Spooky little pinatas are perfect for your next Halloween party!

These pinatas were created for Drinking with Scissors, a monthly craft party in Whitehorse, Yukon. With all the materials (and even the treats to fill them with) provided in kits, the personal-sized pinatas can easily be assembled over drinks with friends or as a craft activity at a fun family event.

Step 1: Materials & Tools

For this instructable the spider kit has been used an an example, but the bat and ghost are assembled in the same way (minus the pipe cleaner legs).

Each kit contains:

printed card stock templates
extra card stock pieces for the side strips and decorations
string or ribbon
googly eyes
tissue paper or crepe paper
pipe cleaners
candy, confetti and other treats to put inside the pinatas

Extra tools and materials:

scissors
glue - clear tacky glue is used in this instructable but white craft glue works as well
tape - optional
hole punch - optional

Step 2: Cut Out Card Stock

Cut out the card stock body pieces. For the spider this is an oval with tabs that are folded up.

In addition to the two body pieces, you'll need long strips approximately an inch wide that will wrap around the entire outer edge.

Additional decorative pieces can be cut out of the card stock including fangs and eyes.

Step 3: Attach Sides

Fold up the tabs on one body piece and glue or tape them to the side strips.

Note on glue vs. tape: Scotch tape will be easier and faster than using glue to assemble the pinata, but the more tape you use, the harder your pinata will be to break open.

For the spider legs, punch or poke four holes in the side strip on each end of the oval. Thread through the pipe cleaner and secure with glue or tape.

Attach the string or ribbon through the side strip, at the top. You can reinforce where the string is attached by wrapping it around an extra piece of card stock before securing it inside the pinata.

Step 4: Fill and Close

Fill the cavity with confetti, candy and other small treats.

Close up the pinata with the other body piece and glue or tape the tabs to the side strips.

Step 5: Decorate

Decorate your pinata by covering it in tissue paper or crepe paper and adding details like the eyes. This is your opportunity to be really creative and give your pinata some personality. Consider adding fun eyelashes or going for a more authentic look with an 8-eyed spider.

To give the spider a fuzzy appearance, the tissue paper was cut into small squares that were scrunched up and then glued onto the surface. A chopstick or the end of a pencil can be helpful when applying tissue paper this way. Once the spider's body was completely covered in black tissue paper, the eyes and fangs were glued on.

For the ghost and bat pinatas in the photos, crepe paper was cut into fringe and then glued on in overlapping rows.