If you have never seen a shriveled up orange face, then this project will definitely be a treat for you. With only a few materials necessary, you can make a piece of fruit look like the face of a scary witch! This project requires very little skill in order to have great results. In order to make creepy orange faces, you will need the following materials:
-oranges
-paring knives
-sugar
-lemon juice
Make sure that the children you are working with on this project are responsible and not too young. They should be fully aware of the dangers of knives and how to use knives appropriately. Everyone should remain seated while doing this craft. The adult should set an example and show the children how to complete the craft before anyone else starts.
First, everyone should have a clean orange with rind intact. Oranges can be cleaned under the faucet or by rubbing a damp cloth over the surface of the rind. Everyone should also have a paring knife. To start shaping the face, everyone should use the paring knife to cut out portions of the orange. The cuts should not be very deep; they should just reach the inner portion of the orange but not go beyond it. Shape two deep eyes, an area around the bridge of the nose, and a wide mouth. Everyone can make their own face personal, but the carving should essentially have the deep-set eyes, shaped nose, and mouth. You can also shave away some of the rind to add hair, and add indentations for cheeks and moles. Essentially, when this project is finished, the oranges will look like witch faces.
After everyone has carved a design into the face of their orange, you should make a mixture of lemon juice and sugar. Two parts of lemon juice should be added for every one part of sugar. Stir these ingredients together until they are mixed, and then brush the mixture over the carved portion of your orange. Let the mixture dry and then let the oranges sit out. You can have them sit out on a kitchen counter. You may run the risk of attracting fruit flies, but if you leave your oranges outside, a wild animal might steal them! Within a few days you should see the wrinkling of your oranges start to take place. The eyes will become sunken in and the mouth will develop wrinkles. Your orange will really start to look like the face of a witch!
When you think your orange looks fantastically creepy, you can dress is up by making a witch hat and a witch cloak out of construction paper. These can be taped to your orange, and then you can set your witch orange out on your front porch for passing trick-or-treaters to admire on Halloween! This craft can also be done with apples, but the apples must be peeled completely before the carving takes place. Also, apples should be soaked in the lemon and sugar mixture before they are set out to dry.
