How to Dry Gourds for Arts and Crafts

Dried gourds can make some beautiful art and craft projects. Whether left natural, painted or decorated in some other way gourds offer interesting natural shapes and can make interesting bowls, birdhouses, containers or decorations. Drying your own gourds for craft projects can be fun because it allows you to be a part of the process from start to finish. Drying your own gourds takes time, so if you are in a hurry or need gourds for a craft project you want to do today or in the next 6 months you should buy them pre-dried. However, you can start drying additional gourds for future projects today and they will be ready to use within about 6 months to 1 year depending upon the size of the gourd.

To begin drying your gourds you first need to thoroughly clean and disinfect them. If bacteria is left on the gourds it can eventually lead to problems or even ruin the gourd all together. A weak mixture of bleach and water does a great job of killing any surface bacteria on the gourds. You can wipe them down with a rag soaked in the bleach and water mixture or spray them with it, allow it to set for a minute so there is time for it to kill the bacteria, and then wipe it off.

Gourds dry better if they are hung up rather than left sitting on a surface. Hanging them allows air to get to all sides of the gourd so it dries evenly and doesn't develop soft or rotten spots over time. Hang the gourds with heavy string in a dry room to allow them to dry out. Make sure there is good ventilation and air movement in the room.

Because gourds don't change much in appearance as they dry out you need to rely on other factors to tell when they are dry and ready to use. A good indicator is if when you shake the gourd you can hear the seeds rattling around inside. Handle the gourds with care during the drying phase since they will be delicate and could easily be bruised or damaged. After the gourds are dry they are sturdy, hard and can easily withstand fairly heavy handling.

Once the gourds are dry you can use them in any way that you would like. When you cut a gourd to use you will need to clean out any pulp or seeds to make the inside of the gourd nice and attractive. Gourds are great for carving, cutting and decorating. Try using bottleneck gourds to create vases, or round gourds to create bowls. You can use fine grit sandpaper to sand the surface smooth and then stain them to a beautiful, deep woodnote finish or to any color that you would like. Use your imagination and have fun with the great natural shapes that gourds provide.