Condo Blues: pumpkin
Showing posts with label pumpkin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pumpkin. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

DIY Crochet Pumpkins with Recycled Yarn

I recently inherited some yarn which included a few work in progress knitting projects without the patterns or were not far enough along to know what the creator intended them to become.

Which is fine because I don't know how to knit. 

One of the projects was a panel with orange and green yarn stripes (maybe a sweater or some sort of tote bag?) that made me think of Fall and Halloween pumpkins. Why not try to reclaim the yarn and use it to crochet a simple beginner pumpkin decoration?  


DIY crochet pumpkins with recycled yarn
Save this recycled craft idea to your Pinterest boards for later! Share it with your friends!

Since the project wasn't finished, it was easy to pull the stitches out and wind the yarn from each stripe into a ball as I worked. I joined the small yarn ball sections together with a magic knot until I had one ball of orange and ball of green reclaimed yarn.

Monday, September 21, 2020

Quick and Easy Foam Pumpkin Makeover

I have a love hate relationship with foam crafting pumpkins. I love that they are reusable. I hate that most of them look horrifically fake.

 

Yes, I know I could use real pumpkins. I do for indoor decorating and puree them later for Thanksgiving desserts.

 

Outside it’s fake pumpkins all the way where real pumpkins are most likely squirrel food and when performing at Fall festivals where real fruit is likely to get smashed.

 

fall pumpkin jester

This sweet little girl was fascinated by the pumpkin clip I made over.  I am forever grateful to the photographer that captured this moment!

 

How to Make Mod Podge Cloth Pumpkins

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Allergy Free Trick or Treat Ide: How to Make DIY Bottle Cap Halloween Pumpkin Pins

I know first hand how much it stinks to get a bag full of Trick or Treat candy on Halloween and can’t eat most of it due to a severe food intolerance or allergy.

It’s a total bummer.

That’s why I display a teal pumpkin to let my Trick or Treaters know that I have food allergy safe treats to hand on out Halloween. We let the kids decide if they want a Treat or a Prize.  My husband mans the Treat bowl full of candy. I woman the Prize bowl with food allergy friendly non food treats. 

This year’s food allergy safe Trick or Treat Prize are Jack o’ Lantern pins I made from caps in my bottle cap collection.

My quick and easy bottle cap pins are a kid friendly craft if you are looking for a Halloween party craft activity. You can also make them ahead of time and give them out as party favors.
 

How to Make Recycled Bottle Cap Pins


DIY Teal Pumpkin Project Trick or Treat Pumpkin Pin idea
Save this Pumpkin Party Favor to your Pinterest boards for later! Share it with your friends!

Sunday, October 29, 2017

DIY Hand Blown Glass Pumpkins

As a kid, my family and I always watched glass blowing demos at living history museums, Cedar Point, etc. when they crossed our path. I always wanted to learn how to blow glass and put it on my Bucket List but the thing is I’m not sure what I’d do with the thing after I made it. (I am including some affiliate links in this post for your convenience.)

I appreciate glass artistry and would dearly love to buy, use, or display hand blown glass creations but condo living isn’t the most spacious when it comes to displaying doo dads (all of our art collection hangs on walls.)  Not to mention, I’m not a fussy doo dad displaying kind of girl except in September when my pumpkin decorations dot the house inside and out.

I like to decorate with pumpkins because you can start displaying them in September for fall harvest, to Halloween and right on through to Thanksgiving at the end of November.  So it makes sense that I am obsessed with browsing handcrafted glass pumpkins at glass blowing shops. That’s when it hit me.

Blow a glass pumpkin and display it for Thanksgiving? That I can do.

I  decided that Today is SOMEDAY and I’m going to learn how to blow glass!

 Keep reading to learn about the process and to see what I made!

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Juice Recipe

Halloween is almost here!!!

Husband and I have a tradition with our next door neighbors to sit on our front porches and chat, candy bowls and food allergy treats at the ready for the neighborhood trick or treaters.

It's nice to have a festive drink with us to fill the lull in between Beggar's Night groups and there is no better option than a big glass of Harry Potter inspired Pumpkin Juice!




As all Harry Potter fans know, pumpkin juice is a non alcoholic treat served hot or cold in the wizarding world.

It was one of many things Husband and I couldn't wait to try in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section of both Universal Studios Florida parks.  Universal set up a test kitchen in England so JK Rowling could select what she imagined when she created pumpkin juice and all of the other fantastic wizard food and drinks that appear in the series.

When I read the Harry Potter books I imagined pumpkin juice to taste like pumpkin spice. Unfortuantely, JK Rowling's recipe is full of apricot juice adn waaaaaay too sweet.

So I decided to create a pumpkin spice pumpkin juice recipe myself! Pop on over to my food blog Lazy Budget Chef to read the recipe:

Spicy Harry Potter Inspired Pumpkin Juice Recipe

Your taste buds will be glad you did! 


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Sunday, October 23, 2016

Fall Wine Cork Porch Decoration Ideas

I have this visually dead corner on my front porch. Trying to find something either practical or pretty to fill it gives me fits.

Storage space for new autumn decorations is practically nonexistent in our condo. So I did a little summer and fall decoration shuffle from backyard fall patio decorations (take the fall patio decorating tour here on Condo Blues) to the front porch now that it is too chilly to eat dinner outside on the regular.

Killing one of the mums I bought for the backyard actually worked in my favor. I used the pot of dirt in the metal planter to anchor the wood flagpole I used to hang the quilted scarecrow I made forever ago and haven’t found a good use for until now.
 
I traced the metal container and cut a circle to fit inside the metal planter with a hole in it for the scarecrow pole to keep it centered in the planter. The flower pot isn’t as deep as the metal planter so I chucked a couple of Husband’s empty protein powder containers in the pot to keep the cardboard from sinking into the planter so I can cover it with decorations and hide the cardboard lid.



Keep reading for more decorating ideas and pin this post for later!



Sunday, October 2, 2016

How to Make a Reusable Light Up Teal Pumpkin for Halloween

Handing out Halloween candy and ooh-ing and ah-ing over every costumed person who comes to our door is one of things Husband enjoys most on Beggar's Night.

That and testing our Halloween candy for Quality Assurance while waiting for the Trick or Treaters to come to our porch. That was one of my favorite parts of Halloween until I because a card carrying member of the Food Allergy Club. Sad face.

It is a bummer to find almost everything in the candy aisle at the store is something I shouldn’t eat but has to worse for a kid on Halloween.  The minute I found out about the Halloween Teal Pumpkin Project I added allergy free treats for the food allergy kids to what we give out on Halloween.

The only thing missing is a teal pumpkin to let food allergy kids and their parents that we have their back this Halloween.

 Pin this Halloween craft idea for later!

A Quick and Easy LED Teal Jack o Lantern Tutorial