7 Fun Ways to Decorate with Pumpkins this Autumn Without Waste
It’s so much fun to decorate for fall. Autumn leaves, acorns, pinecones, haybales, and pumpkins all appear on porches, tables, and stoops this time of year.
One thing that is hard to deal with, however, especially in an age of food shortages and food waste, is to see those perfectly delicious pumpkins rotting away on doorsteps and windowsills. So, let’s keep in mind that those cute pumpkins we enjoy decorating with can also make a delicious meal.
In an effort not to spoil fall decorating festivities, go ahead and use pumpkins, but try to rescue and eat them before they become waste. Sprucing the pumpkins up without damaging the flesh is the way to go if you want to keep things edible. If you are into carving, don’t toss the innards away. There are so many awesome OGP recipes for amazingly autumnal meals.
1. Black Net Stocking Covered Pumpkins
Source: Show Me Cute/YouTube
A great way to reuse those black, laddered stockings is to add them to your fall and Halloween decorations. Cut the footed end off your old stockings with enough space to hold a pumpkin. Leave enough left over to tie it off, too. The black netting adds a touch of gothic to an otherwise innocent fall decoration. This is a great way of keeping your pumpkins intact and ready for that pumpkin soup.
2. Fairy Lights Wrapped Around Pumpkins
Jack-o’-lanterns are usually lit from the inside, but make a fall decoration with a little twist and a touch of class by wrapping string fairy lights around the stem and body of your pumpkin before setting it out on your stoop. You can make the endeavor more sustainable by using solar-powered LED fairy lights. These can be bought quite cheaply online.
3. Spider Web Encased Pumpkins
This would be a fun one for the kids. Take some simple white or cream-colored kitchen string and wrap it all around a pumpkin until it starts to crisscross and resemble spider webs. If you can get ahold of a small toy spider to finish the job off, that would be spooktacular!
4. Dripping Pillar Candles on Pumpkins
This decoration comes with all the warnings about using an open flame. Make sure that your pumpkin sits flat and sturdily before attempting this. Also, bear in mind what the candle will drip or fall onto should that happen, and do not leave the lit candles unattended. If you can mitigate said accidents, this is a fun and effective decoration.
With that covered, first of all, break off the stem of your pumpkin. Next, light a pillar candle and drip some wax onto the top of the pumpkin. While the wax is still wet, secure the base of the candle to the top of the pumpkin. Allow the candle to drip down the sides of the pumpkin for a spooky fall effect.
5. Cheesecloth Bandaged Pumpkin
Source: Rachael Ray Show/YouTube
Mummify your pumpkin by wrapping it in an old white or cream bandage or strips of old cheesecloth. The strips of material can be tied or the end tucked in to stop it from unraveling. Simple eyes cut from construction paper can add a little more ghoulishness to the project.
6. Decoupaged Pumpkins
Source: Windsweptliving/YouTube
You can get pretty imaginative here with some decoupaged pumpkins. Keep things on theme by gluing cut-out paper fall leaves to the outside of the pumpkin. If you want to stay away from chemical glues so that your pumpkin rind can be composted, you can always keep things edible and make homemade glue from ingredients from your kitchen.
7. Burlap Wrapped Pumpkin
Keep things rustic with a burlap-wrapped pumpkin. Cut a square of burlap large enough to wrap around the entire pumpkin. Gather the edges of the burlap up and secure it with a fall-colored ribbon around the stem. You can also tie other autumn odds and ends, such as acorns and fall leaves to the stem, too.
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