How to Build a Giant Halloween Spider

An oversize arachnid is sure to scare the pint-sized set—and maybe even freak out a few adults. The long legs are made from inexpensive PVC pipe, making this creepy crawler the perfect Halloween home center project—web not included.

Step 1

Make The Base

Using a circular saw, cut a 2×10 piece of wood to 36 inches to form the base of the spider’s body. Paint it black.

Step 2

Make The Mouth

Draw the top and bottom of the mouth on plywood with a pencil, and cut them out with a jigsaw. Paint the two pieces black.

Step 3

Make The Fangs

Use the jigsaw to cut a 45-degree angle out of the long edge of the 1×2. Screw the top and bottom of the mouth to the 1×2 with #8 1¼-inch wood screws. The top of the mouth should sit on the angled edge.

With a handsaw, cut ⅜-inch dowels for fangs, then use a utility knife to carve a point at the end of each dowel. Using a ⅜-inch bit, drill holes inside the top of the mouth for the fangs. Paint the fangs red, and glue them into the mouth.

Step 4

Attach The Caps to The Frame

Paint eight PVC caps black. Drill pilot holes for the fasteners in the end caps. Screw the caps to the frame.

Step 5

Put The Mouth on The Spider

Make two pilot holes in the assembled mouth, through the 1×2, with a ⅛-inch bit. Set the mouth on the base. Drive two 3-inch wood screws through the mouth and into the base.

Step 6

Cut Pipe for Spider’s Legs

Using a circular saw, cut PVC pipe to length for the legs. You can make the legs as long as you want, but the three joints of each of the eight legs should be the same length. (Each of our leg sections is 2 feet long.) Paint the legs and the PVC connectors black.

Step 7

Assemble The Legs

Fasten the legs to the connectors using PVC cement. (Note: Joints have reducer couplings that allow you to connect a wider pipe to a smaller pipe; the pipes decrease in diameter at each joint.)

Step 8

Attach The Legs

Plug the legs into the caps on the body frame.

Step 9

Make The Body

Stuff two black 2-by-3-foot nylon bags—one for the head and one for the body—with filler. Use less filler for the bag that will be the head so that it will be slightly smaller. Open the bottom seam of the bag with a utility knife or a seam ripper in four places for the eyeballs. Make the slits slightly smaller than the diameter of a ball. Secure the balls in place with black-plastic garbage ties. Close the bag with the drawstring.

Step 10

Paint Stripes on The Body

Put Velcro tape on the bottom of the bag (the spider’s belly). Attach the bag to the wood frame with double-stick Velcro tape. Paint red stripes on the spider’s body with a foam brush.