Fall Scrap Wood Crafts
/For the past few years I have been making a variety of fall wood crafts for our vendor space at Sunbury Station (an old train station turned antique mall). These little wood accent pieces are made from scrap wood pieces found in my garage. They’re perfect for tucking into tiered trays or just adding a little touch of fall to an area of your home. I recorded videos of the process and decided to go ahead and share them all here in one spot for a handy resource!
Candy Corn
I make a few different sizes of these. Some use 1X4 boards and others use 2x6 boards. I figure out the best angle on the miter saw (between 15-20 degrees) and cut a bunch at once, flipping the board as I go. I use a disc sander to round the corners. Painting them takes a little longer than the other pieces I make for fall. I always sand the edges lightly for a more rustic look and I also like to tie a piece of raffia or twine around each one.
Ghosts
These are a lot of fun to cut out! I use my most random wood scraps (generally around 3/4” thick) and draw a curved top with a wavy bottom. Some ghosts might curve to one side as if they are on the move. After cutting, I round off the edges a little better with the disc sander and give the entire ghost a coat of white spray paint. Adding the eyes with black paint and a brush is probably the trickiest part. It takes practice and sometimes sanding and repainting. I like to add a little white dot on the black of the eye for detail- usually using the end of a paintbrush dipped in white paint. Finally, I sand the edges and seal the ghost to prevent scuffs.
I do a bunch of different shapes and sizes. Sometimes I add little “arms” or make them extra tall. I plan to make a few and add glasses and bows and I might even do some with dog or cat ears!
Bats
The bats are the hardest to cut out because of the wings. It takes a little white and then I also have to sand them by hand to get the inner edges. Painting them is easiest because I just use a coat of flat black spray paint. For a little more texture I prefer to lightly sand them again before sealing. I made my own template for these and use 3/4” thick wood.
Witch Hats
I cut the top of the hats with the miter saw using the same process as the candy corn. For the bottoms of the hats I cut a piece of salvaged plaster lath a bit longer than the width of the hat. All of the pieces get a coat of flat black spray paint and the edges are lightly sanded on the belt sander. I use wood glue to hold the bottom of the hat in place and nail it together for a better hold. I like to tie twine around the hat but I have also used ribbon. Tiny flowers would be really cute too!
My latest addition is black cats! I don’t have a video for them but it’s pretty much the same as the bats.
Feel free to make your own! Just don’t sell them at the same place I do. :) I think they are perfect to tuck into a “boo basket” since that is a “thing” now.
