Pumpkin Madness

Yes - it's true Pumpkin Madness has got to me - AGAIN !

I love autumn - the colours are what really grabs me each year. I always marvel at the orange'ness of everything - and this year I got into it a little early.

I was writing an article on a scarecrow and a bird-box scene for Dolls House and Miniature Scene magazine when I realised that in order to style the final photo, I would need a few pumpkins. Of course - in miniature -  I did not need to wait for the "real" pumpkin season.

I already have some in my collection which I had made over the years, but nowhere near enough and not enough in terms of variety. So, I simply had to make more, and that is where Pumpkin Madness took over.

Now you have to understand, that I was already pushing a tight deadline - it is always tight with me, as I ponder a lot about how to find the best way to make something, and the best way to describe it for the magazine, and always leave the final finishing to the last minute and cutting it close the deadline. (I think I drive Editor nuts!)

Anyway pumpkins were not actually on the list to do, and for once I was way ahead, but this madness came over me. So I ended up spending 2 whole days making pumpkins of every size, shape and colour that I could find. Thank goodness for Pinterest and for my source files as I managed to fine gazillions of images to use as research.

If course, I got completely carried away and made more that 50 pumpkins, far more than what I needed for the final photograph for the magazine.

I think it was a success and so did the editor because it ended up on the front cover of the magazine in the November issue which is on sale and shows you how to make the bird-boxes, the scarecrow, and the easy -no-fail crates. Have a look. The ironic thing is that I only ended up using a few pumpkins in the final photo! Typical.

Pumpkins, gourds and squashes are amazing - they come in very many sizes and colours ranging from pale grey to bright orange.They are fun to make so here are my quick tips on how to make a pumkin. I use Fimo and first take the time to mix lots of clay so I have plenty to practice with.

• Mix the clay to the closest tonal colour - bearing in mind that Fimo darkens slightly on baking.
• Mix a puce grey for the stems.
• Build the pumpkin adding the grooves before squashing it down to shape.
• The stem of the pumpkin normally comes straight out of the top.
• Add a button of the stem coloured clay to the base.
• Pumpkins are not perfect and many have blemishes. Add a few marks here and there and then bake. 
• Use artist’s acrylics and a dry brush method to add more colour variation and blemish.

 Now there will be much more on Pumpkins - and of course - Halloween this week. So join in with Pumpkin Madness. I will show you, this week, how to make a lit hollowed out pumpkin, an evil pumpkin and a few more bits on Halloween which is just days away!

Have fun and let me know what you think.