The gnarled old tree that comes alive in A Monster Calls is a scary but beautiful sight. For tweens who enjoyed the haunting book that the movie is based on, here’s a quick and easy craft to try at home.

 

What You’ll Need:

Polymer clay

Glass baking dish

Super glue

Pin back

Oven

Knife

 

Step 1: Knead the clay until it’s nice and pliable. Then, take small sections and roll it in your hands to create the branches. You can have as many or as few as you like.

 

Step 2: Place the branches in the glass baking dish, arranging them as you wish, smoothing and pushing the pieces together to create the trunk of the tree.

 

Step 3: You can keep the tree as is, or use a knife to cut the bottom off to create a clean line – totally your call.

Step 4: Follow the directions on your polymer clay to bake it in the oven.

 

Step 5: Once the pin has cooled, glue the pin onto the back of the tree. Wait for the glue to dry and enjoy!