A Scottie Goes Trick-or-Treating

Here's another migrated post from my first blog, SalmagundiExpress. I originally published this post on October 23, 2007:

Simulated pumpkins have been around for a few years now, but only recently did I realize you can actually carve them. The idea of a "permanent" jack-o-lantern doesn't really appeal to me, and I adore real pumpkins; so I've been pretty lukewarm toward the proliferation of polyester pumpkins (or whatever they're made out of).

This year, though, I've seen some intriguing creations with "altered pumpkins," so I broke down and bought two foam specimins when they were on sale at Michael's recently. 

I've seen the vintage and folk art Halloween sites showing resin pumpkins with designs carved on their sides: witches, reproductions of old-fashioned Halloween decorations, autumn scenes, mottos, etc. I wondered if I could do something like that with one of the simulated pumpkins I bought.

My mother collects scotties, and she doesn't have a single scottie item related to Halloween. I thought some kind of scottie scene on the side of a pumpkin would be unique, and something maybe I could carry off.

I have a diecut scottie gift tag in what I consider the ideal scottie shape. I used that as my template and traced the scottie outline on the pumpkin with a ball point pen. Then I freehand-sketched the other elements I wanted, making things up as I went. (I'd make a terrible artist. I hate to plan things out ahead of time. For me, the creative process is all about the slow reveal as a project develops, with chance and chaos playing their parts in producing the final result.) Naturally, things were a little lopsided and uneven, but generally I was satisfied with the bare bones of the design on the pumpkin's surface.

I knew I wanted all the lines of the design etched into the pumpkin for an engraved effect, but I wasn't sure of the best way to do that. I browsed the various electronic tools available at the craft stores, but I wasn't sure any of them would be appropriate. (Woodburning would have created just the effect I wanted -- if these pumpkins were made of wood. However, there's a big "warning" sticker on the bottom of each pumpkin that says "Flammable," so applying any kind of heat at all, even with an embossing gun, was too big a risk to take.)

Finally, I remembered I'd gotten a simple linoleum block print kit for Christmas, which I'd never opened. I tried the smallest carving point, and it was adequate for engraving lines of my scottie design.

However, it was MESSY, with flecks of plastic all over the place; and it was time-consuming. It was effective, though, and I was happy to move on to the next step of my project.

Here's where I learned an unfortunate fact about working with simulated pumpkins: Everything stains the surface. Even a simple line of ballpoint pen ink is impossible to remove. I tried Scrubbing Bubbles, rubbing alcohol, plain old Dawn and water, cleanser, hairspray, and Alcohol Ink solution. All I did was disturb the surface to the point I was afraid the orange would start to flake away. I was stuck with many wayward pen marks and not sure what to do about them.

Instead of worrying about it, I got out a bottle of acrylic craft paint in black. I dabbed it over the lines a little at a time, then wiped away the paint to leave the carved lines filled in. Immediately I learned that acrylic paint also didn't want to come off the pumpkin's surface. This time, though, the effect wasn't so bad. It left just enough darkness behind to create a antiqued effect, including crazing. This also helped camouflage some of my pen marks. (Again, this part of the process was very messy.)

The final step was to paint in parts of the design to make them stand out. This worked pretty well, and it didn't take nearly as much time to complete as the previous steps. To make the painted sections pop a little more, I brushed a couple of thin coats of matte acrylic varnish over them. (This, I hoped, would also offer some protection to the paint.) I'd thought of coating the whole thing with matte spray, but I could just imagine my entire pumpkin melting before my eyes. (This once happened to me as a teenager when I tried to spray paint some Styrofoam balls to make Christmas ornaments. It was a horrifying experience.)

Mom was pleased with her one-of-a-kind scottie Halloween decoration (although my sister, Diamonqueen, mocked it; and J. Hooligan called it "ridiculous"); and I was pleased with the outcome of my experiment to craft with a fake pumpkin. I don't intend to try this again, though, unless someone comes up with a better technique than mine. I still have that other simulated pumpkin, and I've yet to decide what I want to do with that.

Craft Project -- Make a Halloween Wand

I'm migrating some posts from my original blog, SalmagundiExpress, that relate to crafts or needlework. I didn't have a full post on this, but it's an easy project, so I thought I'd give the instructions here, expanded from the original.


1) Choose a photo or image for the front of your wand. The photo above, a shot of my brother and me in our Halloween costumes back in the '50s, was originally black-and-white. I tinted it digitally before printing it out to make this wand. You can also use stickers, images cut out of magazines, or other embellishments to decorate your wand instead of a photo.

2) If using a photo, print it out in the correct size to fit on the front of your wand. Make it a little smaller yet if you want to frame it first by gluing it to a piece of patterned paper, as I did with this wand. Set aside.

 3) Paint a paper mache box black. If you're making a rattle, put the gravel or other items in the box now, then glue the lid in place so it can't come off. Cover the top of the lid with Halloween-style scrapbook paper.

4) Cut a wooden dowel the desired length and paint it orange with craft paint. The dowel should be about 1/2" in diameter so it won't snap when carrying the wand.

5) Make an X-slit in the side of the box where you want the dowel to go through as a handle for the wand. You could also try a drill, but be careful with a power drill and don't use a drill bit bigger than the dowel. Paper mache is sturdy but not impenetrable; cutting or punching a hole in the side shouldn't be too hard.

6) Cut a strip of patterned paper for the ruffle. Make sure the strip will be long enough to go around the wand head after folding, or you can overlap two strips and glue them down. Fold the strip like an accordian, then tie the folded paper, with one end short and the other longer. Fan out the longer end to create the ruffle, gluing the ends of the long folded side together so it resembles a ruffled wreath. Use tape, if you prefer.

6) Glue the ruffled wreath to the back of the paper mache box, with the box centered in the middle of the ruffle. This could get tricky as the folds may not want to adhere to the box well. If you use glue, let it dry thoroughly before you try to move the wand. You could also try taping the ends of the short folds to the box.

This step is optional, but if you want the back to look more finished, cut a circle of patterned paper and glue it to cover the folded ends of the ruffle.

7) Put some glue around the hole you cut or drilled into the side of the paper mache box. Insert about 1" of the dowel into the hole. Add additional glue once the dowel is in place. If you prefer, place a collar of glued paper or tape around the dowel and hole so the dowel won't slip out. Let the glue dry thoroughly before you move the wand.

Patterned duct tape is another possibility for securing the dowel in the hole; you could even extend the tape down the dowel, winding it barber pole fashion.

8) Glue the photo or other embellishments to the front of the wand. Add glitter glue, if you like. Tie black ribbon around the dowel where it enters the box for an added touch.

Read the rest of the original post, minus the wand directions, at Nudged to Write.

Fall Mood Means More Needlework and Crafts

At the Velvet Ice Cream
Factory grounds in
Utica, Ohio.

I've really neglected this blog, which is obvious by the July 7 date stamp on my most "recent" post. However, with the arrival of fall and increased creativity in the needlework and crafts areas, I'm feeling energized about Come to the NudgeryFaire again.

Not that I've been idle. I've been keeping up with my writing blog, Nudged to Write, and started a blog about the local county fair that actually inspired my interest in things like embroidery and crochet. That blog is called The Late, Great Carthage Fair. There I'm talking more about the history of the fair and my memories going back to childhood in the late '50s and early '60s. I did do one post about my first entry at the fair in 1969, and I'm going to cross-post it here.

I also want to continue to move posts from my first blog, Salmagundi Express; I'm going to focus on the fall-related posts there over the coming weeks.

And I've added quite a few items to my Etsy shop, including my first beaded jewelry pieces. More on that in later posts.

Amish farmer tending his fields near Berlin, Ohio.

In the meantime, I'm including a couple of shots in this post of Amish country in northern Ohio. My mother and I took that trip a couple of weeks ago, and it was lovely, as usual. And Mom, a devoted quilter, had lots of fun looking through all the great fabric shops in Holmes County and the general area.

Finally, if you're into knitting, you might enjoy my sister's blog at The Warden's Log. She started knitting last spring, and I'm amazed at how she's taken off with it. She discusses her triumphs and challenges with the knitting needles, links to free patterns, and displays her various projects. She also writes great pieces about "the Inmates," her two kids. Enjoy!

Horse on hilltop near Charm, Ohio.