Halloween is also my favorite time of the year for crafts! I know this first Halloween craft post is a little late in the season, but I hope it can be a good resource in the future.
For this particular piece, I want to focus on pumpkins.
PUMPKIN CARVING
Everyone carves pumpkins, right?
Pumpkin Masters has a wonderful variety of patterns to carve and tools to use. You don't just have to make jack-o-lanterns any more! And some people are amazingly talented. I found some awesome patterns that use two or three pumpkins stacked on top of one another in a magazine.
And if you want to keep your work, use a fake pumpkin. You can get these at just about any craft store around Halloween time: Michael's, Hobby Lobby, JoAnn, etc.
HALLOWEEN SCENES:
Here is a different idea, especially for using fake pumpkins: Halloween scenes. My mom and I did a few of these a couple years ago and they were a lot of fun.
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| Pumpkin patch themed pumpkin scene. |
At Hobby Lobby, you can find all sorts of miniature things (like for doll houses) to use. I found a wheelbarrow and a small "metal" tub and a picket fence here. The little pumpkins were found here, too. Or you can usually find little bags of them near the floral stuff in Michael's. I also found the mini hay bale at Hobby Lobby.
Michael's has all sorts of little Halloween town figures you can use. Like trees and lamp posts. We put a Halloween town hearse in my brother's and a black horse (with painted red eyes) in my sister's. You can buy mini lamp posts that light up, which is a cool idea.
We used fake moss on the ground of all of them. It gives a great effect. The "corn" in mine is made from pipe cleaners. And we recommend putting a fake candle in the back to light them up.
PAINTED PUMPKINS:
Another great way to present pumpkins. I bought five small fake pumpkins a couple years back. Following some basic ideas for pumpkins in magazines, I decided on a black and silver color scheme and went for it.
I painted two pumpkins silver and two black and left one orange. I like to use a lot of black and silver in my Halloween decor.
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| Silver painted pumpkins. The ribbons were cut different lengths and glued on and rhinestones added at intervals. The stems are painted black and have a silver-edged black ribbon tied around them. The lettering I did by hand in pencil before painting. |
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| Two black pumpkins with silver stems and the original orange, also with a silver stem and a silver-edged black ribbon. I planned the lettering and free-handed the paint. I used smaller rhinestones to create random swirls on the black and the orange is done with silver paint (with little rhinestones at the end of the swirls). |
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Another great idea I saw was to cut fake pumpkins in half and paint them with different patterns and mount them on a door or wall.
And remember, there are a hundred ways to paint pumpkins. Some people even do tie-dye. Do whatever feels like you!
COVER YOUR PUMPKINS:
I found another great idea this year that I mean to try out: lace-covered pumpkins. There are expensive covers you can buy, but I would just use stockings. Especially around Halloween, there are stockings and tights with all sorts of fun, lacy designs. Just slip a pumpkin inside and tie it off! Voila! Here is a more specific how-to:
Pass the Sushi: DIY Lace Pumpkins.
CLOTH PUMPKINS:
For those of you who end up with all sorts of extra fabric from costumes and projects, here is an idea: make little cloth pumpkins!
I have seen a few ways to do this from making them like a draw-string pouch to following more complex patterns. The draw-string way is easy: cut a large circle and draw it up and tie it off. You can fill them with other things as well, more fabric, cotton, even potpourri.
Here is one that is a little more involved and which I would love to try:
Craft Buds: Fabric Pupkins Tutorial.
I have seen all kinds. Some are very detailed, some look like bags vaguely shaped as pumpkins. Be creative!
Please share other pumpkin crafts!
