DIY Pumpkins made with Paint-Dyed Sisal Rope

I just had to try my hand at making these charming Rope Pumpkins! They are just my style & such a unique addition to my fall decor. As much as I love neutral fall decor, I thought about what I could do to make these a variety of colors. I also wanted rope that would hold its shape nicely.

After a stroll through the Walmart hardware section, I found a 50ft roll of 3/8in Sisal Rope for just under $6…SUPER DEAL. This rope is VERY durable & rustic looking! It was going to be perfect for what I had in mind. Now, making them different colors was going to be slightly experimental, because I didn’t want to use messy RIT dye.

I just happen to have some experience with using chalk paint to paint fabrics & shirts(like this super cute SWEATSHIRT I chalk painted)….soooooo, I thought, HEY, I think I can make a custom dye by watering down some chalk paint. I’m happy to report, it worked GREAT! I couldn’t be more pleased with how they came out & I’m excited to let you in on all the details!!

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SUPPLY LIST:

• 3/8in Sisal Rope- Walmart 50ft roll for $6
• Rolling Pin (mine had a 6in circumference)
• Scissors
• Thin Jute Twine
• Hot Glue Gun
• Stem for Pumpkin- (I used a vintage spindle 1x4in)
• Greenery- Hobby Lobby
• Chalk or Acrylic Paint – (I used Dixie Belle chalk paint brand in colors Terracotta, Cotton, & Vintage Duck Egg)
• Water
• Whisk/Bowl for mixing paint dye
• Canvas Drop Cloth to lay out rope to dry

Here are all the STEPS to make one pumpkin:

STEP 1: I wrapped my rope around my rolling pin 10 times, & used scissors to cut. I made sure to leave an extra inch at top and bottom. I then used that length to cut 2 more pieces of rope the same length.

STEP 2: I put approx. 3tbs of chalk paint in a glass bowl & added about 1 cup of water. Mixed it up with a whisk to create a paint wash “dye”.

Your paint to water ratio will affect how strong the pigment color is in your homeade dye. Regular acrylic craft paints would also work just fine for this.

I ended up making 3 pumpkins using this tutorial….Dixie Belle chalk paint colors “Cotton”, “Terracotta”, & “Vintage Duck Egg”

STEP 3: I took each piece of rope & placed in dye. I just moved around until all the original color of the rope was gone. After each piece was soaked in the paint dye, I placed them on a canvas drop cloth to dry. Once they were completely dry, I moved on to Step 4. I placed mine in front of a couple fans to speed along the drying process & they were dry to the touch in about 4 hours.

STEP 4: Now that the rope was dyed, I repeated Step 1 & wrapped the rope around the rolling pin 10 times. I slipped it off the rolling pin & tied the center with jute twine. This will leave both 1in sections of rope sticking out from where you tie. Having that excess rope allowed me to tie twine super tight before trimming. I did this to all 3 pieces of rope.

STEP 5: I took a longer piece of jute twine & fed it through each rope section. Before tightening & tying off the twine, I placed my spindle stem in the center to know how tight to tie it. I won’t glue it in until the next step.

STEP 6: I used hot glue to secure the spindle stem in the center. You could use lots of different items for a stem, just be sure you place it in there like I suggested in Step 5. It will make your pumpkin stay tight & help all the rope to keep the pumpkin shape.

STEP 7: I used one of my favorite greenery florals from Hobby Lobby to embellish around the stem. I clipped off a few leaf bunches and a couple pieces of wire. I used the wire for tendrils. I used hot glue to attach all of these to the top of pumpkin near the spindle.

STEP 8: As one final touch to my design, I painted on a little brown stain to the top of my spindles. It would have been fine without it, but didn’t want the wood to look so new on top. You could use a variety of embellishments to these pumpkins. I just kept mine pretty simple!

I styled them in a vintage tray caddy, lined with fall florals & leaves. I created varied heights on the pumpkins with vintage books & even stamped a cute beadboard sign that says “fall sweet fall”. It was painted in the Vintage Duck Egg color to coordinate with the pumpkin dyed that same color.

And there you go, the cutest little rope pumpkins I ever did see! I am really proud of how these came out & I’m enjoying them in my fall decor! If you scroll on down, you’ll find a short video tutorial that may more your learning style! Either way, I sure hope this DIY inspires you to give these a try!

Thanks for checking out the blog! Have a creative day! Summer 🙂