Special thanks to our Crafting Queen, Kara Opfer, for this fun (easy!) Fall DIY.
Supplies-you will need:
Toilet paper rolls (1 roll per however many pumpkins you want to make)
A stick from your yard. May be substituted with cinnamon sticks or wine corks (although these are a bit short in length).
A roll of green ribbon- I preferred a thicker natural fiber looking ribbon
A 20”x20” square of fabric- see FAQ below
QUICK FAQ:
Where do I buy my supplies? I suggest Hobby Lobby, JoAnn Fabric or Walmart. Walmart has the fewest options- but sells already cut & easy to buy fabric bundles that you can easily add to your cart. If you want easy... pick this option. These bundles are named ‘fat quarters’ by quilters. Some priced as low as 97¢. Hobby Lobby has a few of these too & Joann’s has a TON! These ‘fat quarters’ are slightly smaller than the 20”x20” size we need- but I used them in my example craft & it worked pretty well if you tuck the short sides first & cover them up with the longer sides!
How do I buy other fabric by the yard? If you buy fabric by the yard, you can get all sorts of fun options like velvet or flannel! Look through the bolts of fabric & put the bolts you want in your cart. Take your bolt selections up to the fabric counter. You will sound like you know exactly what you are talking about if you say “I need 1/2 yard please”. You could probably get by with 1/4 yard, but it will be slightly too small. They will cut it for you & tape a price ticket to it. Then you just pay for it up at the front checkout with the rest of your cart! When you get home, cut your fabric into 20”x20” squares!
HOW TO ASSEMBLE
Place your 20”x20” fabric flat on a table .
Take your roll of toilet paper & unwind around 15 times around (you may need to do more or less depending on the look you want) .
Wind the toilet paper back around the roll in a rolled up Bunchy way- to make your pumpkin more round & full looking set the toilet paper roll in the center of the fabric.
Fold up all sides of the fabric (starting with the shortest edges) and tuck them into the hole at the top of the paper roll.
Doing the longer corners last will cover up any sides that may be too short.
Insert the stick of your choice into the top hole of the ‘pumpkin’.
Tie a bit of green ribbon to your stick as leaves.
Decorate your home with your creation!
For my third pumpkin I used thick ribbon as an alternative.
Stick several cut strips of ribbon through the center of the tube, wrap them around, and tuck them into the hole on the the opposite end. (I forgot to unwind my paper roll on this pumpkin & you can see the more square shape of the pumpkin.)
Thanks for dropping by! If there is ever another toilet paper shortage you can dig these out of your holiday storage, hahaha!
Kara Opfer
GCS Moms League Secretary + Creative Design
Comment below to ask Kara any questions. We'd love to see your creations, post pics below, or on our private GCS Facebook Page / Instagram @gcs_moms_league.
Super cute!