pumpkin patch “framescape”

What I love most about this unique fall craft is the combination of textures & repurposed items. I had a random frame that started the whole creative process & couldn’t be more pleased with how it all developed into the cutest pumpkin patch 3D art, essentially a mixed media piece!

Before I explain the how-to, I have to mention how incredibly honored I was to have this project featured over on the Re-Fabbed blog!! Now let’s see if you’re inspired to create one similar!

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If you want to give this project a whirl, here’s a list of what I used: (there are a few repurposed elements, so putting your own spin on it would be fun if you can’t find exactly what I used)

• Frame
• spindles (for pumpkin stems)
• 2 foam pumpkins (cut in half, 1 larger than the other)
• MDF wood piece, to fit in in frame
• Dixie Belle chalk paint (various colors)
• Buffalo Plaid tissue paper
• Mod Podge
• Vintage Wood piece(for hello fall sign)
• Hello Fall vinyl stencil
• Vinyl Transfer Paper
• Vinyl Scraper
• Vinyl Pick
• Raffia
• Greenery
• Floral Poppy/dried naturals bunch
• Sand Paper
• Ribbons
• E6000 Glue
• Hot Glue Gun & gluesticks
• Light Duty Stapler
• Foam Brushes
• Smaller Art Paint Brushes

Honestly, what I love most about this craft is how you can put your own spin on it and each person’s is truly unique! I actually created this live with the help of my viewers over on Facebook & that made it even more fun! I don’t have pics of EVERY step, but I’ll do my very best to explain if you’d like to create one similar!

First things first….find a frame to repurpose! Mine was just one I had in the “make it into something” pile & measured 14x17in overall. I chose to paint it a beautiful “Spanish Moss” color in Dixie Belle chalk paint! It’s a gorgeous green gray! I painted 2 thin coats & distressed with sand paper to give it a more rustic look. {Spanish Moss is one of my top 5 Dixie Belle colors & my dining room chairs are all painted this color}

Next, I had my sweet hubby cut a piece of mdf wood to fit into the frame. I just had a scrap piece of this laying around from a shipment that came in!

After that, you’ll need to cut a piece of buffalo plaid tissue paper the same size at your mdf wood piece. Use a little foam brush+mod podge to adhere the tissue paper onto the mdf. Use mod podge directly onto the board, lay tissue paper down, then another coat of mod podge to seal. Lay down gently to avoid big bubbles!

Just so ya know,…….you’ll NEVER look at tissue paper the same once you start crafting with it haha! And if you haven’t discovered the power of mod podge, get ready to become obsessed! Love this stuff! You can sometimes find the little 2oz bottles at Dollar Tree, but if you want a BIG bottle, look in my Amazon store here!!

While the board is drying, I gathered a 2 styrofoam pumpkins, removed the plastic stems & used a large knife to cut my pumpkins in half (please be careful with this part if you try it…a scroll or bandsaw would probably work better to slice them in half). You will not need one half of the larger one if you choose to lay yours out like I did mine. I’m sure you can come up with something else cute to use that other half on!

Cue hubby help again….he used the scroll saw to cut all the spindles to size. I love the spindles were all a little different–really added to the character!

I used a variety of chalk paint colors blended to create 3 unique colors on my pumpkins. “Fluff”, “Terracotta”, “Rusty Nail”. These are all Dixie Belle colors! While the pumpkins are drying, make sure your hot glue gun is heated up & grab that E6000 glue!

So once your frame, buffalo plaid board & pumpkins are dry, it’s time to start assembling your pumpkin patch!!

Gather a nice handful of raffia & use your glue gun toattach raffia on bottom part of your frame. Be sure to do this before glueing down the pumpkins.

Now depending on what floral arrangement you are using, you’d probably need to lay it out before deciding exactly where the pumpkins need to be glued down.

Next step is glue down your styrofoam pumpkins with a combination of E6000 & hot glue. The hot glue quick sets it, but the E6000 gives it a quality bond! Then do the same glue combo for your spindle stems.

I used my silhouette cutting machine to design a “hello fall” stencil that I used on a scrap piece of beadboard. I used the chalk paint color “caviar” to fill in the words. This is why the vinyl scraper, pick, & transfer paper were included on the supply list. You may very well find an alternative! I just thought the vintage beadboard wood piece went so nicely with the look! And just like spindles, I always have lots of that stuff lying around haha! I also used the hot glue+E6000 combo to secure the beadboard.

The final step is to secure your floral arrangement in place. I chose to use my light duty stapler+1/4in staples. Then I tied a large raffia bow and hot glued it at bottom of floral. I also made a simple loop bow with 1in ribbon and glued it on top of the raffia bow.

Lastly I used wire cutters to snip off pieces from another floral pick to create leaves & tindrels for the pumpkins. There ended up being pockets left behind the styrofoam pumpkins so the leaves & tindrels were easy to attach.

Overall, I was absolutely thrilled with the way this came out! I love the primitive, rustic look & it’s a one of a kind creation for sure! I have referred to this project as a “framescape”! I think it will be fun to create one for all the holidays, with different landscapes inside the frame! I’d love to know if you give it a whirl!