Transforming Dollar Store Pumpkins

Yesterday, I had one of those days where my to-do list was a mile long and every time I checked something off, two more things were added on. Laundry was on that list, and although I really don’t mind that chore, I prefer to put my own clean clothes away and let the others fend for themselves.

But here opens a can of worms. I’m a fold-right-out-of-the-dryer kind of girl. Perhaps that is because of all that retail I’ve worked in my life, but one thing that drives me cray cray is seeing those baskets of clean folded clothes in the hall upstairs, just waiting for everyone to do their part.

“Don’t shop the basket,” is what I always tell them. All those neatly folded clothes, rummaged through to find that one pair of running shorts. After that, nothing is left folded, and if I allow it, that basket full of clean clothes can sit there for a week, maybe two.

With a full list of things I had to get done yesterday, I headed upstairs for a quick break, only to find the other three, standing in front of said baskets, looking guilty as ever. Then, without any prompting, they all said in unison, “We’re not shopping the baskets.”

They so were.

But I bit my tongue. Instead of calling them out and raising my blood pressure, I simply said, “Thank you so much. I appreciate that.”

I turned around, went back downstairs, and bagged the to-do list. Instead, I went outside and challenged myself to jazz up some Dollar Store pumpkins and some concrete effect spray paint.

The challenge was to reinvent a Dollar Store pumpkin, and transform it into something fabulous. This time, I didn’t cover it with fabric. I didn’t cover it with tape, or decoupage an image.

Not even close. Instead, I went down the easy road, and lately, that is my favorite road to drive. I think you have figured this out about me. When it comes to crafts, I prefer the 3-F kind: fun, fast, and fabulous. No more, no less.

I wanted to put these pumpkins in the fall planters outside of the coop on either side of the front door, and obviously I couldn’t leave them that blinding orange color. For that matter, I didn’t even want to tone down the orange with a lighter hue. Not everything fall-themed needs to display orange.

I wanted these dollar store pumpkins to look unique, and I wanted them to look like they’re worth so much more than a dollar. That would require a faux finish.

In walks my friend, a can of spray paint. More specifically, a spray paint that looks like concrete.

They have tonnnnnnnnnns of spray paint colors on the market, along with a variety of textures and finishes, and lately I’ve been really into the stone finish ones,  and this one that has that cement effect look, happens to be my favorite. I like them because they can jazz up any surface from garden pots to the frames of outdoor lanterns, and these faux stone finishes can even jazz up a dollar store pumpkin or two. Or five. For this project, I’m featuring the concrete colored stone finish.

Ok, here is how to transform a dollar store pumpkin into a faux stone garden accessory. Be sure and do this project outside, preferably with no breeze.

You’ll need:

Dollar Store pumpkin(s)

Grey primer spray paint

Rustoleum faux stone spray paint (found here)

Spray the surface of the pumpkin with the grey primer. Let it dry for about 5 minutes.

The key to spraying with the faux stone paint is to hold the can at least 12 inches away from the object for an even spray. If you hold it too close, it’s almost like a sand blast effect and that the paint will splatter everywhere and will look bad. I learned this lesson for you.

So, holding the can 12 inches from the pumpkin, spray the faux stone paint in an even layer around the entire pumpkin.

Let the paint dry completely. Very important.

Spray a second coat of paint evenly around the pumpkin and let that dry completely. If you feel you need any additional coats, spray evenly and let dry before touching.

It’s that easy. The hands on time for this project is minimal, and that’s what I like.

What’s even better, when I came inside after I made these Dollar Store pumpkins all faux stone fabulous, all of the laundry was put away.

Sometimes it just pays to walk away and do a fast and fun fall craft.