DIY Decorative Pumpkins: Reversible for the Entire Autumn Season!

Pumpkins are an integral part of Fall decorating. These diy decorative pumpkins do double duty this year for Halloween and Thanksgiving.

In this blog, I’ll show you how I pulled together a variety of fall items I had from last year, and made these classy diy decorative pumpkins that last all season long.

DECORATIVE PUMPKINS FOR HALLOWEEN AND THANKSGIVING

I like decorations that can do two jobs. Storage for decorations is tight, and the budget is usually tighter. So when I found these wooden pumpkin cutouts on Chalk Couture last year, I bought several sets. I just never got around to making them.

It’s time!

Here’s what I used, but I believe in being super flexible. I’ll mention some options you can use, as well.

Supplies

• Pumpkin coutouts
• acrylic paint
• masking tape
• silk screen transfers
• chalk paste
• squeegee
• fall foliage and twine or ribbon or whatever you desire to decorate with
• hot glue and glue gun
• sealer
• paper towels

Wood pumpkin cutouts

I used three diy decorative pumpkins because I had three, but my inspiration piece for the saying pumpkins only had two. Mine measure 10″, 7″, and 4.5″ in height.

One works if that’s what you have. If you’re handy and can cut them out yourself, FAB! If you need to buy them, check out Michaels has 6 inch online. You can also buy thin wooden cutouts and hang them on the wall instead of standing them on a shelf. I wouldn’t be surprised if you can find options at Dollar Tree.

Acrylic Paint

My wood was already painted white, so if yours is bare wood, you’ll need white, orange, yellow, and green. My shades were Jack-o-Lantern Orange, Kings Gold, and I mixed my own green using limeade, jubilee green, and a drop of black because I didn’t have the color of green I wanted. Choose whatever shades make you glad. You could also choose a soft purple or a blue. Those are very popular for pumpkins, as well. You can find acrylic paint at Walmart or any craft store.

Masking Tape

This is for making your straight line that divides your two paint colors.

Jack-o-Lantern transfers

These are silk screen templates. I’m a distributor for Chalk Couture, so that’s who I use. Their collection changes all the time. Sadly, they don’t have any in stock right now, but you can find them on ebay.

Sayings transfers

I have a lot, and the thing I love about Chalk Couture is that you can mix and match anything. You can look on Chalk Couture’s Lookbook for their seasonal transfers, as well as the various categories. The “blessing” I pulled from Fall Blessings, “Grateful” from a Thanksgiving transfer, and “thanks” from their Appreciate It Project. The center divider was from “Bloom”. Ebay has a lot of their discontinued transfers. I reuse them over and over and over, so rest assured you’ll use them for more than one project. It’s the creative part I love most.

Chalk Paste

Of course, I buy mine from Chalk Couture, but I’ve noticed there are other brands on Amazon. I used black and brown (bark).

Squeegee

There are small squeegees for spreading the chalk paste. You can get them from CC or Amazon.

Fall foliage.

A lot of my fall foliage comes from Dollar Tree. In fact, I think everything I used was from Dollar Tree, even the twine.

Hot glue and glue gun.

I have so many of these. I prefer the kind with the trigger.

Sealer

I prefer a mat finish on my projects, but your sealer can be any sheen you prefer.

Directions

Paint the front side of your pumpkin white. When it’s dry, masking tape off the center of one side of the pumpkin. Paint one half of the front, as well as the sides, of your pumpkin(s). After it dries, paint the other side. For mine, I liked the woodgrain to show through. So after it dried a little bit, I took a paper towel and wiped off a little of the paint. You can also water down your paint a little so it’s not so thick.

When your paint is dry, remove the tape. I added a little brown wash to my Thanksgiving side to make it a little more aged/rustic. Add some water to your brown acrylic paint and brush it across your surface. Wait a minute or so for it to soak in, then wipe off as much as you want.

You can hand paint a design down the center or use a transfer design. I think leaves would look awesome. too.

Using the transfers and chalk paste, apply your sayings. I did mine vertical. After about five minutes, they should be dry. Flip over and apply your jack-o-lantern faces. The great thing about chalk couture chalk paste is that it wipes off MOST surfaces if you mess up.

For more information about how to “chalk” and a video with a demonstration, click here.

Seal your project, so the paste will not wipe off, before proceeding.

Decorate with your fall foliage and twine/ribbon. I like to lay several choices out first, just the way I want them, then move on to using the hot glue to secure them in place. I put the twine on last to hide any places where the foliage meets or where the glue is goopy

DISPLAY

I have a million shelves in my house. There’s one particular spot that I reserve for my seasonal chalking projects. Three shelves, three pumpkins. I like that I can split them up and spread the festive feeling through several rooms. Whether you have one, or multiple, I hope you’ve enjoyed this and will soon make your own diy decorative pumpkins. And the best part? When Halloween is over, you flip them around for Thanksgiving!

VIDEO

I am in the process of putting a demonstration video together. Stay tuned if you’re a visual learner.

YOUR TURN

Do you have any questions about the instructions? I’m happy to elaborate, so comment and let me know. Have you ever used Chalk Couture before? What’s your favorite type of fall craft?

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