DIY Stuffed Fabric Pumpkins

I love the look of stuffed fabric pumpkins for Autumn decor. I decided to use lots of Oly*Fun to create various sizes of pumpkins to decorate my porch and house this year. Oly*fun is a great for outdoor projects and the pumpkins look great on my covered porch.

SUPPLIES:

• Oly*Fun Grab & Go Packs in Orange Crush, Pine, Snow White, Slate, Clover, and Hot Fudge
• Poly-Fil – I went through a 5 lbs box and a half making my pumpkins
• Matching thread
• A hand sewing needle
• Large ruler – I used a clear one for quilting
• Scissors
• Matching yarn
• Tulip Soft Fabric Paints – I used matte Ebony to paint the skull face. The matte and velveteen finishes have the smoothest opaque results
• Small paint brushes
• Hot Glue (optional) – For adding embellishments
• E6000 (optional) – For adding embellishments
• Embellishments – Glitter, buttons, gems, lace…etc

INSTRUCTIONS

1) I cut a rectangle piece of Orange Crush Oly*Fun 15″ tall by 20″ wide.

2) Fold the fabric in half width wise, matching up the 15″ sides. Hand or machine stitch those sides together about 1/4″ from the edges, using matching orange thread. If you are doing this by hand, make sure to go back over your stitches, filling in the spaces, so the stitch line is solid. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

3) Gather the top of the tube by hand sewing a running stitch and pulling it tight. Stitch through the gathered fabric to keep that end tightly shut. The stitches don’t need to be pretty, but they do need to be secure. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

4) Turn the tube inside out, pushing the gathered end flat.

5) Tightly stuff the tube with Poly-fil. It should still be a bit squishy, as you need that compression later. Leave about 1 inch at the top without stuffing. This will make closing the opening much easier.

6) Gather the open end of the tube by hand sewing a running stitch and pulling it tight. Stitch through the gathered fabric to keep that end tightly shut. This is harder than the 1st time, because the poly-fil will create pressure and tension. Again, the stitches don’t need to be pretty, just very secure. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

7) Using yarn, wrap around the pumpkin tightly. Tie securely. Continue wrapping around the pumpkin 2-3 more times, using the same yarn strand, creating the pumpkin segments. Tie the yarn each time at the same place, to keep the yarn tightly wrapped. The amount of compression you give when wrapping will make the segments more or less defined. Tie off the yarn and cut the excess.

8) Cut a 4-5″ piece of yarn. On the other end, tie the yarn intersections tightly together. I wrapped the yarn under, over and between the intersections, so they would be bound together, but still segmented. Tie a few knots and cut off the excess yarn.

9) Cut a circle of Hot Fudge (brown) Oly*Fun big enough to cover the bottom gathering.

10) Center the circle over the bottom gathering and pin in place. Using brown thread and a needle, neatly hand stitch the circle to the pumpkin. Tie off and clip the excess the thread. This covers the gathering stitching and makes the bottom more like a real pumpkin.

11) For the stem, measure around the pumpkin top gathering, about 1″ from the center. This will be how large the bottom of your stem will be. Cut a piece of Hot Fudge (brown) Oly*Fun into a trapazoid that is 1/2″ bigger than your stem bottom measurement (for seam allowance), 5″ tall, and 1″ in from each side. Mine equalled (x” bottom and x” top). Using scissors, carefully curve the top and bottom about 1/2″ shorter on each side, tapering to the center. This will help keep the stem straighter later when adding it to the pumpkin. It’s a trick I worked out through a little trial the error.

12) Matching the sides up, hand stitch along that with matching brown thread. Make sure to go back over your stitches, filling in the spaces, so the stitch line is solid. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

13) Gather the top of the stem, using a running stitch. Pull the thread tight to close the stem top. Neatly stitch through the gathers to keep the top closed. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

14) Turn the stem inside out. Push the top up til it looks nice.

15) Stuff the stem tightly with Poly-Fil.

16) Using brown thread, hand stitch the stem to the pumpkin, matching the stem bottom with the pumpkin top’s center. Tie off and clip the excess the thread.

17) Using the Clover (bright green) Oly*Fun, cut a big heart shape leaf and circle. Cut the circle into a spiral. This will make a curly piece mimicking a pumpkin vine.

18) Using matching green thread, hand sew the leaf and spiral onto the pumpkin at the bottom of the stem. I stacked them, attaching the spiral by the center through the V of the heart to the pumpkin stem bottom. Tie off under the leaf and cut off the excess thread.

19) To decorate your pumpkin, you can paint on a face or design with fabric paint and a paint brush. You can also use stencils. You can use stitching, hot glue or E6000 to add gems, buttons, lace, beads and sequins. You can use fabric glue to add glitter. I like mine plain, as I can keep them on my porch longer. I used Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in Matte Ebony (black) to paint on a skull face.

If you are decorating outside, you can keep them on a covered area. They double as decorative pillows, and hold up well to lots of hugs. My daughter has given all of ours a good squeeze. If you like this tutorial, check out Keri Lee’s version, Stuffed Burlap Pumpkins. She used burlap, twine and felt! – Crafty Lady Abby