Have you seen those adorable velvet pumpkins? They’ve been around for so long, and I tried to keep telling myself they were simply a passing fad… but NO! I think they will stand the test of time as a really classy and beautiful fall accessory! I’m starting to see pumpkins made in other fabrics as well, and I absolutely LOVE the idea. So here are my two methods on how to make a Fabric Pumpkin.
How to Make a Fabric Pumpkin
I have tried a couple of ways to make these pumpkins, so I wanted to share both of them with you today. One of the ways is pretty much the same as how I made my burlap pumpkin a few years ago.
Make a Fabric Pumpkin – Method 1
Here are the steps:
- This method requires a rectangle of fabric, roughly twice as long as its width. Since I used to work as a professional decorator, I had access to lots of discontinued fabric sample from some high-end manufacturers. When those companies discontinued them, they were just discarded. This was like Christmas for a fabric junkie like me!!
- Fold rectangle in half.
- With right sides together, stitch up the short length of the rectangle on your sewing machine.
- With heavy string and a large upholstery needle, run a gathering stitch along the top of your ‘tube’ of fabric. Gather tightly and tie off.
- Stuff from open end, using fiberfill.
- Gather and tie off remaining open end.
When you have your basic form, you will now want to pinch together the middles of both sides. This is where that long upholstery needle will come in handy! Go down and through the middle of the pumpkin, pulling the string tightly to the other side. While keeping the thread taught, bring it back up to the top of the pumpkin, on the outside. This is what will form the cute little sections that you see.
After you have wrapped the string around the pumpkin, forming sections, tie it off and you are ready to add a stem and some embellishments!
Make a Fabric Pumpkin – Method 2
This is essentially the same method that I used to make the burlap pumpkin from a few years ago. Here’s what I did:
- Starting with a large piece of fabric, cut out the desired size circle (this one is approx. 24″ diameter).
- With your upholstery needle and sturdy string, run a gathering stitch around the outer edge of the circle.
- Gather tightly all the way around.
- The long needle helps this process go faster, as you can take lots of small stitches at once!
- Stuff with fiberfill and finish pulling string till opening is as small as possible.
You are now ready to add a stem and embellishments!
To make a stem, there are many great materials you could use: dried real pumpkin stems, pieces of driftwood, cork, sticks… even rope! This is how I made the stem. I used:
I already had some wonderful, heavy rope. With some heavy-duty shears or scissors, cut a length of rope (it’s better to start with more than you need than not enough – you can always trim shorter later, if you want). Thread the florist wire through the rope, and now you can bend the ‘stem’ any way you like! Unbraid the rope a bit at the end and attach to your pumpkin using hot glue. Then you can add leaves, if you want. I used some burlap leaves, but you could use lots of things: felt, book pages, contrasting fabrics… be creative!
I can’t wait for you to try this project! It goes pretty quickly, and it’s fun, too!
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Yay, it’s almost fall, ya’ll!!
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