Last weekend we filled the living room with sheets and sheets of old newspaper, preparing ourselves for the inevitable mess of pumpkin guts that would surely take over with five giddy carvers at the helm. We cut and emptied and drew and carved. Some of us stuck to traditional faces, one opted for phases of the moon, and another turned her fat pumpkin into a cottage, a mom who felt a bit of a crafty spark and ran with it.
I got the idea from a pal who created Whole Family Rhythms Autumn guide, where Megan instructs how to turn a simple squash into a tiny home. If a squash can become a home, why not a pumpkin?! After selecting the tallest of the pumpkin bunch, most were rather roly poly and plump, I began to construct my wee fairy home, first instructing the kids to head outdoors to forage odds and ends to add from the yard. They came bellowing in one by one with dried hydrangeas from our bushes for the flower boxes, bark from the tree for the shutters, twigs from the ground for the boxes and door, and mums freshly picked from our pots for seasonal decor.
Success! A bit of hot glue and creativity, and here she is! A cozy pumpkin house fit for a fairy. Or a gnome. Or a mouse. Or anything itsy bitsy that is keen on hygge. And how about the perfectly sized dried hydrangeas flower? It reminded me of stained glass, fitting just so in the door window. Once finished, we set her aglow with a rolled beeswax candle and imagined a hearth crackling, soup simmering away, music strumming, and warm quilts hung on every bed. Such a fun way to spend a Halloweeny afternoon. Hope your evening and weekend festivities are full of lots of treats and few tricks!
Diane - Have you and your children ever read Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper? It’s a favorite in our family. Your pumpkin house reminds me of the house in Pumpkin Soup that Cat, Squirrel and Mouse live in. Really enjoy your blog posts.
admin - Diane, I haven’t! It sounds darling. Thanks for sharing and Happy Halloween! xx Amanda