This week kicks off my favorite part of October: Halloween party season!
All October posts are part of the Countdown to Halloween! This post contains affiliate links. See my disclaimer.
Sure, some of you go-getters may have already hosted your parties. Others are like me and wait until the final two weekends of October to host your parties.
And if you fall into the latter group, right about now you might be panicking about your party decor. How am I going to decorate? What’s the best way to wow my guests? How can I get it all done?
You’re in luck because today I have a quick and easy Halloween DIY for you: a smoking cauldron chandelier!

So much fun, right? The best part is this idea came together in less than 30 minutes and only requires four items. Thinking about making your own dry ice DIY this Halloween? Keep reading to find out how you could win $1,500 from Penguin Dry Ice!
What you’ll need:
- Three plastic cauldrons (mine are 4 inches, 6 inches and 12 inches)
- Twine
- Water
- Penguin Dry Ice
How to make a smoking cauldron chandelier:

As always, we start with gathering our supplies. I had two of these cauldrons already and purchased a third, but if you want to make it easy on yourself you can grab this set of four on Amazon for $9. You can also find twine on Amazon if you don’t have any.
Two of my cauldrons hand handles on them, which I popped off so I could use the holes to thread my twine through. The third one didn’t, so I used a hammer and nail to make a hole. You could also use a drill if you run into the same issue.

Starting with the largest cauldron, I threaded the twine through one of the holes and tied 2-3 knots. I didn’t cut a piece of twine to start until I figured out how tall I wanted to make my chandelier.
Then I measured 6-8 inches up to the middle-sized cauldron and tied 2-3 knots to secure it. I repeated this on the small cauldron. You can see above how I tied together the first side.

Once I knew how much twine I needed for side number one, I measured for side number two and cut the twine from the ball. Then, I repeated the same process back down the other side until all three cauldrons were tied together.
When I was done, it looked something like this:

My cauldrons are ready for a little smoke!
But for that, we need a little dry ice…

Penguin Dry Ice is the brand I buy any time I need dry ice. You can use their store locator at dryiceideas.com to find out where it’s carried near you. When you arrive at the store, look for a cooler like the one on the left. It’s usually located at the front of my grocery stores near the regular ice cooler. Can’t find it? Just ask!
There is usually a large glove inside the cooler you can use to pull out your dry ice. It’s packaged in 10-pound squares, but often you’ll find smaller pieces in other bags. It is priced by the pound so you only need to buy what you need.
And, of course, you’ll want to make sure you follow these safety tips when using dry ice:
- Never touch it with bare hands. You should always use gloves, tongs or a towel when handling dry ice.
- Do not swallow or eat dry ice – while not toxic, it is harmful when ingested due to its extreme temperature (-109 degrees).
- Buy dry ice within a few hours of when you plan to use it. Dry ice sublimates (turns from solid to gas with no liquid stage) and cannot be stored long-term.
- Do not store your dry ice in the fridge or freezer, as this can accelerate sublimation. Use a styrofoam cooler or an insulated cooler with the lid cracked.
- Never store dry ice in an airtight container. When it sublimates, dry ice turns to carbon dioxide and you could risk an airtight container exploding.
- Use a hammer to break dry ice into smaller pieces, if needed.
- Dispose of any extra dry ice by placing it outdoors (i.e. a well-ventilated area) away from children or pets. It will disappear in a short amount of time.
Okay, now that we know all the safety stuff…we can finish our DIY.

We filled each cauldron with a bit of water. Hot water will get you the best smoking effects, and it is recommended you use 5-10 pounds of dry ice with 4-8 gallons of water for every 15 minutes you intend to use this effect.


Then we opened up the styrofoam cooler I stored mine in after purchasing it and used a hammer to break it down.

Finally, we added dry ice directly to the cauldrons and let the smoking effect begin!






Easy and fun, right? I hung my chandelier outside on a hook used for a bird feeder during the summer, but you could also use a shepherd’s hook or even hang it from a sturdy tree branch.
Have a killer dry ice DIY you’re making this Halloween?
Then you’re definitely going to want to enter Penguin Dry Ice’s Frightfully Cool Halloween Contest! All you have to do is upload a photo or video of your creation at frightfullycool.com by Nov. 6, 2018 to win one of five prizes:
- One (1) Grand Prize Winner – $1,500 in Visa gift cards
- One (1) Runner-Up – $250 in Visa gift cards
- Three (3) Honorable Mentions – $100 in Visa gift cards each
Oh, and did I mention yours ghoulishly is one of three judges? I’d love to see one of my readers win, so be sure to enter!
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What other dry ice ideas are you looking for?
I had a blast creating this DIY and would love to create more. Let me know what kind of ideas you’re looking for, then keep an eye out for future blog posts!
Happy haunting,

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Sue
LOVE this, Miranda! Pretty sure we don’t have dry ice in the supermarkets here, it has to be ordered, but your usage tips have made me more confident about sourcing some. Sadly, those fabulous plastic cauldrons aren’t easy to come by, either. I know… this country! Sue x
Miranda | Spooky Little Halloween
Get it together, UK!! lol I’m surprised dry ice would be hard to come by because it’s great for keeping food in coolers cold. If you give it a try, you’ll definitely have to share photos with me.