Sometimes it's really fun to make something purely for your own amusement, because it's cute, because it's festive, because you want to! I do so many projects that feel serious and important (to me) that it can be really rewarding to just let go and play. I love Halloween, art projects, sprinkles, donuts, and making treats for friends, so these were perfect in every way!
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| Pumpkins by Studio DIY |
I decided that I wanted to create some that looked like they were really frosted, and to save myself a little time by using cute holiday sprinkles instead.
Materials needed:
- acrylic paints (brown, white, orange, and yellow)
- Golden gel medium, Gloss
(you can get this at most craft stores, or online)
Project time: approx. 1 hour, for 15 pumpkins
I liked how Kelly, the Studio DIY blogger, had applied a base coat that was a bit less pumpkin-y orange and closer to donut color. I mixed the yellow, orange, and white with a touch of brown to make a color that looked like what a donut-pumpkin-hybrid (or offspring?) would resemble. I lined up all the little pumpkins on paper grocery bags that I'd cut up for a craft surface, and coated them with the paint I'd mixed up, including the stem.
In order to make the paint super shiny like frosting, I mixed in a large amount of the gel medium (about 50/50 paint/medium), and applied it to half of the pumpkins. I did the white "vanilla" batch first. Start with a circle a little less than half an inch away from the stem, and make a bigger circle about a third of the way down the mini pumpkin, so that you can then you can messily "frost" the area in between.
After they were all frosted, I sprinkled on the decorations! Do this right away, before the paint dries. If it's not tacky enough, and the sprinkles are falling off, you can dab on a bit more paint and stick them on individually. Use your fingers to place more after you've sprinkled on the initial ones, to arrange them. For the white pumpkins, I tried to use a bit more of the orange and black sprinkles for good contrast.
Repeat this with the brown "chocolate" frosting set, and you'll have a great mixed batch! In fact...wouldn't it be ADORABLE to do a set of 12 and find a pink pastry box...?
I passed these out for friends and co-workers, and they were such a big hit that people were demanding more even after they were all gone. To make them more festive, I put them in small plastic treat bags with a few candies and halloween treats, and tied it with an orange bow. NOTE: If you do give them out in a plastic treat bag, let the recipient know to take them out right away -- the moisture from the pumpkin made the sprinkles melt after a couple days, for those that were left in the bags. I might consider a little box or muslin bag instead, if I make them again.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you try it out and have fun experimenting! Thank you to Studio DIY for the inspiring craft ideas.
- festive sprinkles
- mini-pumpkins
- a big, soft paint brush
- mini-pumpkins
- a big, soft paint brush
Project time: approx. 1 hour, for 15 pumpkins
I liked how Kelly, the Studio DIY blogger, had applied a base coat that was a bit less pumpkin-y orange and closer to donut color. I mixed the yellow, orange, and white with a touch of brown to make a color that looked like what a donut-pumpkin-hybrid (or offspring?) would resemble. I lined up all the little pumpkins on paper grocery bags that I'd cut up for a craft surface, and coated them with the paint I'd mixed up, including the stem.
In order to make the paint super shiny like frosting, I mixed in a large amount of the gel medium (about 50/50 paint/medium), and applied it to half of the pumpkins. I did the white "vanilla" batch first. Start with a circle a little less than half an inch away from the stem, and make a bigger circle about a third of the way down the mini pumpkin, so that you can then you can messily "frost" the area in between.
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| The pumpkins in the back have just the base coat - ready to be "frosted" |
Repeat this with the brown "chocolate" frosting set, and you'll have a great mixed batch! In fact...wouldn't it be ADORABLE to do a set of 12 and find a pink pastry box...?
I passed these out for friends and co-workers, and they were such a big hit that people were demanding more even after they were all gone. To make them more festive, I put them in small plastic treat bags with a few candies and halloween treats, and tied it with an orange bow. NOTE: If you do give them out in a plastic treat bag, let the recipient know to take them out right away -- the moisture from the pumpkin made the sprinkles melt after a couple days, for those that were left in the bags. I might consider a little box or muslin bag instead, if I make them again.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you try it out and have fun experimenting! Thank you to Studio DIY for the inspiring craft ideas.
