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Pumpkin Papier Mache!

Every year we spend a fortune on pumpkins.  Then we make a huge mess carving them, but since display pumpkins don't really have good "meat" and baking pumpkins don't make great jack o' lanterns .....  we throw away the innards.  Then, as the pumpkin rots on the front porch, or the squirrels and other critters sneak up to gnaw on them, we have to explain to the little ones why they can't keep them.

Alternatively, we can have permanent pumpkins (which do cause a storage problem!) Instead of dropping between $7.00 and $20.00 on the ones you buy ... why not spend a messy afternoon or two with the kids?

You will need:

Balloons (the rounder the better)
Paper mache mix OR newspapers, flour and water
Something to stand them in to dry
Paint - lots of orange! some green and brown

Instructions:

Blow up the balloons to pumpkin size. Cover them with paper mache (either following the manufacturer's instructions, or by mixing flour and water to a gloopy liquid and stripping newspaper to layer on the balloon with the flour paste) to make a roundish shape.

Let them dry. Some products let you bake the object at 150 degrees to get it dry the same day. Remove the balloon. Add more paper mache to reshape until you are satisfied with the size and shape of your pumpkin.

Bonus: if you like, before the paper mache gets too thick, cut out a jack o 'lantern face.

When the pumpkin is well and truly dry, paint!

I've bought orange spray paint, and then several shades of orange craft paint. I sprayed the pumpkin orange, and then used the other shades to make it more realistic. It was less expensive, and less time consuming, than painting the whole thing orange and didn't risk getting the pumpkin soggy.

If you've made a stem, use the brown and green to paint it.

TADA - pumpkins! And they'll be there next year too! Or, since they were cheap, you can do it again next year (and if you store the paint properly, you can use the left-overs.

Helen Pope

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