Simple Halloween Props: Cardboard & Paper

Good morning everyone, my name is Richard and I love Christmas. It’s my favorite holiday in fact, however this October I felt I had perhaps been too dismissive of Halloween. In an attempt to branch out from my winter bias, this year I participated in the spooky tradition of crafting popular weapon props for miscellaneous purposes in costumes and/or decoration.

Inspiration:

I set out with the goal of finding a robust solution to creating props that was well above the standard of what is typically the result of making items from cardboard and paper. By utilizing a combination of typical packaging cardboard and colored craft paper, it’s straightforward to create a cohesive design with a high creative ceiling for further modification and artistic liberty. So after a substantial amount of procrastination and thankfully minimal trials and tribulations, I present a comprehensive guide to creating your own simple Halloween props… 10 days after Halloween.

This process requires no complex prerequisite skills such as paper mache or carving/sculpting. However your specific result can be greatly improved by utilizing your own skills and specialties. This project should serve mainly as a baseline, raising the floor, as I believe good design should be accessible to everyone. Feel free to iterate or follow the instructions closely, if you are satisfied with the results.

Materials:

1. Miscellaneous colored craft paper (Wide range of colors recommended however final utilization is up to you)
2. White printer paper
3. Cardboard (Typical packaging box cardboard is sufficient)
4. Adhesive (School glue stick is sufficient)
5. Tape (Electrical tape or similar is sufficient)

Tools:

1. Knife and/or Scissors
2. Cutting mat (Using another piece of cardboard also works)
3. Ruler (Optional: For making straight cuts)
4. Printer

Creating the designs is likely to be the most subjective part of this process and everyone likely has their own way of approaching it. Anything from using digital software to sketching and drafting by hand works. As long as you have a design on paper by the end, this guide is still applicable.

To design all three of my example props, I used the browser based CAD software Onshape. Even though creating vector graphics isn't its main function and could likely be achieved more intuitively via a software like Adobe Illustrator, it's still very functional for creating 2D designs.

To get started with Onshape, go to Onshape and create an account.

Then create a new document.

Next create a new sketch on the top face in the part studio.

Finally utilize the variety of sketch tools to create your design. By using only the line and conic tools, I was able to create a simple knife, saw, and hatchet in a relatively short period of time. Thankfully this process doesn't require any amount of precision, the main thing I was keeping in mind was that I wanted each design to be printable on a standard piece of letter paper. This resulted in a few props being subdivided into multiple pieces for a better proportioned result.

For more specific information about navigating and using Onshape, there are many helpful tutorials on how to effectively sketch and utilize each tool.

While sketching the knife, I originally was aiming for a kitchen knife look but after deciding it was too bland I ended up with a hunting knife-esque blade shape. This profile seems more Halloween-like and looks further refined in my opinion.

The saw was an interesting choice, certainly not the most common idea of a Halloween weapon but I thought it would work well in the paper format. Derived from typical wood saw visuals, the design is very recognizable, with upscaled serrations for easier cutting.

A full fledged ax-murderer prop seemed like a stretch, thankfully a hatchet seems to suffice. My design was inspired by the classic wood and metal look of hatchets and classic axes like the one seen in American Psycho. However I also added details to include the possibility of a colored handle for more contrast and variety.

The next step is the result of using the Onshape drawing function in the future. You need to extrude each element of the sketch, turning it from a 2D plane into a 3D object. This may seem unintuitive however the main goal is to have each area that needs to be outlined at a different height. This is also where you can separate parts of your prop by making them separate objects when extruding.

The height of each extrusion is non-critical however if you want a more accurate visual of your prop then each cardboard extrusion should be roughly 3mm (0.12”).

Next create a new drawing (template doesn't matter) and delete everything:

Then import a top view of your prop and adjust the scale and rotation accordingly to fit the paper correctly. Remember this will print on a full size letter paper, and keep your scale consistent between separate parts if applicable.

For both the saw and hatchet I arranged each part around the longest one which takes up the largest area diagonal across the center. This process may be different for bigger parts if you are willing to print in multiple sections, however due to the strength of a single layer of cardboard, the amount of area on a single sheet of paper is sufficient.

If you would like a more indepth look at the printable sheets or prop models/sketches, the Onshape link is here: Link

Also provided are all three prop sheets as PDFs.

After you have your desired printable PDF, it's as simple as just printing it. Assuming you’re using standard printer paper, and you designed your printable with these proportions in mind, remember to select “fit to page” to correctly scale your design before printing.

The color of the print is not important however since I'm low on printer ink (typical), I managed to get one printed in purple and the rest in yellow. The yellow is a bit difficult to see but I'll use the purple one for the in depth tutorial.

If you also are out of black printer ink, you can use a PDF recoloring website like this one to change and redownload your PDF with the correct color.

Start by locating your printed paper.

Next cut out a piece of cardboard slightly larger than your prop. The cardboard could also be the same size as your paper if that makes cutting multiple parts easier.

Then cover the backside of your prop paper with a thin layer of glue. (It will be removed later)

Turn over the paper and stick it to your cardboard, ensuring there is cardboard underneath all areas of the design. Apply even pressure and try to apply the paper as smoothly as possible.

Next use some sort of cutting utensil to extract the main shape of the prop from the cardboard.

Repeat this process for any additional parts of your prop.

For my knife design, I decided to use two more cardboard shapes to add more thickness to the handle. To accomplish this we can use the printed design again to cut out more handle shapes.

Start by removing the paper from the cardboard (save for later), this should be fairly easy assuming you didn't use too much glue, but be careful to not damage the paper too substantially.

Then cut out the handle shape to use as the next cutting guide.

Glue the handle onto an appropriate sheet of cardboard just like before.

Cut around the handle to extract the shape from the cardboard.

Remove the paper once again (save for later), and repeat the process to create another handle shape. You can use either the paper or the handle you just created as a guide.

Locate the blade of the knife and a sheet of colored craft paper. I'm using a light gray color which is what I want the blade to be.

Apply a generous coating of glue to the cardboard over the blade area, ensuring to properly cover the entire surface but especially the edges.

Then lay the glue side of the cardboard onto the sheet of paper. Do this on a flat surface and apply even pressure to get the smoothest results as possible.

Use your knife or scissors to cut off the excess paper around the cardboard.

Repeat this process on the opposite side.

Next locate each handle piece and a sheet of colored paper (I'm using black).

Repeat the process of applying glue to the cardboard and pressing onto the paper. Note that in this scenario, the side that the paper is applied to matters. If you are following along, be sure the paper is glued on opposite sides of the handle parts.

Then remove the excess paper once again and confirm the handles properly align with the rest of the knife.

To create the final formfactor of the prop, glue the handles to the main part, aligning and applying pressure to ensure a strong connection.

For the knife design, I wanted a lighter area on the blade to represent the bevel, and circles for the pins on the handle. These more decorative features don't need to be made from cardboard, instead being paper cutouts that are glued onto the prop.

To create the bevel, locate the blade section of the printed design and cut out the shape.

Next trace the shape onto a folded piece of paper.

Cut your folded piece of paper to get two identical pieces.

Then glue these onto opposite sides of the blade, using the tip to ensure proper alignment.

To create the pins, locate the handle section of the printed design and cut out any of the small circles.

Trace this circle onto a folded piece of paper and cut to get six identical pieces

Then glue these in rows of three on opposite sides of the handle.

It's time to add your own creative touch (If you haven't been already) and choose exactly how you want your prop to look. By utilizing different sheets of colored paper and even drawing directly onto your prop, you can drastically add character and personality to the visual style. I decided to keep it simple and create a simple blood pattern for my knife, however the only limit is your imagination.

Just remember to glue everything down before the final step.

This step is entirely optional and the process is still quite unrefined however I believe it overall benefits the quality of the outcome. By adding tape around the border of your prop, the edges of the cardboard are hidden, helping it seem less “cardboard-like.” It also introduces a black outline around the prop, which is a stylistic choice that creates a clean, semi-cartoonish look. It's completely understandable if this isn't the desired result, which is why this step isn't perfect and is suggested to be iterated on.

For edges of single layer cardboard, I cut strips of electrical tape in half with scissors.

Then lay your tape on the edges of the cardboard, trying to keep it as centered as possible.

Next fold the sides of the tape down over the edge of the prop. The straighter the tape is the easier this will be, however where there are bends, cut slits in the tape to help relieve stress and prevent creases.

Repeat this taping process around the edges of the blade, you can overlap and/or double up on tape strips if necessary.

For the thicker portion on the handle, a full width of electrical tape was needed. The process is effectively the same however this was the last of my electrical tape and it was having difficulties sticking.

The tape was lifting in some areas so I ended up using glue to help affix it to the paper more securely. The most important thing is that you press very firmly on the edges to help the tape stick better.

This process could definitely be improved, perhaps there's a tape that works better for this application. I even considered supergluing more paper to the edges and trimming the excess but that was out of the scope of this project. Ultimately, whatever works for you, works.

But after applying even pressure and letting everything dry, the final knife prop was complete.

Overall I think this project turned out very well, this prop is certainly passable and I have undoubtedly seen more jank solutions. There are also certainly better, more polished, and robust props out there. However for something you could reasonably make in a couple hours, it looks pretty good and should definitely last Halloween.

Unfortunately due to time and resource limitations, I was unable to also demonstrate creating the saw and hatchet props. However for those who are potentially interested, here's my artistic rendition of how those would likely turn out.

Anyway, in conclusion this is a reliable way to make very simple, versatile and visually appealing props for costumes or decoration. This design process was very insightful and fun, and I hope you gained something from this instructable. Whether you use one of my designs somehow, create something entirely new, or share this with someone who may be interested, I wish you the best of luck. Goodnight.

-R.H.