Yarn and Fabric Pumpkins

Fall is upon us and this year I’m actually ready for it. I usually don’t look forward to this time of year because of the impending cold weather and I’m usually going back to work as a teacher after having a summer off.

This year I am just getting excited for the arrival of our 2nd baby in November! I also have the opportunity to be at home until then, so more time to do some baking, cooking and crafting. I feel like Fall is putting me into nesting mode earlier this time around.

One of the crafts I’ve been working on for the past couple weeks is making different versions of DIY pumpkins and trying to find the easiest and most beautiful to share with you.

The first I created was these sweet crochet pumpkins. I followed this free pattern by Handy Little Me. I love the size of these pumpkins and the ease of following the pattern. It took me around 1-2 hours to create one. This is because I am just a beginner crocheter and I had to look up what certain stitches were a couple times.

If you are curious on how to put together a cute Fall centerpiece, check out my blog all about it!

I then tried by hand at spicing up some cheap Dollarama pumpkins. This was very fun and so simple!!

This first large pumpkin cost $3 and the yarn was $3. This was the most expensive one to make, but definitely one of my favourites. The pumpkins I purchased at Dollarama are made out of Styrofoam but if you purchase hollow ones you will still be able to create a really cute elevated pumpkin.

Check out my IGTV on Instagram at @the_expert_amateur on the video step by step to make the large yarn pumpkin or follow the directions below.

Materials:

• Yarn and/or Fabric – Dollarama had the thick yarn I used to make my large pumpkin.
• Cheap pumpkin – go to Dollarama or Dollar Tree!
• Branch for stem
• X-acto knife (or some form of knife to cut hole)
• Scissors

Written steps:

STEP 1: Cut out stem and a hole the same size on the bottom of the pumpkin. Then use some sort of tool to push a hole through the pumpkin. I used a large crochet hook, but if you have an apple core tool that would also work great! Even a pen would work to punch a hole through the Stryofoam.

STEP 2: Take your chosen yarn and push it through the center hole that you created. Pull the yarn so that you have half of it on one side of the pumpkin and half on the other side.

STEP 3: Start with one side of the yarn and start folding it over the pumpkin and secure it by pushing it into the holes you created on each side. Push the fabric in about an inch and then fold back over the pumpkin and push into the hole on the other side. You do not need to pull the fabric all the way through the pumpkin, as the foam will hold it in place if you push it in far enough. (If you have a hollow pumpkin then I recommend pulling the yarn all the way through and wrapping it around.)

STEP 4 : Go back and forth with your yarn until your pumpkin is covered to your liking. Then cut off remaining yarn and push the tail into the hole to hide and secure. Take a piece of branch for your stem and push into the top of the pumpkin. This will secure the yarn and also create a cute stem!

Enjoy you cute, and very simple pumpkin!! You can also use fabric and cut it into strips to cover the pumpkin in the same way. My green pumpkin is created with fabric.

If you use skinny yarn, like my white pumpkin, then I pulled the yarn through and wrapped it around the pumpkin to secure it.

Time to Create:

• Fabric or thick yarn Pumpkin – 10-15 mins! So fast to make!
• Yarn Pumpkin – took me closer to an hour because my yarn was so thin and wrapping takes awhile. I recommend using a crochet hook to pull the yarn through the center of your pumpkin.

I hope you enjoy making some pumpkins of your own! Feel free to share your pumpkin designs below! I would love to see.