Decorative Wooden Pumpkins

In this Instructable, I will show you how to make great fall decorations out of just some sticks and a 2 by 6. These wooden pumpkins are easy to make and require few tools. They also can help give your house a nice fall feeling. I originally was thinking about just using a 6 by 6 as the pumpkin but then I realized that the side of some glued together 2 by 6's closely resembles the ridges on a pumpkin. As far as the materials go you should be able to find them at your nearest hardware store and even in your backyard.

• 2" x 6" x 96"
• Miter or Hand Saw
• Sticks that are about 1 in. in diameter
• Drill & 1 in. spade bit
• Knife
• Paint (I recommend orange, white, and black but you can choose any colors you like)
• Paintbrush
• Wood Glue
• Clamps
• Sandpaper
• Rubber Mallet

Using a pencil, mark the 2 by 6 at 6", 12", 18", 24", 33", 42", 51", 63", 75", and 87". If you are using a saw with a thick blade make sure to account for that extra width. For example, with a 1/8 inch blade you would do 6 1/8", 12 1/4", 18 3/8", etc. Then, with your saw, make nice flat cuts along all of your lines until you have:

Four 6 in. long pieces

Three 9 in. long pieces

Three 12 in. long pieces

One 9 in. long piece of scrap wood.

Note: These are not exact heights they are just what I used. You can use whatever heights you think look good. Also if you want you could make the 9 in. tall pumpkin 4 pieces wide with the extra 9 inches.

Glue your four 6 in. pieces together, then clamp them tightly. If any excess glue gets squeezed out then wipe it off with a wet paper towel. Repeat this process with your three 9 in. pieces and your three 12 in. pieces.

Using 120-150 grit sandpaper, sand off any rough edges or faces of your wood blocks. Also, remove any excess length from the boards if the tops or bottoms do not perfectly align.

Then, using a 1" spade bit, drill a 1" deep hole in the center of the wood block top.

Sand out the hole to make a cleaner surface to attach the stem. It may be helpful to wrap the sandpaper around the handle of your mallet or other tool.

Note: If the stick(s) you have are not one inch thick, feel free to use a different bit to suit your needs.

First, lay down a piece of cardboard or some newspaper to keep your area clean. Next take out the paint colors you will want for your pumpkins, If you are using paint in a bottle squirt it onto a paper plate so it is easily available to you when you're painting. Then dab your brush in the paint and paint your heart out!

Feel free to comment any cool paint suggestions that you used!

Cut your stick(s) to the desired stem length (3-4 inches worked for me), careful to leave an extra 1" to insert into the pumpkin. Using a knife and/or sandpaper, clean up any knots, bark, or imperfections one inch from the end to ensure a good fit.

Dab some wood glue along the inside of the hole drilled in step 3.

Insert the clean end of the stick in the hole and tap with the mallet to seat it as needed.

And now you just made your very own wooden pumpkin decorations!