It's the spookiest time of the year! Fall is upon us, and with Halloween just around the corner, it's time to get into the spirit of the season. As the weather gets cooler and staying indoors becomes more appealing, I like to look for crafty ways to pass the time and give myself a break from constantly staring at a screen. Aside from that welcome break, there's something about making and decorating food or crafts yourself that's relaxing and rewarding, and it's a feeling we should all chase once in a while.
Since food is my favorite way to celebrate any season, I decided to find some new and exciting ways to bring boring old Halloween candy back to life. How? By turning the candy into crafts! After lots of time looking around, I found five Halloween candy crafts that seemed within my budget and my abilities and were too cute to pass up.
Before you sit down to do any of these crafts, there's one very important thing you need to do: Go to your mirror, look yourself in the eye, and say, "It's OK if it doesn't come out perfect." It might seem silly, but a lot of people dislike crafting because their finished product doesn't look just like the picture they've seen. It's OK for your craft not to be perfect. It'll still be yummy, and it'll still be fun to make. Get your mind right for crafting, and let go. Have fun!
Here's another tip that isn't crucial to crafting but will definitely set the mood: Put on your favorite fall movie. Make some hot chocolate or apple cider. Make a day of it and kick back, relax, and make some yummy treats. Satisfy your sweet tooth and make fun snacks for a fall get-together, Halloween party, or just a lazy Saturday.
1. Lollipop Spiders
When I saw these cuties on Pinterest, I knew I had to give them a shot. Here's what you'll need:
- Lollipops
- Black pipe cleaners
- Googly eyes
- Glue
- Scissors
First, cut the black pipe cleaners in half. Line the four pieces up and place your lollipop in the middle. The original craft recommends placing it a third of the way in (as shown above), but the lollipops I used had shorter stems, so I placed them in the middle. Use your judgment.
Carefully fold each leg into a number 7 before wrapping around. They might look a little uneven when you turn the lollipop over, but you can straighten out and rearrange each leg as necessary. Make little Ls with the tips so that the lollipop can stand on its own.
There were some spaces between the pieces of pipe cleaner that I wasn't a fan of, so I took an additional pipe cleaner and wrapped it around the lollipop stem from top to bottom, between the legs.
Once you're done and your spidey friend is standing on all eight feet, glue on some googly eyes. Be careful if you're working with a hot-glue gun!
2. Lollipop Ghosts
These lollipop ghosts are a fun, easy way to dress up your candy for eager trick-or-treaters. You'll need:
- Lollipops
- Tissues or pieces of tissue paper cut to a similar size
- Rubber bands or twist ties
- Ribbon
- Markers
Place one sheet of tissue on your workspace. Take the other and fold it into a square large enough to cover the top of the lollipop.
Wrap the top of the lollipop with the square so that it's covered. This extra layer makes it so you can't see the lollipop wrapper through the tissue.
Now wrap the other piece of tissue and tie it off with a rubber band or twist tie.
Wrap and glue a piece of ribbon over the rubber band. Draw your best ghost face, and voila!
3. Candy Bar Bats
These bats can double as a Halloween treat and festive decor! Plus, who doesn't love having a whole candy bar to themselves?
You'll need:
- Candy bars
- Black or brown construction paper
- Glue
- Googly eyes
- Scissors
Start by placing the chocolate bar on a black piece of construction paper. Draw your bat wings around the chocolate bar. Cut out the wings. If you cut them separately, glue one to each side, or cut them as one piece and glue the candy bar in the middle.
Once the wings are all set, you'll need a head and some feet! Cut those out, and glue them on.
Fold in the wings around the chocolate bar to give them some spring.
Glue on the googly eyes, and you've got yourself a cute, tasty treat!
4. Snack Bats
Candy is great, but not a school-friendly treat. With a snack-size bag of your kid's favorite school snack, you can create a snack they'll be batty about.
You'll need:
- Snack-size zip-lock bag
- A snack you can separate on two sides of the bag
- Clothespin
- Black construction paper
- Googly eyes
- Black pipe cleaner
- Glue
- Scissors
Put the snack in the bag and divide the contents into two sides, as shown.
Using the clothespin, secure the bag in the middle. You can add some flair to the clothespin with washi tape or paint.
Draw the wings around the bag so they're properly sized, then cut them out.
Glue the clothespin onto the construction paper.
Add googly eyes and some little pipe-cleaner ears. Glue them on, and allow to dry at least 5 minutes.
5. Little Raisin Box Monsters
This is another easy and school-friendly treat! I love this craft because it lets your creativity run wild. Once the box is wrapped, you can do anything!
You'll need:
- Snack-sized boxes of raisins
- Construction paper
- Markers
- Any extras you’d like to add!
Lay the box on the construction paper. You can trace each side and cut them out individually, or you can roll the box over on the page and cut it all in one piece. If you do the latter, be careful not to forget to trace the sides!
Tape the cutout around the box.
Now you've got a blank canvas for your creative mind to run wild. You can make a little pumpkin, or a ghost, or a zombie. Be creative and have a lot of fun!
Whether you're throwing a Halloween party, getting ready for trick-or-treaters, or just trying something new with your kids' lunches, these crafts are fun and easy ways to bring some seasonal spirit to yummy treats!
