Pumpkin Candleholder Centerpiece Made From Wine Glasses

Yes, it is that time of year once again.  Autumn, fall, whatever you choose to call it is here.  It is an absolutely beautiful time of year when days shorten and leaves change color and fall to the ground,  when pumpkins, gourds and Indian corn abound,  when people decorate their yards and porches with corn shocks, beautiful blazing mums and pumpkins - lots and lots of pumpkins.  Halloween decorations will also appear and last until the end of October.  I love this time of year!

Who doesn't look forward to cooler sunny days and brisk cool evenings where a light jacket is required? Isn't it nice to be able to burn a fire in the fire pit and enjoy the warmth of the flames while being mesmerized by the dancing colors before you?  Maybe you can even make s'mores, those delicious delectable treats made with graham crackers, toasted marshmallows and chocolate.  Yum.  I had my first s'more at about age 7.  Our neighbor was a Girl Scout leader and she took us to a cook out with her.  Yes, I thought it was the best thing I had ever eaten and remember it like it was yesterday.  And there is hot apple cider with a cinnamon stick or hot chocolate to enjoy on cool evenings.  Football fans are in their glory this time of year and there are so many wonderful festivals to attend.

With the coming of Autumn, it also means time to decorate the interior of the house changing everything from a summer theme to the warm ambiance of fall colors - oranges, yellows, dark reds and browns.

I had seen this pumpkin trio centerpiece I made over the weekend on Pinterest.  It was from an Etsy shop and there were no instructions, but I truly loved the way it looked so I decided to give it a shot and create one for our dining table.  I have to say I am quite pleased with the way it turned out and it is really easy to do.  All you need are 3 wine glasses in different sizes.  Mine came from, where else, The Dollar Tree.

I had lots of acrylic craft paints and brushes on hand and I buy Elmer's glue in the gallon sized jug so that was also on hand.  I had fall leaves left from another project and the only other necessary item was a hot glue gun.  Be sure and cover your surface with something that will not allow paint or glue to seep through.  I use a white plastic trash bag.  Here is what you do to make this adorable centerpiece..

First, remove any labels from the glasses and coat the outside of each glass with a layer of Elmer's glue.  I used a 1 inch foam brush to accomplish this.  Let the glue dry.  Doesn't take but a few minutes.

Next, put some orange, yellow and burgundy paint on a plate to use as an artist's palate.  Paper plates will work just fine.  I used one of my ironstone plates because I can wash it off and use it again and again.  Using a foam brush, load your brush by mixing your colors and start painting the glass from the bottom to the stem.  I used burgundy and orange for the base colors, then highlighted with yellow.

See how you get a nice variegated color by using the two colors at once?

Now, it's time to paint the top of the "pumpkins".  Use three shades of green and put a small amount of each color paint on a plate.  Using your foam brush, load the brush with all 3 colors and paint the stems from the top of the "pumpkin" up, covering what would be the bottom of the glass also.

Using a thin liner brush, load the brush with the burgundy color and make lines that would divide the segments of a pumpkin.  I made the lines by rolling the brush between my thumb and fore finger so that they are not perfectly straight - you want the lines to be sort of wiggly.  Let all of the glasses dry completely.

I had a package of fall leaves from The Dollar tree that had wired stems.  They are the big leaves that are under the pumpkins in the picture at the top of the page.  I cut the stems off with wire cutters and curled one end around my finger.  I twisted the wired leaf stem around the stem of the glass, then hot glued a small artificial leaf to the stem.

Place some small tea light candles in clear plastic containers on the top of the "pumpkin" when the paint is dry and you have an adorable fall centerpiece that you can enjoy through Thanksgiving.  Check clearance sections at Target, Michael's, or WalMart for sale tea lights.  I got a real bargain on mine at Target.  I sat the trio on a burlap runner that I had also made and was done.  This was a really easy craft project and cost very little to make.  I LOVE the way they look on the table.  It is easy to see over the centerpiece, it is colorful and appropriate for the season.  It will also provide some lovely candle light for evening dinners.  Easy peasy.  That's the kind of project I love to do when I am so busy every day.

You may have some old wine glasses sitting around gathering dust at your house.  That would be one less expense for you if you make this project.  These are NOT for drinking out of, but for decorative purposes only.  Enjoy your centerpiece if you make one as much as we will enjoy ours.  Happy Fall Y'All.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

The falling leaves, drift by my window,
The Autumn leaves, of red and gold.      Autumn Leaves lyrics by Johnny Mercer
(now I have that song in my head and will sing it for days.  ; )

What Can You Do With Tissue Paper and Glue? This!

We spent some time in Dallas recently with our oldest daughter and her three sons, the oldest of whom is seven.  Her husband had to be out of town for a week long photo shoot and she needed some help. Having raised four children of our own, we knew she had her hands full.   Grandma and Pawpaw to the rescue!  Spending time with those three precious little boys is a chance we try to never miss.  So, we packed the car and headed to Big D.

It's funny how inspiration can come from any place at any time.  We were there the week before Mother's Day.  Grandson #2 is 4 and goes to pre-school.  He came up to me and whispered in my ear that he had wrapped his mother's gift at school that day.  "Don't tell her grandma, but it's a picture of poppies that I made!"  He was so proud and excited.  Makes your heart want to burst.  It was a super busy week of running children to school, going to karate lessons, cooking meals, playing games, doing mounds of laundry, giving baths and having a wonderful time all week.  The baby, who is 9 months old worked hard all week at trying to crawl from one place to another "army" style.  He hadn't quite figured out how to make it all work on his hands and knees yet.  Brought back so many memories of how busy all those days were and why you can't remember so many things that happened because you are just trying to get through the general living of it all.

On Friday, we picked #2 up from pre-school and he came out the door with a lovely package in his hand. He got in the van and handed his mother her gift.  It was a 5x7 rectangle wrapped in pink tissue paper (because they had run out of purple, his favorite) with ribbons and a card made by him.   He jubilantly said "Open it!"  Mom said it's not Mother's Day yet.  Are you sure?"  Oh yes, yes, yes!  She carefully took the tissue paper off and inside was a lovely piece of artwork, mixed media of a red poppy done with paint, tissue paper and real poppy seeds.  It was truly lovely and made with all the love a 4 year old's heart and hands can create.  I LOVED it.  Mom was so very touched and filled with love while #2 was overjoyed that mom loved his creation.

We moved to Tennessee recently after living my entire life in the same town.  We downsized after 41 years of marriage and so many of the things I had used in our previous home just don't seem to fit in our little yellow cottage.  I have spent time trying to make things work and figuring out new things to enjoy.  When I saw his little piece of art work I was completely inspired.  I needed something to go above our bed and had just not found the right thing.  This I could do!  I made a trip to Michael's and bought 4 canvases.  They came two for $5.99.  Then a trip to, where else but, the Dollar Tree for a package of multi-colored tissue paper which cost, what else but, a dollar.  I buy Elmer's glue by the gallon and I have a set of acrylic paints so I was good to go.  Oh, and a small bottle of Modge Podge.

First, I mixed a color of blue that I wanted using baby blue, blue lake and phthalo green.  I base coated all of my canvases.

 After letting that dry, I used different colors of green and black to make grass on the bottom of the canvases, each one different.  Now for the fun part.  I cut red tissue paper in approximately 4" squares.  I applied Elmer's with a brush in a flower shape and put the tissue down.  I squished it around, turning up some of the edges for a 3D effect.    Next, I added another layer of glue on top of the tissue paper that was already down and put another layer of tissue paper on top of that.  I made each canvas different.

After letting everything dry overnight, I added stems and leaves.  To make the stems, I cut pieces of green tissue paper about 1  inch wide and 10 inches long and rolled them between the finger and thumbs of both hands making a long "snake."  I put glue on the canvas and laid the stems on top of the glue, taking the stems over the edge of the canvas.  Any remainder was cut off with scissors.  Then, I used a brush and made leaf shapes with glue.  Once again, I cut 4 inch squares of green tissue paper and squished it and manipulated it until I got a 3D leaf shape I liked.  I let this dry overnight.

Now for the "careful" part.  I loaded a 1inch brush with Elmer's and applied it to all of the tissue paper pieces on the canvas.  Poppies, leaves and stems received a coat of glue.  They had a bit of stiffness from the original glue used but I didn't want to ruin the 3D effect of the flower petals and leaves.  I went slowly and carefully, making sure I got glue in all of the cracks and crevices.  Again, they had to dry overnight.  The fun part after this was peeling all the dried glue off my hands - almost as good as bubble wrap!

After everything was dry, I made centers in all my flowers with a little puddle of glue and added real poppy seeds to the glue.  Again, let dry overnight.  And now, the final step......Modge Podge!  Cover the entire canvas and flowers, leaves, stems and poppy seed centers with a coat of Modge Podge.  This gives everything a nice sheen and just the right stiffness so everything doesn't go flat.  Let dry complete and your pictures are ready to hang.

There are so many possibilities for this application.  You don't have to be Van Gogh (oh how I wish), you can be creative and create your own art work, even a 4 year old can do this.  His didn't have the 3D effect, but it was beautiful.   I already have a new project in mind.  Will let you know how that goes.  Thanks to his  pre-school for your inspiration!

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Anyone can create!  Inspiration is everywhere.