Halloween Lanterns: This one will require some adult supervision
both during and after the activity.
Start with a clean glass jar. (I found that a 16 oz. salsa jar works best.) Paste strips of orange and yellow tissue paper onto the jar using a decoupage. Cover the outside of the jar completely and allow to dry. While the jar is drying, draw a pumpkin face on black construction paper. Cut out the face and apply it to the outside of the jar with the decoupage to create a silhouette effect. Apply a couple extra coats of decoupage over the jar and allow to dry completely. You can add a sturdy string handle by cutting a long length and a short length of string. The short length should be enough to tie around the lip of your jar. Tie large knots into the ends of the longer length of string and fasten it to the jar by trapping the knotted ends under the shorter string that gets tied around the lip of the jar. Once the jar is complete, place a tea light candle into the jar and hang it at a safe height for all to admire as they "trick-or-treat".
Variation: Cut out other silhouette
shapes. Spiders, ghosts, cats, or witches are just a few others you can try.
Gift Ornaments: This activity is easy to adapt for all ages.
Start with small "boxes" made by cutting several pieces of cardboard and gluing them on top of each other until the desired thickness is achieved. Make several different sizes for this project. Select wrapping paper (finally something to do with those scraps) and have your kids wrap the little "gifts". You can provide more supervision for younger kids and even go so far as to cut and fold the gift wrap ahead of time making it easier for your littler ones to tape or glue the paper properly. Before you glue or tape the last edge of the wrapping paper down, place a loop of gold ribbon or string in the corner taping it in place. Finally tape down the last edge of the wrap. You can add tiny bows or pretty ribbon to the "gifts" to make them look realistic then hang them on your tree.
Another thought: These little "gifts" make nice package decorations that can be used by the recipient on their Christmas tree.
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