I’ve made quite a bit of paper pumpkins using brads, twine, and strips of cardstock and I’m at it again this year! This time I changed up the stem and leaves and incorporated a brown pipe cleaner to make a vine tendril. The photos below will show the steps and are captioned with measurements. These pumpkins are inspired by Martha Stewart. Last year, I saw a very helpful video on Linda Kaiser’s blog, “The Paper Boutique” and posted my first pumpkins using her tutorial at these posts: https://southerncricutlady.wordpress.com/2011/10/17/paper-pumpkins/
and https://southerncricutlady.wordpress.com/2011/11/10/pumpkins-and-more-pumpkins/.
Embossed cardstock – Sizzix Damask Folder (6″ x 1″ strips)
Picture shows strips to make 2 Medium and 5 small pumpkins. For a medium pumpkin – cut 18 strips measuring 9″ x 1″; For a small pumpkin – cut 12 strips measuring 6″ x 1″; punch a hole at each end of strip (I used a 1/8″ punch and medium brad but a 1/4″ punch will also work with a larger brad)
Tie each end of a piece of twine or hemp cord just below the head of a brad, leaving about 4 inches of twine between the brads for a medium pumpkin, and 3 inches between the brads for a small pumpkin.
Take one end of the “brad string” and thread one end of the strips of paper onto the brad and fasten to secure. *Note: If using embossed or patterned paper, make sure to thread brad with pattern face up – the head of the brad should be on the wrong side of the paper. Now take the other brad and repeat the steps on the other end of the strips.
Using your fingers, fan out the strips until you get a pumpkin shape.
Cut leaves by hand or by using a die-cutting machine. I used Cricut’s Straight from the Nest cartridge to cut leaves at 5 and 5 .5 inches then punched a 1/8″ hole at the bottom of the leaf. Unfasten a brad and thread the leaf onto the pumpkin.
I didn’t have any crepe paper, so I made a stem out of paper lunch bags. For a medium pumpkin, cut a 3 x 3 inch square from a lunch sack and for a small pumpkin, cut a 2 x 2 inch square. Fold in half, and punch a hole. Now crumple up the square to distress it and make it easier to twist into a stem later. Flatten out the paper and thread onto the open brad. This will momentarily cover the leaf but that’s ok!
Fasten the brad to secure the “stem” paper and leaf. Gather up the sides of the lunch sack square and then twist to make a stem.
Take a pencil and one brown pipe cleaner. Wrap the pipe cleaner around the pencil and slide off. Wrap the “tendril” around the pumpkin stem. Trim the tendril to the desired length with scissors.
And here’s the set of pumpkins – 2 medium and 5 small
Close Up View – patterned paper “Natural Botanical” by The Paper Studio and embossed orange pumpkins using Sizzix Damask and Cuttlebug Swiss Dots
Close Up View
Another close up view
Pumpkins in a basket
Pumpkins on a fence
*You can also make a large pumpkin by cutting 24 strips of 12″ x 1″ cardstock and using a 5 inch string between two brads.
Thanks for looking!
Vanessa