Pumpkin Decorating Ideas

Pumpkins go hand in hand with Halloween. Which is why every year at this time, just about all the homes on every block in America are decorated for Halloween with many large, bright orange pumpkins. Those smiling and scary orange faces greet us everywhere we go. Eagerly welcoming us into the fall months and transporting us back to the days of our childhood when we looked forward all year to Halloween night and all the fun we would have trick or treating at our trusted neighbors homes. But even though pumpkins are synonymous with Halloween, they aren't just for scaring the neighborhood kids or decorating the outside of your home, they work very well when used as indoor decorations also. Sitting atop a table in your entryway or even gracing your dining room table, pumpkins make excellent indoor decorations. There are many ways you can use pumpkins in your decorating ideas for Halloween and even during the months of fall when you want to bring the outdoors into your home.

A really interesting idea I picked up from my aunt is a fall arrangement created using 2 wooden cake stands and an assortment of small gourds and pumpkins. The instructions for this arrangement are so simple your child could do it. You start by cutting holes in the bottoms of your gourds and mini pumpkins. And then carefully scooping out the insides with a small spoon. You'll then draw 2 triangles for the eyes, one for the nose and a mouth with two or three teeth. Cut out the shapes using a small craft knife. Place the two cake stands on a tray covered with Halloween paper and arrange the pumpkins on top. This makes an excellent centerpiece. You could also carve scary faces in the pumpkins, add fake web and spiders to make this arrangement perfect to use as part of a scary scene in your home. Or if you're a person who prefers things a little more elegant, pumpkins can even be decorated to use in more stylish arrangements in your home. Begin this project by choosing a letter on your computer that is the perfect size of your choice and print it out. Cut out the letter and place on a carved out pumpkin and trace around it using a grease pencil. Remove the template and cut out the letter with a small carving knife or crafting tool. Use various size pumpkins and letters to create unique and interesting arrangements. What goes better with pumpkins than falls glorious, colored leaves? This crafting idea is an excellent way to get the kids outside hunting those perfect fall leaves to be used for decorating the pumpkins. After you have your choice of leaves assembled you'll need to flatten them and allow them to completely dry out. To press the leaves, place them between two sheets of paper and lay in the pages of a large, heavy book. Stack more heavy books on top of that one. Let this sit for at least 24 hours. Then with a small paintbrush, dab all purpose craft glue on the back of each leaf. Apply leaves to your pumpkins in whatever design you prefer. Did you know you can even create an owl using a pumpkin and a ton of sunflower seeds? I didn't either until I saw this cute and interesting pumpkin last year at a friends house. This year I just had to try it myself. You begin by choosing a large pumpkin or squash, hallowing it out and drawing small circles for the eyes and an upside down triangle for a beak. Carve out your shapes using a small craft knife. Using a hot glue gun, attach the sunflower seeds, one at a time, in 2 circles around each small hole that you cut out for the eyes. Glue the outer circle first, then the inner ring. They don't have to be perfect. Make the ears and feet by using craft sticks and snapping them into 1 to 2 inch long pieces. Hot glue clusters of seeds to one end of the crafting stick, then push the other end into the top of the pumpkin to create the ears and the bottom to make the feet. Use a small crafting knife to cut the slits which will make it easier to push the crafting sticks into the hard skin of the pumpkin. There are many more interesting ways to decorate your pumpkin for Halloween and to use pumpkins as part of your fall arrangements. To get more information on these ideas and others visitwww.bhg.com.