September 7, 2017

Faux Succulent Pumpkins



A trend in Fall decorating last year (that I didn't even
 realize happened) was planting real succulent plants on top 
of real pumpkins. I came across it on the internet while looking
 for looking for something else entirely. It is so darn cute!


Only I am about the worst person alive at keeping plants
alive. I came across a large batch of artificial succulent plants
marked 80% off at Michael's at the end of the summer.
Also I have a large batch of artificial pumpkins already.
I decided to try to put those two things together.
You do NOT have to go bonkers like I did to try faux succulents and pumpkins together. Even one, two or three are adorable.

Almost all of these pumpkins used to be oraange. I decided to try the white pumpkin look for this year and painted them.
The succulents look great on ANY color pumpkin!

If you would like to try this trend for Fall in the artificial 
(or faux) version there are lots of places to buy foam
artificial pumpkins this time of year (if you don't already
have some). The craft stores also carry some faux succulents
year round (use a coupon if you don't find them on sale).
This large stem from the regular floral section of Michael's was $4.99 regular price.
It could be cut into about eight small pieces.

These VERY GOOD LOOKING succulents are from Hobby Lobby. Most are $2.99 each. The smallest one is $.99.

This is my stash from the 80% off section at Michael's.

The real succulents that I researched in my area were at
least $4 each for even small ones.

Gathering the supplies for the faux version of succulent
pumpkins takes longer than putting them together.
They are SO EASY!

The main things you will need are the succulents, pumpkins
and moss. Other things you might need are toothpicks, glue
and wire cutters.

The real succulent pumpkins use moss to keep the bottoms
of the succulent plants wet. We will use that too to make
these LOOK real and also hide our "mechanics".

Place a decent amount of moss on top of the pumpkin.
You can secure the moss with a toothpick initially or just
wait and see if the faux succulents will hold it in place.

Some of my faux succulents did not have stems so I stuck
 toothpicks in the bottom of those. Most of the time you will
have a stem on the succulent to stick down in the foam pumpkin.
If the stem is too large/long cut it down with wire cutters.


Some of my pumpkins have large holes in them (I think where
I have accidentally melted the foam over the years trying to 
attach real-looking stems on them with hot glue). 

If yours do too, just put moss around the edge of the hole
 and stick succulents that  have larger stems on them down
 into the hole. Done!

If you have stems on your faux pumpkins that you don't want 
to pull off just put an extra generous amount of moss near
the stem and then a then a larger faux succulent to hide it.


Here is how I used the faux succulent pumpkins in my home
for Fall 2017 decorations...

Four of the pumpkins were used in the dining room hutch.
Sorry...the only time I could catch this photo was when strong afternoon sun was coming in the window.
To reduce the glare, I will open the doors on the hutch up...






More faux succulent pumpkins on the dining room table. 

My largest faux succulent pumpkin is on the buffet.



The bookcases in the living room have a few books and
lots of the faux succulent pumpkins.



If you run out of time (like I did) or moss, just try sticking the succulent in the naked pumpkin. 






I wanted to try mixing flowers with succulents like I have seen some bridal bouquets done.


Also in the living room are a trio of faux succulents
 pumpkins perched on candlesticks.







The coffee table also has a smaller trio of pumpkins.

The kitchen table holds a variety of "pumpkins" that all have 
faux succulents but two of the "pumpkins" are real.
 It is SO early Fall where I live, there are no pumpkins in the stores. These are acorn squash.
They are the closest things I could find to pumpkins right now. 

Sometimes real pumpkins are cheaper than artificial pumpkins. Did you know that you can paint real pumpkins
with chalk paint to make them whatever color you want?

You CAN use faux succulents on real pumpkins. To keep the
pumpkins from rotting as long as possible, do not puncture
the real pumpkins with the faux succulent's stems or toothpicks.
The pumpkin to the left is artificial, the one in the middle is a real acorn squash, the one on the right is the painted squash.

Use glue (I just used a common white glue...hot glue might
injure the real pumpkin and make it rot sooner) to secure the moss
and succulents. Honestly, you might try just placing the moss
and faux succulents on the real pumpkin first to see if it even 
needs glue to stay put.

Addendum...after I published this blog post, we did get real
pumpkins in the grocery stores. A neighbor of mine found out 
that she was going to have unexpected surgery and needed a
pick-me-up. Instead of flowers I made her a faux succulent
pumpkin using a real pumpkin so she could enjoy it for several
weeks or more. Here are some more tips on how to do that:

Trim some dry foam to fit on the top of the pumpkin.
You may need to cut it lengthwise too so it doesn't stick 
up too much. Put glue on the bottom of the foam.
Use a glue that will not harm the pumpkin...not hot glue.

Put glue on top of the foam too. Place moss on the glue.

Cut the stems of your faux succulents so they will NOT
puncture the real pumpkin when you stick them in the foam. 
You may need a wire cutter for this. 

Stick the faux succulents in the foam.

Add more faux succulents as desired.

Be trendy this year with your Fall decorating and try at least
a few faux succulent pumpkins. The succulents look great on
any color pumpkin!

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