Last year my family recreated an amazing miniature haunted Halloween house that my mom and grandma made originally. I really had fun learning how to making miniatures using unexpected things from around the house and the craft store. I always look at dollhouse supplies for jewelry making supplies so this month I'm going to show you how to make 4 different amazing Halloween brooches using home made miniatures!

If you're not into crafting you can pick up one of these limited Halloween brooches, handmade by me in my etsy shop.

Today we're creating a Halloween favorite from the classic movie Hocus Pocus. We're making a minitaure spellbook with stitched "flesh" and a peering eyeball that moves! You can also turn this brooch into a pendant for a necklace. Check out the video tutorial on YouTube or scroll through for the photo tutorial



You will need:
brown crinkly scrapbook paper that looks like leather or you can wad up a paper grocery bag
eyeballs- I found these realistic looking googly eyes at the craft store, also check the beads or doll making supplies
blue crayon or colored pencil
cream colored sewing thread and a needle
thin basswood
scissors, wire cutters
wood glue
metal filigree piece



Begin by cutting two pieces of basswood or balsa wood to 1 3/4 by 2 inches. This craft wood is so thin you can easily cut it with scissors or a craft knife. Be careful to go slowly because the wood does split sometimes.


Apply wood glue and glue the two pieces together. clamp them down with a few office clips or set something heavy on top of them and allow to dry. The wood soaks up the glue and bows as it dries so something heavy to weigh them down flat is important.



Next cut a piece of your scrap book paper 4 1/2 by 2 1/2  inches. Using a blue crayon or colored pencil draw lines where you want the stitching to be. The blueish shade looks pretty creepy on the leathery cover.


Thread your needle and stitch along the drawn lines, using small stitches. If your stitches are a bit uneven, its okay. Its supposed  to look like stitched skin  so some uneven stitching here and there gives it a Frankenstein's monster vibe.






Glue the sewn cover to a piece of white paper and cut out. This paper gives the cover a bit of stability.

Fold the cover in half and put a good amount of glue on the spine. Glue the cover to the wooden book and wipe off any excess glue that squishes out. Glue the googly eye in place.





Cut an oval of paper a bit bigger than the googly eye and then cut that oval in half lengthwise to make the eyelids





Fold these pieces like an accordion and then roll the sliver of paper between your palms to give it a more workable texture and crinkle them up more.



Unfold the eyelid piece slightly and apply a little clear glue.




Bend the piece in the middle to make a half moon shape and apply to the lower eyelid first. Repeat for the top eyelid, lapping the top lid on top of the corners of the bottom lid. Push the lid pieces around the eye to make folds like a lid. You can also use the tip of your pencil to push the lid around. When the glue has mostly dried, you can continue pushing the lid around the eyeball until you get the effect you like. Trim the excess eyelid off the edge.





Using the wire cutters, cut two corners from your filigree piece and glue them to the corners of your book. Glue a pin back to the back of the book.






  Stay tuned for my other Halloween brooch tutorials!

1950s Tambourine Brooch     DIY Pyrex Brooches   Atomic Clock Brooch