Yarn Wrapped Gourds & Pumpkins

Aren't these just the coziest, cutest little things?  

Almost makes me want to curl up and snuggle with them. Almost.

As a lot of you know...I love yarn crafts.  Anything with texture.  Yarn has so many possibilities and I believe these little $1 store pumpkins and gourds have been transformed into some pretty spectacular Fall decor pieces.

I bought those little mini gourds and pumpkins by the pack (5 in each) at the dollar tree and I think the bigger gourds and pumpkins are from Wal-mart at 97 cents each. All of them are FAKE PUMPKINS because I wanted each of them to last! I used different yarn gauges in ivory, green, and a mustard yellow to wrap them in different ways and make each one unique.This green pumpkin (which kinda ended up looking like an apple but I truly love it) was done simply by gluing the yarn around the base of the stem and then continuing to wind it around while applying glue. I prefer to use hot glue because it keeps it in place due to drying faster.  Even though I'm used to working with a glue gun, I still burn myself at times so if this is a kid project for you...use craft glue like Mod Podge or Aleen's Tacky Glue. Craft glue really does work great but be careful not to press too hard as you conform the yarn to the shape because it can cause hard glue spots.

Also, I loved the real look of this stem so I left it as is.

These little gourds and tiny pumpkin make me smile too.  Same technique as the green pumpkin but I just varied it a bit by going horizontal or vertical. The large gourd is wrapped in twine and the stem is wrapped in green embroidery floss. The smaller stems are made from twine bent in half and hot glued together.  I frayed the ends and kind of smooshed it on the top of the pumpkin or gourd to make it look like it grew out of the top.

Oh, I love this white pumpkin so much.  I twisted 4 strands of yarn together measuring them the length of the pumpkin from stem to bottom.  It reminds me a bit of a cable knit sweater without the knitting. The green stem is wrapped with twine to add even more texture. Craft glue worked best with this technique too.

These are not exactly rosettes but they are similar to the way you make fabric ones.  This mustard yellow pumpkin comes off sophisticated to me.  I think these in all white would be striking with maybe some touches of green.

The tricky part in making this style is rolling them into TIGHT spirals and then using craft glue to put them on. Start by tying a knot at the end and then rolling it between your thumb and index finger. Once you get a spiral you like, they have to be pressed flat with glue. So hot glue does not work. Incidentally...my above pumpkin has been handled by two 3 year olds and a 5 year old. Hence some of the spirals coming loose. 

The spiral rosettes are simple but it does take some time to finish one pumpkin.  But I think the effect is completely worth it! :)

Hope you like another yarn wrapped project I came up with for Fall!

Do you see yourself making these too?

 I would love to hear what you think. :)

Cozy Fall Hugs to all of you!

♥

linking to:
nest of posies
the diy show off 
tip junkie: tip me tuesday 
a crafty soiree: yesterday on tuesday 
strut your stuff: somewhat simple 
the 36th avenue 
show and share with southern lovely
thrifty thursday
tatertots and jello
creative me monday
itsybitsypaper