Introduction: Thread Pumpkins
Greetings fellow crafter! With the changing of the leaves and all the fall decorations, I was inspired to create the following table top pumpkins.
Materials Used:
-Elmer's Glue
-Baby Powder
-Petroleum Jelly
-Water
-Balloons
-Tin loaf baking container
-Yarn, string, or cross stitch floss (I used two shades of brown and an antique yellow, plus green for the stem)
-Large "C" clamps (this will make sense later in the directions)
Preparation - I punched one hole on both sides of the tin container about 1" up from the bottom. Run the floss through the hole on one side, into the mixture, and out the other hole. This helped me save some time and streamline the process. Also, this craft project is messy, I worked on a large piece of cardboard, a tarp would work nicely to. Work on anything that isn't going to be ruined if you get glue on it.
Step 1 - Rub the petroleum jelly over the entire surface of the blown up balloon. This is done so that glue soaked string does not stick to the balloon.
Step 2 - Mix the glue, water, and corn starch together in the tin container until the mixture is smooth. No clumps. I didn't measure the amounts, but I used about 1/4 water, 1/4 corn starch, 1/2 glue for my mixture. I used an empty tomato paste aluminum can to hold the floss in the mixture. See the image for clarification.
Step 3 - Run the string through the mixture and begin wrapping the around the balloon. Keep wrapping until you have a desired amount of coverage across the balloon.
Step 4 - Apply some petroleum jelly to the clamp ends of the "C" clamp. Do this so the glue soaked string doesn't stick to the "C" clamp. Insert the thread wrapped balloon into the "C" clamp, use the "C" clamp to achieve the squatty rotund shape of a pumpkin. I used two "C" clamps, one to form a base for the second, so the second one would stand upright. See image.
Step 5 - Allow the thread to dry and harden overnight.
Step 6 - Pop the balloon! I had a dense coverage of thread so I had to fish the popped balloon remains out from between the hardened string.
To Make the green pumpkin stem, I used clear tape to shape a curved cone, covered it in petroleum jelly, and used green floss following the above steps. Once dried, glue the stem to the pumpkin.
You now have some new decor to add to your living space! Happy Crafting!
For more ideas, check out my blog at http://theohshinycrafter.wordpress.com/
Materials Used:
-Elmer's Glue
-Baby Powder
-Petroleum Jelly
-Water
-Balloons
-Tin loaf baking container
-Yarn, string, or cross stitch floss (I used two shades of brown and an antique yellow, plus green for the stem)
-Large "C" clamps (this will make sense later in the directions)
Preparation - I punched one hole on both sides of the tin container about 1" up from the bottom. Run the floss through the hole on one side, into the mixture, and out the other hole. This helped me save some time and streamline the process. Also, this craft project is messy, I worked on a large piece of cardboard, a tarp would work nicely to. Work on anything that isn't going to be ruined if you get glue on it.
Step 1 - Rub the petroleum jelly over the entire surface of the blown up balloon. This is done so that glue soaked string does not stick to the balloon.
Step 2 - Mix the glue, water, and corn starch together in the tin container until the mixture is smooth. No clumps. I didn't measure the amounts, but I used about 1/4 water, 1/4 corn starch, 1/2 glue for my mixture. I used an empty tomato paste aluminum can to hold the floss in the mixture. See the image for clarification.
Step 3 - Run the string through the mixture and begin wrapping the around the balloon. Keep wrapping until you have a desired amount of coverage across the balloon.
Step 4 - Apply some petroleum jelly to the clamp ends of the "C" clamp. Do this so the glue soaked string doesn't stick to the "C" clamp. Insert the thread wrapped balloon into the "C" clamp, use the "C" clamp to achieve the squatty rotund shape of a pumpkin. I used two "C" clamps, one to form a base for the second, so the second one would stand upright. See image.
Step 5 - Allow the thread to dry and harden overnight.
Step 6 - Pop the balloon! I had a dense coverage of thread so I had to fish the popped balloon remains out from between the hardened string.
To Make the green pumpkin stem, I used clear tape to shape a curved cone, covered it in petroleum jelly, and used green floss following the above steps. Once dried, glue the stem to the pumpkin.
You now have some new decor to add to your living space! Happy Crafting!
For more ideas, check out my blog at http://theohshinycrafter.wordpress.com/
