Erik HOMEMADE Coffee Break eZine

Halloween 'Crime Scene Handprint' Drinking Glass craft project

Bloody Handprint Drinking Glass

Opaque glass paint and your own handprint will add a little spooky fun to any plain drinking glass! Quick and easy-to-make leave these glasses a Halloween necessity. We purchased our glasses at the dollar store and decorated several.

To make each glass you will need

desired size drinking glass, made of glass

rubbing alcohol, to clean glass

waterbased paint for glass, red

dish soap, large wide paint brush, small round paintbrush, soap and water, paper towels, newspaper, oven

 

Wash glass with dish soap and dry. Wipe surface of glass to be painted with rubbing alcohol. Make sure glass is free of streaks and allow to dry.

Cover work space with newspaper. With large wide brush, paint palm of hand with red paint. Working quickly while paint is wet, grasp glass in desired location. Press palm firmly against glass to get a good impression. Carefully remove hand from glass. *Wash hand in soapy water to remove paint. Touch up any places on the handprint with small round paintbrush. With the same brush, add dripping "blood" from fingerprints, as seen in the photograph. Allow paint to dry. Bake glass in oven according to manufacturer's instructions on the paint label.

Hand wash painted glass in mild soapy water.

*For the best results, we found it better to wash our hands after each impression, starting with a clean hand for each glass.

Sources: Drinking Glass: Dollar Tree: Paint; Americana Gloss Enamel (Tuscan Red) by DecoArt.

To print a copy of these instructions, click here->Download Halloween Crime Scene Drinking Glass craft project

 

Halloween Party 'Eye' Picks craft project

Halloween Party 'Eye' Picks

Who is watching who this Halloween? Your party guests will be sure to feel the stare of a million eyes with these clever little peeper-picks! We found our "eyeball" beads at the craft store, hanging on a string, staring us in the face.

To make the picks you will need

small beads that resemble eyeballs

round wooden toothpicks, 1 for each bead

tacky-type craft glue, paper towels (for wiping glue), nail clippers

 

Dip the end of each wooden toothpick into a small amount of tacky craft glue. Place a bead onto the glue covered end of the tothpick. Push the bead down as far as it will go on the toothpick. Wipe off excess glue with a paper towel. Allow glue to dry thoroughly. Snip the protruding end of the toothpick, even with the bead, with nail clippers.

Use as serving picks for hor d'oeuvres, cocktails, sandwiches, and anywhere else you like; advise your guests that these picks are not to be eaten!

To print a copy of these instructions, click here->Download Halloween Party Eye Picks craft project

'Wool of Bat' Filled Jar craft project

Put this little jar on your mad-laboratory shelf for giggles this spooky season! We found the glass jar at the dollar store and used scraps of dark grey yarn!

For each jar you will need

• 1 small glass jar with a lid
• dark grey worsted weight yarn; several pieces about 3-inches long
• white cardstock, to print label template
• scraps of scrapbook paper for label
• downloaded label template

scissors, ruler, pencil, craft glue, scrapbook paper glue or double sided adhesive tape, computer, and printer

Download and print label template onto white cardstock, or make your own from your favorite font*

Wash and dry glass jar. Snip dark grey yarn into several 3-inch pieces. Unwind the yarn into plies, then unwind and fray into strands. The desired effect is of fluffy hair that resembles wool.

Howling Gourds craft project

What could be more fun for Halloween than a chorus of bellowing gourds howling at the top of their lungs? Make these jolly fellows out of dollar store gourds, then embellish them with a little sequin glitz...vary the size of the wiggle eyes for interesting gazes!

For each gourd you will need

1 plastic covered, foam filled gourd (we found ours at the dollar store)
small sequins, we chose black
glass rocaille beads, that fit onto sequin pins
sequin pins
black water based gloss paint
wiggle eyes in varying sizes
pencil, hobby knife, tacky craft glue

Referring to photograph, use a pencil to draw two circle for the eye sockets and one larger circle for mouth, taking care to space eye sockets far enough apart to get two rows of sequins around the holes. With hobby knife, pierce skin, about 1/2-inch below the surface and cut around the line. Carefully peel up plastic skin and discard.

Candy Spiders recipe

 

Creepy, crawly little devils that are sure to spook even the heartiest of your guests this Halloween! But not to worry--these spiders taste really good themselves! Enjoy them alone, or use them to decorate a festive cake or cupcakes!

Ingredients

1 10oz package bright green candy wafers
1 3oz can rice noodles, found in the Chinese food aisle
3/4 cup shredded coconut
about 75 red hot cinnamon candies, 2 for each candy

wax paper, 2 forks

In a large bowl, melt candy wafers according to package directions. When candy wafers are completely melted, gently fold in coconut and rice noodles; make sure that the coconut and rice noodles are well covered with the bright green candy coating.

Eyeballs in a Jar Centerpiece craft project

 

Delight your company this spooky season with simple eyeballs crafted from ping-pong balls, animal eyes, and paint. Make as many as you like; they do not even have to be in pairs! Set them around the table or around the room, any way they scream--See you soon!  

For each eyeball you will need

1 white ping-pong (table tennis) ball
1 animal eye-the kind with the post
black acrylic paint (we used the metallic type for extra sparkle)
red paint pen
circle gauge template
craft glue
pencil, paint brush, scissors

With the circle gauge, find the circle size that will best cover any logo or printed material on the ping-pong ball. Fit the circle template over the ball and trace with a pencil. With paint brush, paint the drawn circle black. Repeat with two more coats of paint, or until black circle is completely painted. Allow to dry thoroughly.

Halloween Ghost Lollipop Favors craft project

 

Having made so many of these little ghosts, we had to include them in our first Halloween at Erik Homemade(R). Friends all of the world have received these little spooks! Even better, most supplies are easily found at the dollar store! Make them simple*, with painted eyes for the little ones, or sophisticaed**, with wiggle eyes, for the grown-ups!

For each ghost you will need

lollipop
paper cocktail napkin (white, colored, or appropriate motif--we used black spider webs)
narrow ribbon for tie
fine point black marker (for simple* ghost)
wiggle eyes (for sophisticated** ghost) and tacky-type craft glue

Open paper napkin and use fold lines to center lollipop. Place lollipop on the back of napkin. Fold napkin down and around, with the lollipop on the inside; smoothing and folding the napkin towards the

Little Ghost Magnets craft project

 

These little phantoms, sure to make everyone howl, are a wonderful craft project for a party or scout group activity. You only need a few basic materials and each child can have fun making endless facial expressions! If wiggle eyes are not appropriate for your age group, simply use punched paper holes or paint for the round shapes needed. It may take awhile for the glossy paint to dry, so plan ahead. Boo to you!

For each ghost magnet you will need

opaque white glass floral pebbles--round or star shaped (we found ours in the craft aisle at the dollar store)
water-based gloss enamel paint for glass and ceramic surfaces
strong button magnet
fine paint brush
small wiggle eyes, or punched paper holes*
tacky-type craft glue

Glue the wiggle eyes or punched paper holes in place as shown in the photo, for eyes. Allow to dry. With a fine paint brush, paint mouth. We painted an oval to look like our ghosts were howling. Allow to dry completely.

Paper Spiders Halloween craft project

 

No need to be frightened away when these little spiders drop in...simple scrapbook paper and bright colored pompons will make even the biggest arachnophobe smile! However, beware! You will want to make a lot--to hang all over the house!

For each spider you will need

black scrapbook paper (see note below**)
spider shape paper punch (see note below**)
colored pompon of your choice; small enough to fit in place of the spider abdomen
black hand quilting thread
pin and straight edge (ruler; to score spider body)
needle; scissors
tacky craft glue

**Because of the intricacy of the spider legs, some paper punches do better on lighter weight papers while others are strong enough to punch through cardstock. Test your punch on different weights of paper and use the heaviest it will accomodate. We used a spider punch from Martha Stewart Crafts/EK Success and cardstock to make our spiders.

From the scrapbook paper, punch two spiders. Score a line with the pin and straight edge down the middle of the spider, from the abdomen down through the head. Make sure the line is centered.

Halloween Dinner Ghoul-hash recipe

 

If you are not sure what to feed your little spooks this Halloween night, here is an idea! Start with your favorite macaroni and cheese dinner-the kind with the powdered cheese mix, and *poof* ! In no time at all you will have a hot dinner ready! Choose the organic pasta shaped like bugs or your favorite brand...vary the spices to suit your little goblins...

Ingredients

2 boxes macaroni and cheese dinner with bug shaped pasta (see note below**)
1/2 cup (or thereabouts) elbow macaroni or twists
20-25 pieces of spaghetti, broken in half
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 5oz can tomato sauce (about 2 cups)
1 tbspn garlic powder, or to taste
2 tbspns paprika, or to taste
1 tbspn cayenne pepper, or to taste
salt and fresh ground pepper
stuffed green olives, for garnish

Prepare macaroni and pastas, boiling according to package directions, reserving cheese packets. Brown ground beef, onion, green pepper, both cheese packets, salt, and pepper until thoroughly