State Silhouette Pumpkin

Fall is finally here in Indiana! Wahoo!!! I was a little worried earlier this week that fall wasn't coming because of a few 90 degree days we had. The temperatures finally dropped and I have had to break out my cardigans. I have a checklist of things that I need to do once September 1st comes 1). put up a fall wreath 2). buy mums, 3). buy pumpkins (this includes anything that looks like, smells like or tastes like a pumpkin). Yeah, I might be a little obsessed with pumpkins! So, I must warn all of you that you might see a few posts about pumpkins. One project I did this past week was create a state silhouette for a pumpkin that I have on my front porch.  I first saw the idea from Country Living magazine. I know I am a total copycat, I hope we can still be friends but I think you will like my version. :)

The first thing I did was spray paint a "Funkin". Have you all heard of a "Funkin"? It is a fake pumpkin that you can carve. See, I told you I like anything that looks like a pumpkin (even if it isn't the real thing). Funkins are awesome because you can use them year after. I bought mine at an end of season sale at Jo-Ann's. 

I spray painted mine with Rustoleum's Heirloom White spray paint. 

To create the state silhouette I went to 50states.com and printed off the state of Indiana. You can print any state you want. Once I printed off my state, I turned the printed sheet over and took some black sidewalk chalk and rubbed the chalk on the paper. You might remember me using this method before in previous projects. It's the easiest and cheapest way to transfer images. 

After you have finished rubbing the chalk on the back of the printed paper you can then tape the picture onto the pumpkin. This was probably the trickiest part because the pumpkin is not a flat even surface. Once I had taped the print to the pumpkin I then began to trace the outline with an ink pen. The pen transfers the chalk onto the pumpkin and creates an outline for painting the state.

After the image was transferred to the pumpkin I was ready to start painting. I used an outdoor paint for the state because I am putting the pumpkin on my front porch. I would use a smaller paint brush for the outline and then a bigger one for the inside of the state. I did a total of two coats and let it dry for two days before sitting it outside. 

I am pretty pleased with how the project turned out. I was a little worried that it wasn't going to look like the Hoosier state but I think it looks pretty darn close to the printed state. Here is a picture of the printed state again and the finished pumpkin. Not too shabby, huh?

I love how it looks on my front porch. I think I am going to paint a little heart or a star where my hometown is located. And even though I am a copycat nobody else in my neighborhood has a state silhouette pumpkin sitting on their porch! ;) 

I hope you all have a great week! 

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