Ghouls and hedgehogs

Craft ideas for fall

By Soncirey Mitchell
Reader Staff

When most people hear the words “fall” and “crafts,” they think of the hand turkeys kids make for Thanksgiving. Short, cold fall days are the perfect time to craft; but, since it’s safe to say most of us have outgrown our macaroni art phase, it’s time to up our game. Here are a few easy autumn and Halloween crafts that capture the season without breaking the bank.

Pine cone hedgehog

I’m an irritating person to walk with because I stop every few feet to look at mushrooms or pick up cool leaves. Case in point, while out walking my dogs, I discovered several perfect pine cones and decided that I needed to take them home and make something out of them. Thus, my pine cone hedgehog was born.

To make a hedgehog (or a porcupine, sheep or purple people eater), first find a pine cone, aluminum foil and some oven-bake clay like Sculpey, which costs about $11 at Walmart. Using the foil, make a little cone that’s slightly smaller than the animal’s future head. The foil will act as a skeleton to support the clay and keep it thin and easy to dry. Shape the back of the foil against the pine cone to ensure that the two pieces will eventually fit snugly together. Next, apply a thin layer of clay to the foil (not the pine cone — it won’t go in the oven with the clay) and shape it into a snout. 

If the clay starts showing fingerprints or sticking to your hands, it’s too warm. Set it aside and work on the feet, which are just four little clay snakes with indents on the ends for the toes. To finish the face, make two oval ears, two black eyes and an upside-down heart for the nose, using a toothpick to make the holes. 

Bake according to the clay’s instructions and, once it cools, glue it to the pine cone.

If you’ve already gone ahead and bought the Sculpey, you might as well give the hedgehog some friends. Jack-o’-lanterns, cats and ghosts are all simple shapes that can be blocked out using the same aluminum foil method, without the pine cone.

Ghoulish faces

I’m a big fan of haunted masks, so I decided to capture their essence in Play-Doh air-dry clay ($20 for a massive tub). This type of clay is incredibly sticky, so first cover your workstation with a garbage bag, aluminum foil or parchment paper. Begin shaping the base of the mask using foil or newspaper and masking tape. This step is essential, as the clay will sink and flatten as it dries like a cookie in the oven, so a strong skeleton helps it keep its shape. 

If you can’t think of a face to make, just crumple up the foil until it makes an interesting shape and try to imagine where the eyes, nose and mouth might go.

Because this type of clay settles and dries while you’re working with it, little details often get lost; and, moreover, wrinkles are inevitable. Don’t sweat the details. Instead, exaggerate everything: bigger features are more visually interesting, creepier and hide the little issues. Let the mask dry for 24 to 48 hours. When it’s time to paint, you can either go with flesh tones or Beetlejuice-esque colors. 

Whatever color you choose, take some advice from TikTok makeup influencers: use a shade darker to make things look concave, and a shade lighter to make shapes pop. If you go for a fun color, take a look at a color wheel and find the shade directly across from it. These are contrasting colors, and using them together will make both stand out better to the eye.

Haunted house rocks

The important distinction between this painted rock and other painted rocks is that you have to find a canvas with character. No perfectly smooth river rocks — you want lumps, bumps and edges. Wash your rock and allow it to dry completely before painting. Much like when carving a pumpkin, begin by finding the rock’s “face” and imagine how its particular topography would lend itself to a haunted house. Dents become windows, bumps become shrubbery and peaks are steeples or turrets. 

When you have an idea, cover the rock with a white base coat to make the colors pop, then sketch your idea with a pencil or go in with paint right away. Seal the painted rock with Mod Podge if you’re keeping it indoors, or a waterproof, clear acrylic or polyurethane-based lacquer for outdoor decor.

Garland of conkers

Sandpoint is blanketed with conkers (a.k.a. horse chestnuts) every fall, which is perfect for me because I’ve been obsessed with them since pre-K. I’m always looking for ways to use them, since I can’t walk past a tree without picking some up. This year, I decided to make a garland.

Begin by wandering aimlessly around Sandpoint; within 10 minutes, you’ll find conkers. Grab a grocery bag full and then buy some thick twine. Measure out the desired length of the garland, then add an extra half an inch for every two inches. For example, if you want a three-foot garland, divide those 36 inches by four to get nine inches. That’s the amount you need to add to offset the twine that will be taken up by knots.

Next, pierce holes through each conker wide enough to fit the twine. You can do this with a drill or with a hammer and nail. Using a large needle or a paperclip that’s been unwound and shaped into a needle, thread the twine and pull it through the conker. Tie knots on both sides of the conker and repeat. Remember to leave extra twine on both ends of the garland to help hang it. 

The natural colors are beautiful as they are, but you can also paint designs or color the conkers’ light centers like eyeballs for an extra spooky effect.