Create an enchanting centerpiece of mixed seasonal offerings.
Here's how: Fill a large glass hurricane or vase with a selection of small gourds and pumpkins in different shapes. For a little something extra, paint a few gourds—we used bright orange and white and left the stems natural.
Give a pumpkin or squash an elegant facelift by carving it with initials or a name.
Here's how: Choose a letter in a font and size of your choice on your computer and print it. Cut out the letter, place on a carved-out pumpkin or gourd, and trace around it with a grease pencil. Remove template and cut out the shape with a serrated carving knife.
Little ghost-face lanterns lend a ghoulish glimmer to the mantel.
Here's how: Hollow out pumpkins (see tips below), then paint each one white, including stems. Use a grease pencil to draw three circles for the face, varying the shapes of the eyes and mouth on each to give the pumpkins personality. Carve out. Place a small votive inside pumpkins to illuminate.
Tips
—To remove grease pencil markings that are visible after carving, wipe with a little Goo Gone on a paper towel.
—To Carve: Hollow the inside by cutting a 3-inch hole in the bottom with a serrated craft saw. Scoop out pulp and thin inside walls with a large spoon until shell is 1 inch thick.
—The Paint: Acrylic paint (available at craft stores) comes in tubes and small bottles, dries quickly, and won't peel off. Always clean paintbrushes with water after every use because the paint quickly hardens on the brush tip.
Here's how: Paint pumpkins and gourds white or black, leaving stems natural (or don't paint, if you prefer). Trace a few bat templates (download them below) on each pumpkin. Fill in bat outlines in opposite colors: black bats on white pumpkins and vice versa.
Tip: Enlarge or reduce template to desired size. Cut out template on a square of contact paper using an X-Acto knife. Stick the template to the pumpkin and trace with a grease pencil.
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