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Seasonal Crafts: Apple Heads

Make This Creepy Craft Ahead of Halloween!

The Editors
March 21, 2023
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The art of making apple heads is easy and fun! (And maybe a little creepy, too.) Follow these easy instructions for a creative fall craft.

How to Make an Apple Head

This fall craft is perfect for September or October—just in time for Halloween!

  1. The apple will shrink, so start by choosing a large, firm one. We like Granny Smith apples for their firmness. 
     
  2. Peel the apple first. (You can leave a little skin on the top.) 
     
  3. Then, with a sharp knife, form the nose, make eye sockets, and cut a line for the mouth. You can “sketch” lightly first.
     
  4. Carve around the mouth to accentuate the cheeks, and make some lines around the eyes and on the forehead. Try to make the features super exaggerated because the apple will shrivel up.
     
  5. Soak the head in lemon juice for about 1/2 hour (so it doesn’t turn brown) before hanging it to dry.
     
  6. To dry in a warm climate, you could stake them on a skewer but it will take a few days which might encourage mold. The fastest way to dry is to simply put them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and set in the oven on low heat (175°F). Keep an eye on them. A food dehydrator is another option. 
     
  7. When the head is almost dry, add peppercorn or bean eyes. Or, raisins or cloves!  Use your imagination to make some hair and a body to go with the head.

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Halloween
Seasonal Crafts
Apples

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Comments

sheryl blackburn (not verified)

3 months ago

I love that you do appleheads. I do too. I did it 50 years ago and have just recently restarted. Funny, before I was in washington state and it took forever to dry them. Here in arizona I put a fan on them and they are mostly dry in one week. Do you know of others who do this craft too? I would like to figure out how to market them and learn from others. Perhaps they would also learn from me. I carve the whole face, eyebrows, hair etc. I hope you will email me if you can figure a way we can start a club or some such thing. Thanks. Sheryl

Sharon Abbott (not verified)

1 year ago

I loved all of the fall information and projects to do fall is my favorite tome of year.

Marty Lawler (not verified)

4 years 11 months ago

Thank you. I always learn so much from you. And the poems and images that go with them calm me. I like the newsletter.