Pumpkin Decorating DIY

I have to confess I am not a big Halloween fan. It's not the dressing up part that I object to. It's the spooky, scary, bats, ugly witches, horror aspect of it that I hate. I've hated it since I was a kid. But I like pumpkins. Especially the non traditional kind since they can easily become decorations for Thanksgiving once it's November. Usually I just get a bunch of gourds and pumpkins for the front door and dining room table and call it a day. But I'm feeling more crafty this year, so I decided to try two different decorating schemes.

The first is based on an idea I saw in the October issue of Good Housekeeping - a metallic pumpkin used as a vase for fresh cut flowers. I couldn't find the photo online but here's a similar one. The pumpkins are Pie Pumpkins from Trader Joe's. I chose those because I could pick them up on my weekly grocery store run, they were a good shape, and they were inexpensive - only $1.99 each. I started by painting the pumpkins with metallic paint. I used Martha Stewart Multi Surface Metallic Acrylic Craft Paint in Rose Copper and Rose Chrome. Two coats were required to get the best coverage. Because I don't like cutting pumpkins and want them to last for as long as possible I bought some artificial flowers at Michael's and made a small bunch for the top, tying them together with floral tape and wire. Creating this crown was the most complicated part.

The second is based on a tutorial from Martha Stewart. The example I saw in the October issue of Martha Stewart Living showed a light pink pumpkin with orange and yellow applique flowers. I looked all over the place for similar applique flowers and finally found these on Amazon. They come in a variety of colors and are available with Prime shipping. I ordered blue and light orange, which are more pink than orange, and decided to go with light orange on a white pumpkin. I used regular straight pins to hold the applique in place. (The tutorial calls for silk pins which are .5mm straight pins.) The pumpkin I chose is about 10" in diameter which worked well with the two appliques that came in one pack. If you use a larger pumpkin you may want to order two packs to make sure you have enough to cover the surface. I honestly have no idea whether poking holes in the pumpkin will make it go bad quicker. I'll just wait and see.

I realize now that I have a pink theme going on with all three, which ties them together. I'm thrilled with how they turned out and think this may be a new tradition for me - decorating pumpkins every year. Are you a pumpkin lover? What's your favorite way to decorate pumpkins?

Photos by me.

#diy