2x4 Pumpkins

I love fall!  So of course I love to craft and decorate for the season.  This year I made a few things with scrap wood.  I did this for a couple of reasons.  1.  My boys think of it more as "Building" not crafting and 2. They have discovered that they love to paint.  I love when they want to participate so I am all for it!  Don't be surprised if  I continue the "building" crafts into winter!  

Supplies:

• 2x4 (or 2x2) Piece of wood
• Orange Paint
• Wood Glue
• Various Artificial Fall Foliage, Berries, or other
• Ribbon
• A stick with approximately a 1 inch diameter (for the stem)
• A Piece of Sand Paper
• Hot Glue Gun

First I cut the 2x4 to the appropriate lengths.  I made the large pumpkin with 2- 8 inch and 2-10 inch pieces.  The smaller ones are made with 2- 6 inch and 1-8 inch pieces.  This allowed me to make 3 small and 1 large without wasting any of the piece of wood.  PERFECT!!!!  Next, I lightly sanded the rough edges.  I then glued the pieces together.  The small pumpkin has 6 inch, 8 inch, 6 inch and the large is 8 inch, 10 inch, 10 inch, 8 inch.   Make sure to center the smaller pieces on the larger ones.  Then using two shades of orange paint ( I put them both on a paper plate and lightly swirled them together as I painted the wood) I painted all sides of the wood.  The wood needed to coats of paint.

After they were dry I glued a piece of the stick to the top of the pumpkin.  When that glue was dry, I tied a piece of ribbon around the stick and then attached a few pieces of the accessories.  I used the hot glue gun to secure them in place.

Make sure to check out the Frankenstein I made with a piece of scrap wood
Here is the link to Frankenstein

Frankenstein From a Piece of Scrap Wood

Supplies:

• 2 Large Google Eyes
• Green Paint
• Black Felt
• Tiny Piece of White Felt
• Craft Wire
• Black Paint
• 2 Bolts
• Hot Glue Gun
• Scissors
• Paint Brush
• Scrap Piece of Wood (I used a 1x6 that was 12 inches long)

This was a very easy project to complete.  The most time consuming part was waiting for the paint to dry.  I actually got the piece of wood from the hardwood store for $0.50.  I drilled a hole in each side of "the neck" that was slightly smaller than the bolt.  I painted all sides of the board.  I used two different colors of green paint to get the color that I wanted.  While the paint was drying I cut the felt hair and eyebrows and cut the wire for the stitches .  Once the paint was dry I attached the eyes, hair, eyebrows, and bolts with a hot glue gun.  The stitches around the head were a little tricky at first, but once I figured out how to best attach them I was good to go.  I wrapped the wire all the way around the piece of wood and twisted the ends together to keep it in place.  Then I glued the stitch pieces on top of that wire.  Then I used black paint for the nose and mouth.  I also rubbed a little black paint on my fingers and placed on the bolts and various placed on the face to make it look worn/dirty.  Last I attached the small (tooth) piece of felt.  

Check out what else I made with wood
2x4 Pumpkins

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Spooky Spider Ice Cubes

I was looking for something super easy that would entertain the kids for a bit.  They love to mix and cook but I am not always up for the mess.  I decided I could deal with a little spilled water because that is an easy clean up.  These ice cubes entertained Nathan and his friend for a long time.  I had the boys use tongs to place the spiders in the ice cube trays to help them work on their fine motor skills.  Then I let them fill their measuring cups with water from the refrigerator door (which was exciting for them...sometimes it's the little things that make them happy)  They had to very carefully walk it back to their seats and pour it in.  It took them a couple of tries (and towels) but t hey learned to pour slowly so it didn't over flow.  Then we place them in the freezer.  Our friend was coming over the next day too so we left the water alone over night to let it freeze.  The next day they were excited to serve their spooky drinks to Nathan's grandma.  I showed them how to break apart the ice and gave them each a large bowl to play with.  They first tried to melt them with their hands.  We had a race to see who could melt it the fastest.  Then we compared how fast ice cubes melted with cold water vs hot water.  It was a fun little experiment with out a lot of mess!!

Supplies:

• Plastic Spider Rings
• Ice Cube Trays

They were concentrating.

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Pumpkin Playdoh Party Favors

Many schools are encouraging healthy treats for parties and some are even suggesting non-food items.  I decided that I was going to make Playdoh Jack-o-Lanterns for my son's preschool class.  They were very simple and used very basic ingredients so it didn't cost me an arm and a leg either.  

Supplies

• 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
• 4 TablespoonsVegetable Oil
• 4 Tablespoons Cream of Tartar
• 2 Tablespoons Salt
• 2 Cups Warm Water
• 1 6oz pakg Orange Jello

• Small Cello Bags
• Ribbon
• Happy Halloween Tag
• Black Sharpie

This is enough to do 10-12 small balls

In a medium sauce pot combine flour, salt, cream of tartar, and jello.  Mix together.  Then add water and vegetable oil and whisk until all the lumps are dissolved.  

Over medium-high heat stir continuously as mixture begins to thicken.  This will take a couple of minutes

Continue stirring and folding the dough as it becomes more solid.

Remove from pan and place on wax paper to cool.

After Playdoh cools place rounded balls into the cello bag.  Attach the tag and tie the top closed with a small piece of ribbon.  Last draw a Jack-o-lantern face on the bag with a black sharpie.  

Here is the link for the Happy Halloween Tags

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Quick, Easy, and Inexpensive Halloween Crafts

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I wanted to make some crafts with supplies that I already had, but since I LOVE the craft store I decided I was willing to buy a few things to complete them.  I ended up spending less than $6.00 and made these cute decorations.  Get creative and have FUN!  Oh and drink a bottle of wine while you do it... you will need an empty bottle!

Supplies I Bought:

• $1.99 Bag of Google Eyes (the one that comes with a variety of sizes)
• $1.00 Small Wood Frame
• $0.45 Letters E E K
• $1.00 Small Chalkboard Frame
• $0.99 Sparkly Tree Branch
• $0.49 White Crepe Paper

Total $5.92

Supplies I Had on Hand:

• Wine Bottle
• Purple Paint
• Black Paint
• Green Paint
• Orange Paint
• White Paint
• Scrap Ribbon
• Glue
• Random Jars
• White Chalk
• Spider Sticker 
• Spider Web Place Mat
• Tape

** You can use what ever color paint you have on hand or you can buy acrylic paint for about $0.59 each.

EEK Googly Eye Picture Frame

First I painted the picture frame a lime green color and the letters orange.  After they dried, I attached the piece of ribbon, letters, and googly eyes with glue.  Last, I added a SUPER cute picture of my son in his Halloween costume!

The Witch is IN Chalkboard

First I painted the chalkboard purple and let it dry.  I lightly wrote on the chalkboard in pencil what I wanted it to say so that I had a guide.  Then I used white paint (you could use the chalk) to trace the writing. I actually glued the piece of chalk to the frame because the witch is ALWAYS in!  Next I added a piece of scrap ribbon and a Halloween sticker.  Last I dipped my finger lightly into the black paint and gently rubbed it in to the frame to give it more of a worn look.  

Mummy Jars

I chose three different sizes of jars.  A jelly jar, an olive jar, and a quart size Mason jar.  First I took a very long piece of the white crepe paper and crumbled it up just a little bit to give it a more mummy like look.  Then I just began wrapping it around until it was all covered.  I taped down the ends and even tied on a few extra pieces.  Last I glued on a pair of googly eyes.  I plan on placing FLAMELESS tea lights in them to let them glow at night.  

Now that you have finished that bottle of wine you can stick the sparkly glitter branch in it and your display is complete!

be sure to check out some of our other Halloween Ideas
Pretty Pretty Pumpkins
Pumpkin Playdoh Party Favors
Free! Chalkboard Halloween Printables
Free Halloween Chevron

Pretty Pretty Pumpkins

Every year we carve pumpkins.  My husband HATES to clean out the guts of the pumpkin.  I on the other hand love to pretend to eat it and try to feed giant spoonfuls of it to my kids.  Some times they run from it and others they pretend to eat it!  Either way we have fun doing it.  This year I decided I was going to invest in some fake pumpkins from the craft store so that we can enjoy them longer.  Plus real pumpkins have become very expensive.

Materials Needed:

• Pumpkin
• Pencil
• Puffy Paint

I am not the neatest crafter so I also used a wet paper towel to wipe away any mistakes and a toothpick to shape a couple of dots.  

When I sat down to work on these pumpkins I thought I was going to free hand the dots, well I was wrong.  So I got a pencil and lightly sketched a picture.  It isn't perfect, but I think it turned out really cute!  On one of the pumpkins I did a swirly design, an other I wrote BOO, and on the large one I put our initial.

Halloween FREE Printable Banner

Here's another Halloween FREE Printable! Hang this cute Trick or Treat banner near your front door or by a party table. This one isn't too spooky, maybe I'll create another spooky one!

To download, click here.

Halloween- You've Been Booed!

We did something similar for Easter, and so here is a Halloween version. I know, it's seems too early to start working on Halloween crafts! It is still 90 degrees here in Cincinnati. However, all of our friends on Pinterest are already pinning Halloween stuff, so I figured why not get ahead of the game and give everyone a free printable.

Here's the directions, leave the "You've Been Booed" note, along with some candy for a friend or neighbor. Be sure to stick the "We've Been Booed" sign for them to hang as well. Then, they continue the string of booing by turning around and doing it for one of their friends or neighbors. It's a good way to spread the Halloween spirit! But remember, do not tell them who the Boo is from.

To print, just right click and save image, then print as a full sheet photo.