Are you looking for some easy Halloween decorations to make? The Little Monster and I had fun this past weekend painting a trio of mini pumpkins a glossy shade of black. The first one we made into this spooky little bat-o-lantern below. Isn’t he cute! We have plans for the other two (hint: something with eight legs!). Hopefully we will have a picture or two of that project to post before Halloween.

I originally found the idea for black pumpkin bats on the website for Family Fun Magazine. Unfortunately, the article and template for the bat wings are no longer on their site (or at least I couldn’t find them any more). I’m not one to give up easily, so I took matters into my own hands and created my own bat wing template! You can download it here: Mini Pumpkin Halloween Bat Template.
Quick and Easy Instructions
STEP ONE: Paint your mini pumpkin.
If you have never painted a pumpkin, it’s really easy! You will need acrylic paint, as well as some type of sealer (I used Mod Podge on mine, but a spray would probably be quicker). I put together a quick “how to paint pumpkins” tutorial, so make sure you check it out for step by step instructions.
STEP TWO: Download and print the bat template.
Cut out the wing and ears, and then trace the cutouts onto black card stock.
STEP THREE: Attach the wings and ears to the mini pumpkin using a glue gun.
Before adhering the ears and wings, we cut the parts that were being glued in a curved shape that matched the curve of the pumpkin. If you prefer, you can attach the ears to the pumpkin using toothpicks, and the wings using wooden skewers. Use black electrical or duct tape to attach the skewers/toothpicks to the card stock.
STEP FOUR: Cut the eyes from white and black card stock.
As a side note, my template above includes shapes for eyes and ears, but honestly, we just cut ours freehand. The template did come in handy for the wings though. Adhere the eyes to your pumpkin bat using glue dots.
That’s it! Now make it your own…
If you want to scraplift this project, there’s a lot of different variations you could do. Instead of using card stock, you could use craft foam. You could also paint the face (glow in the dark paint would be fun) or use colorful duct tape for the eyes. Add a pair of fangs or maybe even some eyebrows. You could also other colors, like purple and brown
I hope to share more easy Halloween decorations here on Scraplifters.com. Make sure you visit again!
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