Reasons I don’t carve pumpkins:
1. Smell. 2. Slime. 3. Smell. 4. Ewww.
Did I mention I don’t carve pumpkins? Yeah. No. It’s not happening.
As much as I admire those who brave the pumpkin slaughter in a decorative fashion, I’m not doing it. That said, I still wanted some pumpkins to put out on the front steps. Problem: these pumpkins are exposed to the elements — wind, rain, unseasonably-early frost. Answer: oil paint. But oil paint is crazy expensive and won’t dry until Downton Abbey is back (because British people are mean and make us wait until January). So what is a no-wait alternative to oil paint? Oil pastels.
Warning: you are going to want to make one of these.
Pentel oil pastels that are crazy easy to work with. They are like crayons on steroids. I could cover a whole pumpkin in a manner of minutes, and then some. The patchwork pattern here was taken from traditional Indian kantha quilts, but you could just doodle your heart out same as if it were a marker or a pencil or crayon.
Did I mention you can buy a giant box of them for under $10? I know.
Now, I had tried using pastels in art school and hated them because they were so chalky and the residue got on everything – these are much more self-contained. Kid friendly. They are still oil based so you’ll want to cover your workspace to save on cleanup, but really, y’all. These are good. Pumpkins and beyond.
I’m so doing this, but I’ll be adding a bit of glitter because hey, it’s glitter. I love the pattern!
Ha Ha!! The new series of Downton is great and so are your pumpkins. Love ’em.
Ally, U.K.
Thanks for the idea! I tried to recreate it , but it didn’t turn out nearly as nice as yours did, but I still had a great time using my old crayons! (they have been unused these past 20 odd years) I think I got slightly addicted to the crayons actually, have been drawing and drawing all day – so thank you also for that! 🙂
You are so creative. I am not doing pumpkins this year but will remember this for next Halloween. This year I am doing toilet paper rolls with eyes cut out and light sticks inside and a balloon with a light stick draped in cheesecloth and hung in a tree. Thanks for my next year plan. Have a great Halloween.
Squishy pumpkin guts are my favorite but I LOVE the oil pastel idea & the PRICE Wahoo!
Ahem. Freakkin’ gorgeous and freakkin’ genius. That is all.
These are amazing! So colorful that make me happy
I found a mostly intact box of Pentel oil pastels at the thrift store last weekend. Grand total: $0.50!!! Serendipitous!
Score for you!
I’m so looking forward to doing this on my own, and, not having to carve a pumpkin! I’m sharing your wonderful idea on The Crafty Crow soon 🙂