Spider Cake

$50 - $60 (based on 2025 prices)
Makes one cake 

In 2022, when I was making props for a local theater’s production of Christmas Belles, the director inquired about the feasibility of creating artificial food to decorate the set during the scene with the holiday potluck. I had seen fake cakes made with foam and spackle, so I told him it would be relevantly easy and bought the supplies. Unfortunately, he changed his mind. Left with the material, I decided to fashion something spooky and this lighted spider cake was the result. 

• Three 5” x 1.5” plastic decorative bowls
• One eleven-inch plastic decorative tray
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat black*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in metallic silver*
• One sixteen-inch strand of purple LED microlights
• One 7.5” x 7.5” x 5.9” cylindrical box with lid
• Two to three feet of black wire
• One 2 oz. bag of spider webbing
• One bag of small spiders (roughly thirty spiders per bag)
• One sheet of gray creepy cloth
• One eight-ounce tube of silicone caulk
• Two ounces of air clay
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat blue*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat green*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat pink*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat white*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in glossy orange*
• One six-inch wooden dowel

1. Create the cake stand by gluing one of the decorative bowls to the bottom of the tray, placing a heavy weight atop the items to hold them together as the glue dries. For the time-pressed haunter, you can buy a cheap stand; however, whether you purchase or build it, the stand needs to be made out of plastic because you will drill through it during step three.  

2. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, build up layers of black and metallic silver spray paint to make the tray look like aged steel. This process works best if you apply a base coat of black and then add the sliver, working in quick bursts to let parts of the black remain visible (you can touch up portions with additional blasts of black if the silver becomes too heavy).  

3. Use a 3/32 bit to drill a hole into the center of the cake stand and feed the microlights through the opening, allowing the battery pack to sit inside the small bowl. This will hide the object but also make it still accessible to change the batteries and turn the lights on and off.  

4. With the same bit, drill an opening into the center of the box’s lid and run the microlights through the hole. If you do not plan to use the lid, you can skip this step. Then, center the lid on the stand and glue the item in place. This will form the base for the cake.

5. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, paint the interior and exterior of the other two bowls black. This will darken their surfaces, making it easier to hide them in the cake. Following this, use a 1/16 bit to drill three pairs of holes into each bowl and insert a two-inch piece of black wire into them to form a loop.

6. Wrap half of the LED microlights around the inner circumference of the first bowl, using the three wire loops to hold the strands in place. Then, complete the process with the second bowl. As you do so, you want to leave a foot of slack between both bowls as well as between the second bowl and the cake stand.

7. Glue cobwebbing to the sides of the bowls and stretch it out to create a nest, weaving spiders into the recesses. The level of detail depends on how large you plan to make the holes in step eight. For smaller holes, not much of the nest will be shown, so you can concentrate most of the detail in the center; however, for larger holes, you will want the entire bowl covered in cobwebs because more of it will be seen.

8. Determine where the holes will go on the cake and cut them out. Their size and number will be determined by your chosen aesthetic. For my version, I went with two: one large opening closer to the bottom and one small hole nearer the top.

9. Use a 1/16 bit to drill two holes in opposite sides of each bowl and insert a four-inch piece of black wire into each one. Following this, drill holes into the container to line up with those on the bowls and utilize the wires to attach them to the inside of the cake. This will hold the bowls in place. For added stability, you can also glue the bowls down.

10. Since part of the base could be seen through the holes, I lined it with gray creepy cloth to extend the cobweb aesthetic. If this is not an issue with the version you make, you can skip this step. Likewise, if you plan to display the prop on a shelf or on a table where it will not be observed up close, you can also skip this process.

11. Glue the box to its lid, angling it slightly for visual interest. I did this because I wanted to make the cake look like it was collapsing as the spiders overtook it, but you can keep it upright if that better fits your chosen aesthetic.

12. Put down parchment paper to protect the stand and, employing the same techniques as you would a normal cake, frost the prop with silicone caulk. What design you choose is entirely up to you: you can go traditional with waves or more elaborate with petals. If it helps, consider watching a few cake-decorating videos to give you inspiration.

13. Form decorative elements with air clay and silicone molds. I fashioned roses and leaves to accent the border and top of the cake. As with step twelve, what designs you choose are based on your vision for the prop. You can use balloons, hearts, or stars to cater the prop to your theme.  

14. Glue the flowers and leaves to the cake, use the remaining caulk to create a border, and paint the entire prop: white for the cake, blue for the border, pink for the flowers, and green for the leaves. The time-pressed haunter, though, may consider using colored caulking and clay to bypass this step.  

15. Cut the wooden dowel into three sections of varying lengths. Then, use a 1/16 bit to drill a hole in the top of each section and glue a one-inch piece of black wire into the opening. These will become the candles to top the cake, so you can make them as tall or short as you like.  

16. Affix the dowels to the top of the cake and use hot glue to produce the illusion of melted wax. The process works best if you move in stages, applying one layer at a time and allowing the glue to dry between each application. Also, I found that pumping the glue along the top of the candles and letting it naturally run downward creates the best results.

17. Cover the candles in two to three coats of glossy orange paint and trim the wire to make it look like burnt wicks. For added sheen, you can use clear nail polish or a glossy decoupage medium.

18. Glue the remaining spiders onto the cake, working them outward to make it look like they are swarming out from the holes. NOTE: The particular spiders I used were made with a slick plastic which did not adhere with hot glue. As a result, I used superglue gel to affix them to the prop.  

19. Based on your haunt’s theme, you can further embellish the cake with details like the name of a character or substitute the spiders with other insects, such as beetles or cockroaches.

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