Simple DandT SpOoOoky Make Ideas for Halloween

2023-10-19 | By Kitronik Maker

License: See Original Project Laser Cutters

Courtesy of Kitronik

Guide by Kitronik Maker

skeletonhat_1

Get festive this October with some easy Halloween makes! We love quick wins as ‎much as the next person. We got three excellent resources, from the ultra-low tech ‎to the more involved. We've got some easy printable bunting, three fun edge lit ‎signs and an extremely polite servo-powered hat-tipping skeleton! ‎

Emma guides you through how she made each of the following projects, and we've ‎provided you with all of the necessary DXFs, PDFs, Illustrator Files, and HEX ‎files. Read on to find out more.‎‎ ‎

Make SpOoOoky Bunting:

bunting_2 ‎

An easy printable project that you can assemble anywhere! After printing, there's ‎just a couple of simple steps to follow and then you're done.‎

WE USED:‎

This PDF
String
A Glue Stick

Step 1 - Printing: Using the PDF, print out as much bunting as you need (use a ‎colour printer for best results). Once they've all printed, cut them all out.‎

printing_3

Step 2 - Gluing: Fold each piece of bunting along the line and then glue the two ‎sides together. ‎

Step 3 - Final Assembly: Once that’s done, punch the marked holes and thread ‎them onto a string. Hang your bunting up and enjoy!‎

‎ bats ‎

‎Make Eerie Edge-Lit Signs:

sign_4 ‎

These illustrative Halloween designs will light up any desk, windowsill, or ‎mantelpiece in spooky style. Built around our RGB LED Strip with Pattern Selector, ‎you can choose the colour of your light display, shift through the colours or even ‎use a chaser sequence!‎

WE USED:‎

This DXF/This Illustrator File. (zipped)
RGB LED Strip with Pattern Selector
‎5mm Clear Acrylic
‎3mm Black Acrylic
‎4 x 16mm M3 Pan Head Screws
‎1 x 6mm M3 Pan Head Screw
‎4 x M3 Hex Nuts

Step 1 - The Base: First of all, check out the DXF. It contains the base that houses ‎our RGB LED Strip, which should be cut from 3mm acrylic of your choice.‎

base_5

Step 2 - The Designs: The designs on the DXF are two of the most complex we’ve ‎ever provided. There are a lot of small parts so making sure that bits aren’t ‎duplicated is crucial. For this reason, we have also provided this design as an ‎illustrator file, so you can benefit from the layers grouping the small parts together.‎

Step 3 - Cutting the Parts: After that it’s as simple as following the instructions in ‎the diagram above - engrave the design, outline with a kiss-cut, and then cut the ‎sign outline fully.‎

Step 4 - Final Assembly & Test: Now you’re ready to pop it in the base and light ‎up your Halloween!‎‎ ‎

bats

‎Make a Polite Skeleton Decoration:‎

skeleton_6

This extremely dapper haunt is a great way to learn the basics of using Servos! ‎Just one servo and a little bit of code is all you need to get your own skeleton to ‎greet all your visitors this October! ‎

DISCLAIMER: We made ours from 3mm acrylic, if you don't want to have to ‎strengthen the legs, we would suggest going for 5mm acrylic instead. ‎

WE USED:‎

This DXF
BBC micro:bit
Simple Servo Board or Simple Servo Starter Pack
‎1 x Servo extension cable
‎1 x 180 Degree Servo and included screws
We would recommend 5mm Black Acrylic for structure
We would recommend 5mm Fluorescent Orange Acrylic for structure)‎
1 x M2 6mm Pan Head Screw‎

parts_7

Step 1 - Cutting the Parts: Firstly, cut out the dxf as stated above. We ‎recommend 5mm thick acrylic for support, as we cut ours from 3mm and had to cut ‎a second version of the legs from 5mm acrylic and glue them to the back of the ‎skeleton to stop it from bending forward.‎

Step 2 - Glue & Test: Glue the feet into the base and make sure it stands and ‎holds its own weight well.‎

Step 3 - Assembly & Adding A Servo: The left arm of the skeleton has a hole in it ‎for a servo to friction fit into. Push a 180-degree servo into the hole before using ‎the servo arm to turn the servo all the way to the right (towards the skeleton). Now ‎take the servo arm off and use the M2 6mm Screw (a) and one of the screws ‎included with the servo (b) to secure the skeleton arm to the servo arm and to the ‎servo. Orient as shown in the diagram below and make sure your skeleton is ‎holding his head at what you want 0 degrees to be in your code.‎

attach_8

Step 4 - Plug In & Preparation: Plug your servo into a servo extension cable (this ‎can help make it easier to conceal the wire and board later) and then plug the ‎extension cable into the Servo 1 headers on the Simple Servo Board. Make sure ‎you put batteries in!‎

Step 5 - Coding: Now we code the micro:bit which will go into your Simple Servo ‎Board. The code we have used is as below:‎

code_9

Microsoft MakeCode | Terms of Use | Privacy | Download‎ ‎

As you can see this very simple code displays a ghost icon on the micro:bit and ‎runs a loop that repeats every 5000 milliseconds. The loop will set the servo to ‎move in five-degree increments with 100 milliseconds delay in between, except ‎when it reaches 45 degrees at which point it waits for a second to make the ‎skeleton stop at the top of his hat-tip briefly.‎

Step 6 - Test & Play: Now plug in your micro:bit and you’re ready to add him to ‎your Halloween decor!‎‎ ‎

For more spooky makes, check out our Halloween makes archive.‎

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