another fall favorite

since its looking like it will be another sunless day here in jersey, i thought i'd post something that makes me happy. another fall decorating project!! i made these for my friends' wedding last year. it was such a beautiful fall day! i've known them both since high school, and i had so much fun sharing in their special day! our little group got to reunite, and i got to make these pretty little punkins for their buffet table!

what you'll need:
craft pumpkin(s)
fall florals
fall accents/leaves-silk, pls don't use anything from your back yard ;o)
1/2 Styrofoam ball(i like using the balls because it gives the flowers more height)
hot glue
glitter glue
utility knife
wooden dowel or pencil
sharpie
battery operated tea light

using the utility knife, i started by cutting off the top of the pumpkin--like you would do when yo carve a real pumpkin. it makes it easier to hold them, they can be slippery!! i found a font that i liked and printed the three letters i needed(making the middle-last name-letter slightly bigger). tape the letters onto the pumpkin. i was able to get away with printing them all on one page, but you could do them individually--that actually may be easier!! use a tack or pin to poke around the outline of the letters. the holes were a little hard to see, so i carefully traced around them with a sharpie. *here's where hubby may come in handy* i am too cheap to buy an embossing gun-or whatever it is that they try to sell for carving these craft pumpkins. i'm not sure which tool he used...possibly a dremel...i'll find out and update this when he wakes up ;o). he cut out the letters for me...its best to choose a chunkier font, hubby had a hard time getting around some of the tight curls. hey-trial and error, right? also make a small hole in the bottom of the pumpkin...just big enough to fit the candle in snugly. now its time for the fun part!! cut a piece of Styrofoam to just fit the opening. squeeze it in and hot glue to secure. now, start poking your flowers in. i used a pencil to "pre drill" a hole. it made it easier for the stem to go in. once your flowers are in, you can start using your accents and leaves as fillers. if there is any Styrofoam showing, i glued a leaf over it! the last touch was an outline of glitter glue around the letters. there was still a little sharpie showing, and that took care of it! once everything is dry and secure, squeeze the little tea light in, turn on, and enjoy!!

i hope these directions made sense! i've never done a step by step to anything i've done(my first were the wreaths and garlands in another post) usually, i just wing it!! haha

so here they are...


i want to make some for myself this year. i have to wait until they go on sale, they can be expensive! also, instead of cutting the monogram out, i may just sharpie it on there! we'll see!!