My kids and I went to a local pumpkin farm yesterday for some festive fall fun. We came home with four little pumpkins and one mini-gourd that were just begging for a Disney makeover. Now, my family does not celebrate Halloween, but that doesn’t mean we don’t like getting crafty and creative. Since we don’t do ghouls, monsters, or wizardry, we opted for some whole-pumpkin decorating ideas we found at Disney Family Fun’s Spoonful.
First, because we are a little batty around here, we made Bat-o’-lanterns out of one of the round pumpkins and the mini-gourd. The instructions called for
- One pumpkin
- Black acrylic paint
- Black craft foam for wings and ears
- White craft foam for eyes
- Craft sticks
- Toothpicks
- Printable wing/eye/ear template
- Glue (we used cool-temp hot glue gun)
- Scissors
Because we don’t plan to eat the pumpkins, we used glossy black spray paint to evenly coat both the pumpkin and mini-gourd. While it dried, we printed and prepared the wings, eyes, and ears. Using the template, we cut out matching wings and ears from the black foam and matching eyes from the white foam. There are two wing styles and three different eye styles to choose from. We adhered craft sticks to the backs of the wings for support, attaching toothpicks to the bottom of each to insert into the pumpkins. We also glued toothpicks to the ears. When the pumpkins had dried completely, we inserted the wings and ears and glued on the eyes, and voila! How cute are these little critters? For a more Halloween-ish look, you could also glue on some white fangs or make the eyes more sinister.
The second design we made was the Ballplayer Pumpkin. We’re a baseball family, and with the World Series right around the corner, we thought that one was a perfect fit for us. All this design required were
- One pumpkin
- White craft foam
- Black craft foam
- Black face paint crayon (or athletic eye black)
- One pink balloon
- Ballcap
- Glue
- Scissors
- Sharp knife
The instructions recommended carving out the eye sockets and etching the nose with a sharp knife. Once that was done, all we had to do was cut eyes from the white foam and pupils from the black and glue them in place. Then we inflated a small pink balloon to look like bubble gum and glued it on, and then, of course, we topped him off with our favorite Perry the Platypus cap. Just look at him! Can’t you just hear him humming “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”?
These last two my daughter created herself. I mean, our house is not fully decorated for any season without Mickey and Minnie! She simply used black, white, and pink construction paper, Sharpies, and lots of hot glue for her masterpieces.
Find more whole-pumpkin decorating ideas like these and other seasonal crafts at Disney Family Fun’s Spoonful.
Jodi Whisenhunt’s MAGICAL MOUSE SCHOOLHOUSE: Learn While You Play at Walt Disney World Resort is now available in print and can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and CreateSpace. (Kindle and Nook versions also available!) Come, think outside the textbook and stretch the walls of your home classroom with Walt Disney entertainment!
Related articles
- Primped Up Pumpkin Party is HERE (myfavoritefinds.blogspot.com)
- Animal Kingdom IS for Kids! (magicalmouseschoolhouse.com)
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