Wednesday, October 23, 2013

DIY Sleepy Pumpkins




Pin It

Hello, dear friends, how are you? I just had a revelation these days. I truly, utterly love Halloween. It is a time of magic, when you can be whatever you want to be - even if this is a sort of "imported holiday", since we don't have a Halloween tradition in my country, Romania. Still, the chance to walk the streets dressed up like a giant marshmallow or like a pirate deserves a celebration. So I've made these little sleepy pumpkins to mark the occasion.



Before you say anything, I know these are not exactly pumpkins, but I thought that gourds would do just as well for this DIY project. They are smaller than pumpkins, and size does matter when you live in a small home. Also, gourds have a lovely organic shape, which opens endless possibilities when I put my mind to it. Last year I've also played with gourds and made a neon pumpkin, so if you've missed it just click on the link to see it! In order to spice up my homemade Halloween, I went for the quickest and easiest way to play with the aspect of these gourds. So I painted them! 



Why did I make them sleepy, you ask me? Well, the idea came to me after staring at the pumpkins each morning, for more than a week. They were just sitting on my kitchen counter, day after day. I was too busy to sit down properly and decide what to do with them. After a while, I started to think that the poor pumpkins were getting bored, waiting to be transformed. Bored and sleepy, hence the idea to paint them into sleepy little gnomes :)



My choice of colors was not really a choice, since I didn't have the time to run to the art shop and buy new supplies. So I decided to use the colors that I already had from previous projects: white, fuchsia, gold and burgundy. I like the way they combine with the natural warm tones of the pumpkins. In making any DIY project, my advice is to use what you already have. If you make your project with love, it will look fine, no matter what colors you use.



DIY Sleepy Pumpkins Tutorial:
1. Wash the pumpkins and let them dry properly. Use elastic bands to configure your design. Elastic bands work better than masking tape when you paint on irregular shapes.
2. Paint the white base coat. I used acrylic paint. It sticks on any surface and it is water-based, so you can thin the color if you're going for a more delicate texture.
3. Let the pumpkins dry for an hour or so, then paint a second coat in order to get a nice opaque finish.
4. Continue with the top color. Make sure to respect the elastic band markers. Use 2 band for each row.
5. Finish off by painting the eyes and mouth with a thin liner. Enjoy!

54 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you, Tanya, my sleepy gourds say "Good night" :)

      Delete
  2. beautiful gourds! I still remember the one you made last year, but this set is gorgeus! love them all!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Ana - each year gourds are so much easier to find than actual pumpkins - and I'm so happy that you painted some gourds, too ;)

      Delete
  3. these sleepy gourds are the most cutest things! so adorable and so content!

    ReplyDelete
  4. You have no idea how much I love these! So cute and original!

    Angela @ Number Fifty-Three

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for pinning the sleepy pumpkins, Angela!

      Delete
  5. Those are adorable! Leave it to you to make an awesome Halloween decoration in some lovely colors!I love Halloween too! (Maybe more than Christmas.)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So great to hear from you again, Danni, always with the sweet words! Speaking of Christmas, we must hurry now, since we are already entering November...

      Delete
  6. So different from scary pumkins! These are adorable and very girly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for the sweet comment, Magali! I have a weird and struggling time in my life right now so I just wasn't in the mood for scary or gloomy pumpkins...

      Delete
  7. Replies
    1. Thank you, the pumpkins are not exactly spooky but I like their innocent faces anyway :)

      Delete
  8. Replies
    1. Thank you, I've moved the sleepy pumpkins in the bedroom, where they can have a proper rest!

      Delete
  9. Sweet as anything!! Love them. Pinning also to Fall fun. Have a great week. Linda

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for the lovely comment and for the pin, Linda!

      Delete
  10. what a completely adorable idea! love love this

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for visiting, Carissa! As I said, the idea came to me because I was too lazy to make the pumpkins in the first place :))

      Delete
  11. I like your sleepy beauties the best ! Have a great Halloween.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks a million, I am crazy about the blown glass pumpkins but I found no way to comment on your blog.

      Delete
  12. They are SO cute!!! Love the sleepy faces!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for visiting, Annie! I fell in love with your creativity, so maybe next year you'll make some sleepy pumpkins for this year's Ariel!

      Delete
  13. Omg, I <3 these for Christmas!!! Pinned I posted DIY pumpkin pillow this week. Stop by

    ReplyDelete
  14. These are some of the cutest pumpkins I've ever seen. Love how they don't require any carving! I'd be thrilled if you'd come on over to Pink Recipe Box and link up at Creative Wednesdays: http://pinkrecipebox.com/creative-wednesdays-with-pink-recipe-box-16

    ReplyDelete
  15. Now this is such a cute and creative idea I love it. Fabulous. Thanks tons for linking to Inspire Me. Hugs, Marty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for making time to visit, Marty, you are such a sweet and caring host!

      Delete
  16. Thanks a million for the sweet comment, Steph, you can make the sleepy pumpkins, too, with the right kind of gourds!

    ReplyDelete
  17. These are SO cute, I just had to click on them!

    ReplyDelete
  18. These turned out super cute!! I love that you painted something other than a pumpkin. I'm hosting a giveaway for two modern printed kitchen towels that you should enter! http://homecomingmn.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-tea-towel-set-giveaway.html

    ReplyDelete
  19. Oh my goodness! I'm loving all things painted pumpkin this year and these are probably the cutest version I've seen so far. Adorable.
    Rebekah Somewhere in the Middle

    ReplyDelete
  20. What adorable squash! I love this idea.
    KC

    ReplyDelete
  21. So cute! Would love for you to share at Simple & Sweet Fridays. New Follower!
    Hugs,
    Jody

    ReplyDelete
  22. Love this post...reminds me of the Cat in the Hat. Pinning!!

    ReplyDelete
  23. I am seriously loving these adorable Halloween gourds. I think they turned out lovely. Halloween is one our favorite times of the year. You really turned using what you have into something super cute. Pinning. Thanks for linking up with us at Inspiration in Progress. :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Now how cute are these!!! Very Cute... Would like to invite you to come share at One More Time Events http://www.onemoretimeevents.com/2013/11/home-and-hearth-share-it-one-more-time.html
    Hope to see you there...Tammy

    ReplyDelete
  25. They look absolutely wonderful. Thanks for the great tutorial.
    Ali x

    ReplyDelete
  26. aww super sweet :)

    Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays, featuring this week :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. These are so cute! I love halloween too but I can see versions of these being done for christmas and every other holiday too!

    ReplyDelete
  28. I don't celebrate Halloween, but these are adorable! I think they would work nicely in with my fall decorations!

    ReplyDelete
  29. These are so cute! thanks for sharing :) http://www.handmadeintheheartland.com

    ReplyDelete
  30. These are so cute! They also make decorative tape you could put around them if you didn't feel like painting stripes.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Love these! What a great idea for holiday decorations!
    Over The Apple Tree

    ReplyDelete
  32. Such cute little sleepy 'pumpkins" Meeha! Great job.
    Thanks for linking to a Round Tuit!
    Hope you have a fabulous week!
    Jill @ Creating my way to Success
    http://www.jembellish.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  33. These are absolutely adorable, love the sleepy look. I love gourds of any shape, color, or size! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Stopping by to Thank you for sharing at One More Time Events and let you know you have been featured http://www.onemoretimeevents.com/2013/11/dessert-display-with-flour-sack.html. Party is up hope you can stop by and share some more of your great ideas....Hugs Tammy

    ReplyDelete

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...