Halloween Project #1

Before I get to my first Halloween project look what is available as of today!!! Yes it's finally here! Check out the Holdays from the Heart Tab above for more information on what this lovely mini-catalog contains. I will be posting projects through the coming weeks showcasing what beautiful projects you can make with this limited time catalog.

Now onto the 1st project - A Pumpkin Candy Holder

I saw this darling project out in YouTube land and had to make my own version of it. I'm also sharing the instructions with you so you can make your very own treat holders.

1. Take a 12" x 6" piece of patterned paper or card stock and cut it into 5/8 inch strips. You will get approximately 19 strips from this piece. I decided I wanted multicolors for my pumpkin so I cut 12 patterned strips and 7 solid card stock strips. I know 5/8ths is not a common measurement so here is a picture of where you would cut. It is right between 1/2 inch and 3/4 inch.

2. Punch a hole 1/2 inch in from each end in the center of the strip. I used my mighty Big Bite. I love this tool as I have weak wrists and I find this brute works like a charm for me. I punched all 19 strips at once!

3. You now have all your strips prepped and ready to "thread" onto a brad. The picture above shows 2 small shaft brads but I ended up using a longer shaft brad for the top part as my strips kept popping off the shorter one!

4. Place the strips one by one onto the bottom brad and fan out the prongs securely. Fan out your strips and you are ready to start forming your pumpkin. Looking at the bottom, start with the first strip next to the brad and "thread" it onto the top brad. Make sure the large part of the brad is to the inside. Then take another strip that is across from the first one and add it to the brad. Continue to add strips to the brad until you have all of them on the brad and open it up to secure your pumpkin.

Here you can see the longer shaft I had to use to prevent my strips from popping off the brad as I placed all of them on. Now you are ready to decorate your pumpkin!

5. I used some miscellaneous paper flowers, leaves and a bit of gingham ribbon adhering all the pieces with glue dots. Be careful when adhering the elements to make sure you don't stick the strips together. This is a treat holder and you want to be able to get inside to add the candy!

Front View

Back View

6. Spread apart a few of the strips and fill your pumpkin with yummy treats and Viola! you are done.

Did you notice the little chocolate bar's name? Coffin Crisp!! Isn't that just darling? Gets the creative juices flowing along with the mouth-watering yen for chocolate.

My little Coffin Crisp bar is a hint to the next project. Can you guess what it is?? Come back tomorrow to find out. In the meantime, why don't you make your own pumpkin and share it with me by leaving a comment below with a link to your picture?