It’s October, and if you still aren’t feeling the spookiness of the season, you should be. With midterms over and half of the semester already behind us, it’s okay to allow yourself a break, and Halloween is the perfect excuse to do just that. If you’re looking for a bit of freaky-fun to give your mind a break, here are a few craft ideas to put you in the right mood and get those creative potions flowing.
Mason-jar lamp
No craft list is complete without something that uses a mason jar. With just a paper cut out of a shape or picture of your choice, some paint and a mason jar, you can make your very own lamp.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Mason jar
- Black paper or Halloween stickers (whatever you want your design to be – unless you’re making multiple, try them all!)
- Votive candles
- Orange, white or black paint (and big/wide paintbrush)
- Tape
- Taking the construction paper, outline the shape you want to shine through the mason jar. Maybe trace a pumpkin, a cat, a skeleton or whatever you want — as long as it can be cut out relatively easily. For this step, you can even just use stickers that you bought at the store, since what you’ll be doing is taping the shape to the mason jar and painting over it several times. This way, the outside of the jar will be darker, but the light will shine through the shape of your choice brightly.
- The effect you want will determine how you paint your jar. For example, if you want it to be very opaque and vibrant orange, paint over the mason jar, let it dry, then repeat several times until it is a solid orange color. If you want a more distressed look, paint over it loosely once and don’t fill in any of the gaps left by the paintbrush when you paint over it again. Do this maybe only once or twice.
- Once you’re done painting, take off the sticker or piece of paper to reveal the clear area that should be in the shape of your choice, then place the candle in and voila! You have your own customized Halloween lamp.
Spooked milk jug faces
Similar to mason jars, fairy lights are another thing that has recently become a staple of room décor and by association is almost necessary for a cute, easy craft.
For this simple project, here’s all that you need:
- Plain white or translucent milk jug
- Black construction paper / Black sharpie marker
- Small fairy lights (probably the metal ones that are very cheap and bendable!)
- Glue/tape
- Scissors
- If you drink milk, you’re already one step of the way to a spook, which is part of what makes this craft so simple and cheap. Rinse out the jug a few times, making sure it doesn’t smell.
- On your black construction paper, draw and cut out the eyes and mouth of some funny or scary faces, keeping them a size that will take up a good portion of the milk jug. If you would rather just draw them on with a sharpie, feel free to do that as well. You might draw two big ovals for the eyes with just a small dot in the middle and a big smile for the mouth, or maybe just use a circle to look like they’re screaming. If you used construction paper, once you have your face, simply tape or glue it to the milk jug the way you want it.
- Take your wire fairy lights and start loosely threading them into the milk jug, balling them up. Make sure you do this while keeping the battery pack, or on/off buttons, in your hand, as you thread the opposite side in.
- Fold some tape in a tube form, as if you were about to try to use it to stick something to a wall, and stick the tape on the battery pack, or on/off button, to the inside of the milk jug on the side that doesn’t have the face on it, so you can more easily access it. You might want to lightly shake the jug around once you’ve put them inside so the light is more balanced inside. Now, turn them on and admire your spooked light-up companion.
Vampire donuts
If food is more your style, whether you’re hosting a party, bringing snacks to your study group or just want something fun, these donuts are for you. Maybe the easiest (and tastiest) craft on this list, all you need for these blood-sucking treats are:
- Dozen (or however many you want) of glazed donuts
- The same number of fake fangs
- M&Ms or similar chocolate candies
- This is an easy one for the foodie in us all. Taking fake fangs, simply stick them in the middle of the donuts in various ways, making the donuts look like they have mouths with their fangs wide open to grab a bite of you before you can get a taste of them.
- Now, take the M&Ms, or chocolate candies, and stick them on the donuts in the glaze, making them look like eyes.
- If you want a little extra flair, take some red icing or jelly and smear lines on the donuts coming from the fangs, making it look like blood. Let the fangs and “eyes” sit for a while and then enjoy your deliciously eerie snack. This way, if you’re having a party or just giving out snacks, your guests can enjoy a tasty treat and get extra spooky with their very own pair of fangs.
Photo: A. Caretto
Written: Laurel Gallaudet
