Buy some inexpensive pumpkins in different shapes and sizes from the dollar store
I found a large-sized pumpkin at the dollar store that was covered with velvet
It was really pretty, but I needed the solid pumpkin for this project
So, I cut off the velvet fabric, and I saved it, and we'll use it for another project
This pumpkin was made of styrofoam, and so it was very easy to spray paint a solid orange color
and I gave some small pumpkins a coat of gold spray paint. But let's add some details to some
other pumpkins. Pumpkins have natural indentations in their surface which make them perfect for
painting stripes. Using a small flat paintbrush, apply black craft paint to the indentation on
either side of a pumpkin panel. Once you have the sides outlined, simply paint the inside of the
panel with the black colored paint. Let this dry completely. Once dry, do the same with the white
craft paint by outlining the panels in between the black painted panels and then filling in with the
white paint. If your pumpkin was a dark color to begin with, you might need to go back and paint a
second or third coat of white paint. Let's paint a pumpkin with even more detail. Using a ruler or
measurement tool, mark with dots the same distance down from the stem of the pumpkin
Continue measuring and marking the same distance around the perimeter of the pumpkin
Then take your pencil and connect the dots horizontally creating a pencil line around the entire pumpkin Take a black paint marker and carefully outline the horizontal lines being careful not to smudge the wet paint as you go
Let these stripes dry completely. Now take your paint marker and draw vertical lines from the top
horizontal line to the pumpkin's stem. Then reverse and draw vertical lines in the opposite direction
down the side of the pumpkin using the indentations as your guide. With the black paint marker, draw
X's in every other square on each row of boxes. This will help you to know which boxes you will
fill in with paint for a checkerboard pattern. Carefully fill the marked boxes with the black
paint and let them dry completely. So now you have solid colored pumpkins, a striped pumpkin
and a checkerboard pumpkin. Let's pile them up. Starting with the two largest pumpkins, apply hot
glue to the bottom of one and glue it to the top of the other. Continue to hot glue your various
pumpkins on top of each other in the order that you like. Take a terracotta pot or other vase
and apply a thin bead of hot glue on the edge. Then apply a little bit of green moss to cover
the rim of the pot. Apply some more hot glue to the edge and glue your stack of pumpkins to the top
of the moss covered pot. For some added detail, hot glue some green moss in between each of the
stacked pumpkins. Display your new pumpkin patch topiary on a kitchen counter, accent table
or fireplace mantle for fun seasonal home decor