Chunkin’ Punkin’
Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011Ever since my friends started having babies I’ve been seeing the burlap door signs everywhere. I love how they can be made into anything and any size you desire. The only thing I don’t desire about them is the price. Know what I’m sayin’?
Well, Katie, Sherry, Ana, and Erin (Seriously, do you read these these girl’s blogs? Cuz ya should. They are like a DIYer’s bible) announced that today would be the next Pinterest Challenge :: Fall Edition, and I knew what I wanted to do. What better way to celebrate the crisp cold weather than with a cutie patootie pumpkin. I’ve had these pinned for who knows how long, and this finally gave me the kick in the rump roast to do it. I gathered a little inspiration from some other sweet little pumpkins here, here, here, and here on Pinterest.
I’m a rebel, and what do rebels do? They make burlap pumpkins sans a tutorial. Boom! Did your mind just explode? That’s right I made this pumpkin freestyle. I used my own ideas; which typically leads to random acts of chaos.
Here’s what you’ll need…
- burlap
- sharpie (or chalk)
- acrylic paint
- paint brush(s)
- scissors
- plastic grocery bags
- elmer’s glue {and/or} thread & needle
Now, I wasn’t smart enough to use chalk when I made my pumpkin, but you guys probably are. So, take a tip from the queen of Sharpies. Invest in some white chalk. It’s a lot easier to erase then permeant black marker. I traced my pumpkin onto my two pieces of burlap, and started cutting!
Next came the paint. Since I was operating on the dining room table I taped down a garbage bag to prevent anything getting on my beautiful table. If you are cheap like me and know nothing about burlap, it’s possible that you are using an loosely woven burlap, not realizing that burlap came in all different varieties. Since I was using a loose weave burlap I figured the paint would for sure seep through onto the surface below. Having plastic there allowed for easy removal once my pumpkin dried. I used acrylic paint I had on hand. I had no clue if acrylic and burlap were friends so I just threw them in a room together and locked the door. It seems they are BFF’s.
I found my paint at Michael’s when they were having a big end of summer sale for like $.42 a bottle. S C O R E! The orange I used is Dark Orange, and the green is a Lime Green. Both are the Craft Smart brand.
I had originally intended to paint “The Davenport’s” on my pumpkin, but this fella was just not big enough to hold a last name as long as The Great Wall of China. Seriously? Nine letters? Since, personalizing my ‘kin was out of the question I went with the next best thing…polka dots.
Since I can’t draw a quasi symmetrical circle if my life depended on it I brought in reinforcements. I wanted my circles 2 slightly different sizes. So, off to the kitchen I went. I came back with the lid to a coke bottle and a small circle cookie cutter. Don’t worry I used the side you don’t cut with on the cookie cutter. I went with a random pattern to give my ‘kin a touch of whimsey.
I used the top and cutter just for the outline of the circles. I dipped each in a small amount of white paint and then placed it on the pumpkin. I gave the circles a small twist to ensure a complete outline of the circle. Like I said, I can’t draw a circle; not even a little. I used an art brush to fill in each circle.
See how loose the weave is? I was afraid the paint wouldn’t take very well and just seep through the hole, but applying a second, and in some areas a third coat of paint everything looked just fine.
I decided, for now, to leave the back of my ‘kin unpainted in case I get an itch to do something else to the back side.
Next I had to figure out a way to attach my two sides so I could stuff my ‘kin. I first though of using hot glue, but that stuff can be so clumpy and messy I sent that option packing. I had some basic run-of-the-mill washable school glue. You know, Elmer’s. Except mine was some super cheep-o brand I picked up at Target on sale. Can’t hurt to have glue around. Since school glue dries clear and can be as thin as you want it.
I generously applied the glue with in a 1/2 inch of the edge to the back side of my unpainted ‘kin. Then laid the painted piece on top. I use any hard heavy object I could find to apply pressure to my glued areas. Since I still needed to stuff the ‘kin I left the top of my ‘kin unglued for the time being. I allowed the glue to dry overnight and then stuffed a few plastic grocery bags into my cute little guy. We recycle our plastic bags so I had a stockpile of them in the laundry room. We try to bring reusable bags to the store, but we leave them in the car or at home Every. Single. Time. Hopefully one day we will remember. **You can also use scrap pieces of burlap to stuff your pumpkin if you are awesome and remember to use your reusable bags at the store.
Since, I’m a total spaz I decided to hand stich the top of my pumpkin. Which is not the spaz part. The spaz part is where I decided to use black thread. Duh! Yep, just used that word…circa 1996. That meant I had to go back and paint over the black thread on the front of my pumpkin. Multiple times. Duh!
At the time I wasn’t sure how well the school glue would hold up, but it’s still standing the test of time. If I do a project like this again I might just go ahead an close out the pumpkin with the school glue.
Finally, I took some scissors and hunted down any funky lookin’ stuff sticking out around the edges. I didn’t want a super polished look, but I also didn’t want it looking like I just picked it out of a dumpster.
And there you have it a super duper cutie patootie burlap pumpkin. I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. I decided not to add a hanging wire to it just yet. I think I’m going to use him as part of my fall mantle decor this year.
If you feel fancy and want to hang your pumpkin you should probably seal it with some type of fabric stiffener to prevent water destroying your masterpiece.
