Acrylic Pour Pumpkin Fun

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When we went to the pumpkin patch with friends, I was unprepared for the $8 per person charge. Also, I wasn’t aware that I was supposed to bring lunch. I had to ask my husband to bring us kid’s meals and money to pay my friend back for the field trip charge because all I had was a twenty dollar bill. Wow, I thought, this field trip cost more than the movie theaters. As the day went on I was charmed by their cute little store, areas set up for photographs, and a pig race. Later, I was elated when we stopped by a huge field during the hay ride. Each of us was allowed to choose from an abundance of gorgeously-shaped pumpkins that would have cost at least $5 each if I had bought them in town. Holiday Farms Pumpkin Patch won me over! Maybe I can get my husband to build us a little cottage inside this farm was my next thought. But what was I going to do with three big pumpkins? I didn’t want to carve three of them. Why not have some Acrylic Pour Pumpkin Fun with the girls?

Materials for Acrylic Pour Pumpkin Fun

• every old, clumpy, less than half-filled paint bottle I could find
• acrylic pour medium
• egg dye plastic cups- these are terrific for messy projects
• plastic forks for stirring
• newspaper and baby wipes
• yellow, white, and black spray paint- optional

Directions:

I didn’t want the girls to start pouring paint willy-nilly, so I asked them to do some planning first. I decided that we would spray our pumpkins, then choose colors for pouring. Gabby wanted a black pumpkin with pinks and purples, Stella chose white with blues and greens, and I picked safety yellow with orange and red acrylic pour. First, we all spray painted our pumpkins. This part took one whole afternoon. We sprayed them, set them in the sun, sprayed the bottom, then let that dry, etc. I was very happy with the results.

Acrylic Pouring Fun

First, we poured our paints into four egg dye containers each. I had the girls mix similiar colors because I wanted to get rid of my old paint. If there were several mauve shades we put them in the same egg dye cup and stirred them together. If you have thick, clumpy bottles of paint, you can pour a little bit of acrylic pour medium in the bottle and swish it around. It thins the paint and makes it the perfect consistency for acrylic pour projects. The ratio of paint to acrylic pour medium when using craft paint is 2:1. Use the plastic forks to stir everything together.

I wanted us to pour the paints on each pumpkin one at a time, just like opening presents on Christmas morning. Doing it this way encouraged everyone to take their time and enjoy the process. It also prevents a child from dumping everything on at once and creating a “muddy pumpkin.” I have five kids and decades of art projects under my belt, so the muddy art project is a familiar one. Someone always tries to mix everything together. Then, they cry because they don’t like their project results. Slowly pour each color, then add the next.

It took time for our acrylic pour pumpkins to dry. We used a blow dryer to speed things along, then set them in the sun when they were almost dry. Having Acrylic Pour Pumpkin Fun instead of carving the pumpkins was different, plus it taught my girls how to do something new. They learned how to plan their projects and patiently use materials. Those are lessons that I’m still trying to implement in my own life, so it was good for me too.

You’re all done! Wasn’t that fun? I hope you enjoyed my Acrylic Pour Pumpkin Fun tutorial!

Happy Fall,

Kristie

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