Floral Pumpkins / Pumpkin Fun / Pumpkin Custard

FLORAL PUMPKINS

by Lois Breneman - 2009 - Heart to Heart

You don't need to carve faces on pumpkins.  Try decorating them with autumn flowers such as chrysanthemums!  It will take quite a few flowers for an all-over effect, but a simple design would be really pretty as well.  Draw the design on the pumpkin first. Poke holes in the pumpkin with an ice pick, and insert stems of flowers into each hole.  Put enough water in the pumpkin to make the flowers last.


PUMPKIN FUN
by Julie Druck, York, PA - Editor of A Heart for Home - Used by permission

* A Pumpkin Warmer – Cut a lid, clean out a small pumpkin and carve a simple design like a heart in the front of it.  On the underside of the lid, cut criss-cross lines into the flesh.  Mix a tabl. of cinnamon and 1 tsp. of ginger together (or whatever autumn-smelling spices you wish).  Sprinkle about 1/2 of the mixture onto the lid and press into the flesh.  Next, score the inside of the pumpkin with lines and press the remaining mixture into the flesh.  Add a votive candle and light.  You’ll have a nice-smelling pumpkin warmer!

* Door Stop – Use a pumpkin as a door stop – it will add to your autumn décor!

* Autumn Windowboxes – After the flowers in my windowboxes have died off for the season, I often pile small pumpkins and gourds into them.  Much prettier than empty windowboxes until spring . . .

* Stone Pumpkins – Find a medium or large stone that sits flat on the bottom and clean it off.  Apply orange acrylic paint (two coats if necessary).  Glue a twig “stem” on top of each stone. 

* Frosted Pumpkins – Using tubed fabric paint (or other similar paint in tubes), apply snowflake shapes onto pumpkins.  Add lines coming down from each stem as well.  Work quickly and then add white glitter to the wet paint.  When dry, it will look as if there’s frost on your pumpkins.

* Decoupage Pumpkins – These are so festive and will look great on your sheltered porch!  Tear colorful tissue paper into squares and paste them on a pumpkin with ModPodge or watered-down glue.  (Using a double layer of tissue squares will come out with a bolder color.)  Overlap the squares here and there or make any pattern you wish.  When finished, add a coat of ModPodge or glue to the entire pumpkin.

To subscribe to A Heart for Home, send a blank e-mail to: aheartforhome-subscribe@welovegod.org    To send Julie a personal e-mail, write to: thedrucks@netzero.com     To view Julie's blog, visit: www.lifeinskunkhollow.blogspot.com