Straw and Twine Mask
You will need straw, twine or jute, pieces of cloth, glue, needle and thread, scissors, plastic milk jug, feathers, glitter and beads. The cloth needs to be large enough to cover your face. First, roll the twine into two coils that are large enough to surround your eyes. Don’t worry about getting them perfectly round (oval or some other irregular shapes look good too) and add expressions. Leave an opening in the center that is large enough for you to see out. The coils can be sewn or glued to stick them together. Be careful about the type of glue you use since it will be close to your eyes.
Cover the cloth with glue and attach the coils where your eyes will be. Make other coils for a mouth and cheeks if you want. Attach these coils to the cloth and leave an opening for the mouth. Cut holes in the cloth for the eyes and mouth.
If you are making the mask to hang on a wall or stick you can cut eyes and fangs/teeth from the milk jug. Glue them in place.
Sew or glue straw to the uncovered cloth areas of the mask. Add beads, feathers and glitter/paint to decorate your mask. Tie a string or piece of elastic around the back to hold the mask onto your face or to hang. If you are making the mask to hang on a wall or stick you can cut eyes and fangs/teeth from the milk jug. Glue them in place.
Aluminum Foil Mask
Fold a sheet of foil that’s about 12 inches by 30 inches in half lengthwise. It should now be 12 inches by 15 inches. Mold the foil over your face. Press the foil gently into your facial features, keeping your eyes closed. Using your fingernails, tear eye holes, nostril holes and a mouth opening. Remove the mask from your face. Trim or fold in the extra foil at the edges. Poke holes and attach string or elastic to the sides. Glue on more pieces of foil or other decoration as you want.
Not a Jack – O – Lantern
You have probably made many Jack-o-lanterns from pumpkins already. Try something different this year by using other kinds of squash. Some squash are hard and difficult to carve. If you microwave them for a short period of time they will soften. Prick the shell with a fork to vent.
Draw a design or face on the shell of the squash. Use a knife with the help of an adult to carve along the lines.
Cut off the top and scoop out the inside so that only the shell remains. Use a flashlight or a candle to light up your design. You could also paint or glue paper designs and faces on the squash.
Weaving with a Branch
You will need a branch with at least three smaller branches, colored yarn about two yards long, and items from nature such as corn husks, feathers, herbs, long grasses, cattail parts, leaves and flowers.
Starting at the bottom of the branch, loop yarn around and around, continuing to loop out towards the end/top of the branch. Weave yarn and natural objects through the loops. The placement of the objects may be random or in a specific design.
As a variation you may tie shells, seed pods, macaroni, beads or holed stones on the yarn before you weave. To display your work, you could hang it or place it in a can of sand to hold it upright.
Cornhusk Dolls
If you use fresh corn husks from a farm or garden, air dry them completely and store them loosely in a box until you’re ready to use them. You could also purchase the husks from a craft supply store.
Corn husks can be softened by soaking them in a pan of water with three teaspoons of glycerin. Soak them for a few minutes, and lay on a towel to soak up the excess water.
To make a doll, lay about six husks on top of each other. Gather them together about an inch from one end and fasten a rubber band tightly around them. Forming the head, you pull the ends back over the banded area and fasten with another rubber band.
Roll two husks together lengthwise in a single tight roll. Fasten two rubber bands near the ends. This arm section is tucked inside the body, below the neck. Wrap some yarn, string or a rubber band in a crisscross across the body to fasten the arms.
Trim the bottom of the husks to create a dress or cut into two even sections to create legs. Wrap each leg section tightly at the ankle. You can glue corn silk, twine, yarn, moss or other material to the head for hair. Add other features to create unique dolls.
Samhain Word Search
Find all the words, and the leftover letters will spell a tasty fall treat!
| A | C | H | S | S | M | N | O | D | R | N | J |
| P | O | T | P | R | O | E | N | N | O | A | H |
| P | T | A | I | O | R | E | G | I | C | N | U |
| L | H | E | R | T | R | W | H | K | O | T | N |
| E | T | D | I | S | I | O | O | P | R | L | T |
| S | R | N | T | E | G | L | S | M | N | E | S |
| A | I | E | S | C | A | L | T | U | A | R | H |
| M | B | W | E | N | N | A | C | P | A | S | O |
| H | E | Y | T | A | T | H | G | I | R | F | K |
| A | R | E | P | P | U | S | B | M | U | D | B |
| I | R | A | L | L | E | H | S | K | U | L | L |
| N | O | R | D | L | U | A | C | S | C | R | Y |
Find:
| Ancestors | Hunts | Antlers |
| Jack o lantern | Apples | Mask |
| Cauldron | Morrigan | Corn |
| New Year | Death | Pumpkin |
| Donn | Rebirth | Dumbsupper |
| Samhain | Fright | Sap |
| Ghost | Scry | Halloween |
| Skull | Hella | Spirits |
Mix and Match
Can you match the pairs of objects? The first one is done for you.
Choose 4 or 5 of these objects and make up a story about them. Write it down (or ask a grown-up to write it down for you) and send it to Oak Leaves. We’ll print the best one so everyone can read it!
