Floral Sugar Skull

$15 - $20 (based on 2016 prices)

Makes one skull

To begin the prop-building process for 2017’s haunt, I transformed two old skulls used in 2015’s voodoo theme into sugar skulls (see the second skull here). Although they were not used in the final haunt (they were given to a friend as a birthday present), they did help prepare me for the season.

• One ceramic skull
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat black*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat white*
• An assortment of flowers is multiple colors and sizes (e.g. baby’s breath, pink and red roses, white daises)
• One skull rosary (learn how to make it here)
  

1. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, give the skull three even coats of black paint. Once the coats have dried, detail the skull with white paint (you, of course, are free to use whatever colors you choose). If you struggle with drawing, buy a ceramic skull with the designs already etched in its surface.

2. Hot glue flowers into the eye sockets. I found it was easier to work in layers: glue one or two flowers in place at a time and play with the positioning as you progress. For a tapered appearance, graduate the floral arrangement, ensuring that the larger flowers are in the center.

3. Adhere the rosary to the crown of the skull. For visual interest, position the cross in the center of the forehead directly between both eyes. Because hot glue failed to attach the rosary’s stone beads to the skull’s ceramic surface, I used superglue for a more secure hold.

4. You could enhance the skull with additional details, including adhesive gems, glittered accents, or a cluster of monarch butterflies.

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.