Halloween Crafts: Spooky Scarecrows and Creepy Candy Creatures

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

20 Oct 2008 02:11 PM

If you have children of varying ages in your household the following projects should come in quite handy this Halloween season.

Parental supervision is required for both because the projects call for a hot glue gun. I can tell you that the Creepy Candy Creatures are a bit easier to make than the Spooky Scarecrows. My preschooler had a blast embellishing her Creepy Candy Creature (thanks to some great tips provided on the back of a bag of Hershey's Miniatures). But, we both struggled to find a way she could contribute to the Spooky Scarecrow project, which I think is better suited for older children (12 and up).

Despite the age limitations on the latter craft, both Halloween decorations turned out well. More treat than trick, regardless of how many feathers flew behind the couch in the process.

CREEPY CANDY CREATURES

Materials:

Pipe cleaners

Googly eyes

Feathers

Construction paper or foam sheets

Low temperature hot glue gun

A variety of Halloween candy (Lifesavers, M&Ms, Skittles, licorice, mini chocolate bars, candy corn, lemon drops and Twix work well)

Directions:

Cut body parts out of foam sheets or construction paper.

Using glue gun, attach candy to feet, ears and other body parts.

Embellish creatures with pipe cleaners, feathers, and googly eyes.

SPOOKY SCARECROW

Materials:

4-inch Styrofoam egg-shaped ball

2 Wood 1/4-inch dowels (12-inch length)

Burlap fabric cut into an 18-inch square

Orange construction paper

Black marker

2 googly eyes

Straw hat

A child's old flannel shirt

Raffia

Hot glue gun

Scissors

Clay pot

Craft (or florist) wire

Various Halloween candies

Directions:

Take the two dowel pieces and form a cross. Move one dowel up so it is 5 inches from the top of the other dowel. Wire together where the pieces cross.

Push the short end of the dowel into the bottom of the foam ball. Cover it with burlap.

Using a wire secure the fabric to the dowel, at the base of the foam ball.

Fit the straw hat on the top (temporarily), just to find correct placement of the eyes. Glue eyes to the fabric. Then, cut a nose out of the orange construction paper and glue it in between the eyes.

Use the black marker to draw the mouth.

For the hair: Remove the hat and cut raffia into 8-inch pieces. Unwrap each piece at the ends, and cut the ends of the flattened raffia to look like straw. Glue the raffia on to the top of the cloth covered foam egg. Then, glue the hat on top of raffia hair.

For the arms: Cut four pieces of raffia, each 8 inches in length. Unwrap only one end and cut strips as you did for the hair. Do this for all four pieces. Glue two pieces together and then glue to end of one of the arms. Wrap the raffia around the arm with wire to make it secure. Repeat for the other side.

Place the flannel shirt over the horizontal dowel. Make sure some of the raffia pokes out of the top to make it look more like a real scarecrow.

Place the base of the scarecrow into the clay pot. Add Halloween candy to pot to hold the scarecrow upright.

Michele Cheplic writes about red-hot celebrities in POP CULTURE, fiery topics in PARENTS, sizzling recipes in FOOD, calorie burning exercises in FITNESS, and hot new kid-friendly crafts in FUN. Check out all of her articles here.

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Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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