Whimsical Scarecrow Gourd DIY

Add a touch of whimsy to your Fall decor creating an adorable scarecrow gourd.   Gourds are part of the pumpkin and squash family and a fun addition in decorating for the fall season! It's perfectly designed for many types of craft projects - especially the whimsical ones! But cleaning and drying gourds can take a lot of time and effort - sometimes up to a year to dry out completely. You can take the easy way out and decorate an already dried gourd or simply buy a paper mache gourd like I did. Either way, crafting gourds may become a creative obsession. There are so many unique ways to craft and use them in seasonal decor. 

Just by painting on a funny face and adding a few whimsical decorations, you're sure to put a smile on everyone's face who see it! And the whimsical gourd looks great as a centerpiece, as well as a fun conversation starter, too! Here's a fun way to decorate one:

Materials Needed

• Pot Belly Gourd (paper mache)
• White chalk paint/metallic acrylic paints
• Paint/sponge brushes
• Raffia
• Hot glue gun
• Scissors/
• Pencil/Magic marker (black)
• Burlap
• Mod Podge/sponge

Let's begin by painting the entire gourd with white chalk paint.  Once dry, paint the top portion with a few layers of a metallic bronze shade and .  .  .

let dry.

Then sponge paint the bottom area with a complimentary color like this golden brown acrylic.

Applying several layers for a rich autumn look and let dry.

To add to the whimsy look, make a raffia brim using raffia from the dollar store. This brim adds to an illusion of a scarecrow hat on top - that's why it's done in a different color.

To make the raffia brim, measure around the neck of the gourd with a strip of raffia, allowing for a few extra inches to tie the ends together and then cut off the measured piece from the bundle. Next, start cutting off lots of six inch strips of raffia for the fringe brim. I used two bundles to make strips. And it was more than what I needed to fit around the top of the gourd.  Next, line up a few of the 6" pieces together and fold in half forming loops on one end and place over the longer strip.

Make a lark's head knot by placing the loop over the long piece of raffia and pulling the raffia strands through the loop around the raffia, as pictured, 

pulling the raffia strands tight into a knot. 

Continue making larks head knots with groups of three to four 6" strips of raffia around the longer raffia strip until it is completely covered - leaving enough raffia to tie in a knot around the gourd.

Then evenly cut off the raffia to mimic a scarecrow hat's brim.

And tie it tightly around where the different colors of the gourd meet. Use hot glue to keep the brim in place.

And finally, fluff and separate the raffia around for a cool brim look.

You can take it up a notch and make a real hat out of burlap. Simply soak  burlap with Mod Podge to make it stiff using a sponge and .  .  .

hang up to dry.

Once the burlap has dried, use a large plate to cut out a circle - then cut the circle in half. 

Bring the two ends of the half circle together to form a cone.  Adjust the size of the cone so that the base fits the widest portion of the top of the gourd and sits perfectly on the raffia brim. Hold in place and apply glue to the edge of the burlap to seal.

Now it's time to make the face! Draw on a whimsical face using a pencil, starting with the eyes. Hmm - caution: I can't draw or paint, so please bare with me. I looked online for a funny scarecrow template - there are zillions of them, so I'm just winging it here by looking at some the examples. After drawing on the eyes  -

go over the lines with a black magic marker.

Then add the eyebrows, nose and mouth. Filling in the eyes with white chalkpaint, and nose, with a spicy orange acrylic.

Too cute!

How's this for whimsy!

Together with a pal from a few years ago.

Perfect for our Creative Craft Blog Hop!

Welcome to our monthly Creative Craft Blog Hop created by Chloe @ Celebrate & Decorate and Andrea @ Design Morsels!  I've teamed up with a talented group of creative bloggers to bring you lots of 

wonderful ideas and inspirations! 

Have fun and get inspired by all of the wonderful creations this month by clicking on the links below!

If you're hopping along this blog hop, I hope you enjoyed Rachelle's adorable rustic autumn craft! Your next stop is Lynne @My Family Tyme sharing her lovely stamped tea towels!

Celebrate and Decorate - Dollar Store Skull

Design Morsels - Mummy Door Decoration

Chas' Crazy Creations - Breast Cancer Awareness Wreath

Birdz of a Feather - Cement Planter DIY

My Thrift Store Addiction - Thrifty Tips for Crafting Seasonal Pillows

B4 and Afters - Crochet Scarf Patterns

Debbees Buzz - Elegant Black Pumpkins

The Painted Apron - Trick Or Treat Creations

My Hubbard Home - Rustic Autumn Craft

Purple Hues and Me - Whimsical Scarecrow Gourd DIY

My Family Thyme - Stamped Tea Towels

Our Crafty Mom - Halloween Tiered Tray Ideas

Raggedy Bits - How To Make Wooden Halloween Pumpkins

Home Is Where the Boat Is - Halloween Witch Craft

Decorate & More with Tip - Simple DIY Pumpkin Pillow

Zucchini Sisters - Pumpkin Truck Sign

BlueskyAtHome - DIY Pumpkin Wreath

No Sew Ribbon Utensil Holder DIY

No-Sew Ribbon Utensil Holder DIY

We all know that the most important and meaningful times are spent with family! At the moment, we are sheltering at home and practicing social distancing. We pray for solutions and an end to this terrible pandemic. While we are hunkering down, it's important not to forget the little things that help to brighten our days. And if you didn't realize, it's so easy to set a beautiful table, making mealtimes special and decorative with items we have on hand like this no-sew ribbon utensil holder!

Supplies needed to make this:

4" wide Ribbon

1.5" Ribbon

Scissors

Fabri-Tac fabric glue

Ruler

               

 Begin by cutting a strip of 4" wide ribbon fifteen inches long.  The ribbon I'm using is wired, but any wide ribbon will work. Fold both ends over 1/4 inch. Press to close with the ribbon wire or add glue to seal ends. Then fold bottom up five inches to make a pocket.  

Add Fabri-Tac fabric glue to side edges and press together to seal and close. It takes just a few seconds for the fabric glue to set and dry.

Add a small decorative bow with dovetails to embellish the pocket - I used my Mini Bowdabra to make one, but you can easily make it by hand using two strips of ribbon - one, folded into loops and the other, dovetailing the ends - and then tying together with wire from the ribbon. 

So quick and easy!
What a pretty handmade flatware holder! 

 So easy to dress up your table setting with this adorable 

no-sew ribbon utensil holder!

Have fun making lots!

I am thrill to be apart of this Creative Craft Blog Hop created by Chloe @ Celebrate & Decorate! It's a great way to be inspired by an array of creative bloggers - both new and old! 

 Be sure to stop by and check out all of the blogs listed! 

The next blog hop is to Carol @ Bluesky at Home

See all the lovely inspirations by “hopping” to visit all of  these  awesome creative and innovative blogs!

Celebrate & Decorate l At Home With Jemma
Hearth and Vine l My Hubbard Home 
My Thrift Store Addiction l Home is Where the Boat Is
The Painted  Apron l Chas' Crazy Creations
Harbour Breeze Home l My Family Thyme
Sustain My Craft Habit l Birdz of a Feather
Decorate and More with Tip l Our Crafty Mom
Design Morsels l White Arrows Home
Create With Cynthia l Debbee's Buzz 
Calypso in the Country l B4 and Afters 
Purple Hues and Me  l Bluesky at Home
Raggedy Bits l Faeries & Fauna Craft Co. 
Elle Marie Home  l Zucchini Sisters

How to Make Beaded Napkin Rings

 This is a re-post from sometime ago. Would you believe I need another housewarming gift and my friend requested napkin rings. So I dusted off this tutorial and decided to not only refresh my memory but to refresh yours, too! Enjoy!

I needed a "housewarming" gift and decided to make beaded napkin rings.  Buying napkin rings can be very expensive. There use to be a time when you would find bins of napkin rings in home decor and big box stores. Now, you have to really look for them, usually paying an "arm and a leg" for something nice and somewhat unique. I love using napkin rings in table settings. They represent the perfect finishing touch to any tablescape, no matter the occasion. 

The problem is I couldn't decide what type of bead - crystal or silver to use for this project. So, I made samples of each.  You be the judge!

The basic technique is the same for both.

Materials needed:

• Crafting Beads
• 4 chenille metallic stems
• 1 - 20gauge floral stem wire
• Needle-nose pliers
• Cardboard tube for shaping

Step One:

Take three (3) chenille stems and bend each in half. Bring the bent stems together and twist to secure at the top.

Step Two:

Thread your chosen beads onto the first stem until you are about one inch from the end.

Using 8mm crystal craft beads, thread twelve beads onto each stem.

Make sure each of the six stems is threaded the same way.  The possibilities are endless with the colors, sizes, and shapes of the beads.

Using 6mm silver craft bead, thread twelve beads, then one 8mm bead, then ten more 6mm beads onto each stem.















Using 8mm crystal craft beads, thread twelve beads onto each stem.

Step Three:
Bring the stems together, twist tie and secure. Both ends should look the same.

Step Four:

Take both ends of your beaded stems and push together, gently opening the stems  .  .  .

pushing the bottom and top together, forming the flower bow.

Step Five:

To secure the flower, using a half of a chenille stem, twist tie around the center of the flower on the bottom.

Step Six:

To form the beaded napkin holder:  Using needle-nose pliers, bend one end of a 20 gauge floral stem wire (I used this wire because a chenille stem is not long enough to wrap) into a small loop.  Next, thread the wire with matching beads. Once all beads are threaded, make a similar loop at the end of the wire.

Step Seven:

Wrap the beaded wire around a cardboard tube several times to create a spiral. Remove it carefully from the tube.

Step Eight:
Tie the spiral beaded wire to the twist tie stem on the bottom of the flower.

And voila!  A simple but elegant Beaded Napkin Ring!

                                      Which one do you prefer?

These napkin rings were fun to make.  While both of the rings turned out great, I picked the Silver Beaded Napkin Rings to make and give as my housewarming gift.  It is more versatile, going with any season, theme or decor.

 Remember in making your own napkin rings, the possibilities are endless . . . creative, unique, one of a kind .  .  .  and so much cheaper!

Thanks for stopping by

and take a little time to enjoy,

Happy Crafting!