws right off of the glued on bottom piece.

Finishing the Halloween Mirror Decoration

Assemble the shadow box backing (with the lights attached) to the frame and make sure everything is nice and secure.

Now for the finishing touch- adding some lovely gold to the frame to bring out the details!

To do this I used Rub n Buff in the color antique gold. 

If you haven’t used Rub n Buff, you are in for some fun! 

It’s a gilding wax that is SO easy to use and really is magical.

You can apply it to any surface to add a lovely metallic finish to anything.

You can be light handed or heavy handed with it- either way, it goes on beautifully!

I used a gloved finger (to save my manicure) to apply tiny bits of Rub n Buff to the wood scroll details on the frame.

It made those details come to life, highlighted the raised parts, and gave the whole more depth. 

Make sure to watch the video above to see how it’s done!

Then I added some to the sides of the frame to match the wood scroll.

My haunted mirror frame turned out just perfect!

The gold added a touch of luxury to the frame and was definitely giving haunted mansion vibes now!

Displaying the Hitchhiking Ghosts Mirror

This hitchhiking ghosts mirror is so cool because even when the lights are off, you can still see the ghosts, but in a subtle, ghostlike way.

And when you use your remote to turn the lights on, the ghosts really stand out and look like brighter ghosts and are more noticeable.

Guys, the ghosts really look soooo good!! 

Because the background is black, you don’t see the light behind it, which means the ghosts really pop!

I love the turquoise/teal color mode the best with these lights, because it reminds me the most of what the ghosts look like on the haunted mansion ride.

My second favorite setting is the flashing, which is a slow fading in and out of a white light.

This one is really cool too!

You can display this DIY haunted mirror anywhere in your home.

Display in the living room, family room, a bedroom, etc.

You can place it on an easel, hang on a wall, or sit it up against a wall next to other Halloween decorations.

It will look amazing anywhere!

Leave a comment and let me know what you think about this cool Halloween decoration.

Happy haunting!