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Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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Drilling Holes In Your Pumpkins For Spooky Wood Snakes

Just to be clear, that post title is meant to be said in a Dr. Dre-esque fashion like he does in this song (aw yeah, $herdog still rocks out to the clean version of this 1999 classic). And now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about something hardcore. Pumpkins, yo.

This year we got lumpy bumpy orangy-red ones instead of the usual smooth yellow-orange guys just for kicks. The coolest thing about them is that they have stems on the bottom and top, which is kind of fun. Pretty much as soon as we got them home we got to work hollowing them out, and I directed John to make a face like a serial killer (am I the only one who types cereal killer and then has to backspace and correct myself every time?) and we got this stellar shot. In John’s defense, he does look awesomely creepy… so… mission accomplished.

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Mmm, pumpkin seeds. Those were all eaten before these photos were even uploaded. What does that say about us? Either we’re sadly slow bloggers or just very hungry for seasonal delicacies. I’ll go with the latter. And now, just because I’ve been having fun with “___, there it is” lately…

Scoop, there it is.

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Once we had both pumpkins hollowed out we got to break out the power tools. Yeah buddy. I told you these pumpkins were gonna be hardcore. We actually came up with this crazy idea in bed a few days beforehand (wait, that sounds wrong, we were just doing some horizontal brainstorming, wait that sounds wrong again – we were just thinking about pumpkins before bed, ok?).

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We were saying how it would be fun to do something wormy for our worm-loving Clara (like carving holes and then sticking gummy worms into all of them so they looked like they were creeping out) when we realized that we still had these wooden craft store snakes that I painted last year.

Halloween Decor6

And since Clara loves these wiggly little snakes just as much as worms, we realized we could combine them with pumpkins for a snake-tastic Halloween effect. And thus, the idea of using the more snake-sized bit on the drill to make the holes was born. I loved how the drill made little ribbons of pumpkin as it went through.

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Oh snap. Those are some bad a$$ pumpkins. Mixed in with some pretty sinister ceramic animals. You totally wouldn’t want to run into them in a dark alley, right? Let’s get a little closer…

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Aw yeah, there it is. A lumpy wart-ish double-stemmed pumpkin that has been infested with snakes! And then a ratty old crow came down and landed on it. That’s some tough luck for Mr. Pumpkin, eh? Bummers for you dude.

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Here’s the other guy. All holed up and snaked out.

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And I couldn’t help myself so I rearranged my printing block letters that spell LOVE to say EVIL (I drew in the “I” on the back side of the O a few years back here) along with adding a few other you-shouldn’t-be-surprised things like…

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… ceramic animals! Holla. Don’t they look awesomely creep-tastic when they’re grouped with a crow, some snakes, and two gnarled old pumpkins? I love how the frog and the pumpkins both have warts.

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I even grabbed our white ceramic rabbit from the deck because for some reason he seemed like he could be a little “rabidly scary” in the right setting. I think it works. Plus, if you were a ceramic bunny, wouldn’t it be a little bit thrilling to end up displayed with other tougher creatures like snakes and crows? It’s like he gets to take a walk on the wild side for a hot second before ducking back over into cute fuzzy bunny territory the rest of the year.

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I kinda wished I could paint “blood” in drippy red paint over the word “love” in the art, but that would be permanent, so maybe I’ll cut out the letters from red construction paper and delicately stick them on with poster putty or something. Or I’ll just leave it and ignore the uplifting and happy quote above my spooky little table of Halloween goodness.

Oh and we still have to frame our skullified selves (made a few years back thanks to Photoshop) in the hallway frame wall. This baby comes out every year and we play the “slip it into a frame grouping and see who notices” game.

Halloween Scary Wedding Pic

Speaking of ghosts of Halloweens past, we have nearly a dozen Halloween posts on our Holiday project page, complete with a bunch of creep-a-delic projects, tablescapes, and more – so if you’re looking for puffy painted pumpkins, maniacal monograms, batty bid-ness, or bloody candles, we’ve got you covered.

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What are you guys doing to spook things up at home? Does it involved ceramic animals and a power drill? If it doesn’t, $herdog strongly encourages you to reconsider. Ya heard?  *mic drop*

Psst- John misses you guys and is sorry he hasn’t blogged for a few days. He’s been working on our powerpoint presentation for our talk in Cincy this Saturday (I’ll pause while he mimes pushing his glasses up his nose and putting on his pocket protector) but he’ll be dropping in later and tomorrow with those posts for ya!

Comments

  1. Melissa McCoy says

    The rabbit immediately reminded me of the “Rabbit of Caerbannog” from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. With it’s “nasty, big, pointy teeth!” LOL. Tell me you’ve seen that. Thinking of your sweet ceramic bunny jumping out and biting someone’s head off makes me laugh… well you know only pretend, not for real. :)

    Reply

  2. Megan says

    “am I the only one who types cereal killer and then has to backspace and correct myself every time?”

    Umm, I can’t say I have ever typed serial killer – except for just now. I’m surprised it comes up for often in your line of work. ;-)

    Reply

  3. Momcat says

    Have you tried using a red dry-erase marker? To make your bloody mess of LOVE?

    Okay I love your ideas about Halloween decorating. It’s all grown up & creepy, instead of cheesy Party City decorating. The snakes made me cringe as my sister (in Texas) just posted pictures of the 5 foot rattlesnake chased from their yard underneath the neighbor’s shed. Which they did manage to catch & kill, apparently there’s going to be rattlesnake appetizers this weekend. After they killed it & skinned it, the muscle was still moving in the ziploc bag–UGH!! But I digress….

    I use an apple corer and make polka-dotted pumpkins when I’m feeling totally NON-creative in the carving department. Best pumpkin I ever made was Dr. Botox… evil!! I’ll put a link up if you want.

    Reply

  5. Paige @ Little Nostalgia says

    Bahahaha! I really like the juxtaposition of the sweet “All You Need Is Love” painting next to… snake pumpkins and zombie ceramic animals. (In my head they’re zombies, and they’re trying to lure you closer with love so they can eat your brains.)

    Reply

  7. Liz F says

    Haven’t you seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail? Rabbits are totally scary. LOL
    Alternately, if you’re a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan…bunnies are also scary LOL

    Reply

  8. alg says

    So clever! Very cool and spooky!
    But the rabbit needs evil red eyes.
    Maybe you could use Ticky-Tack to stick some red sequins on there, (or just scotch tape loops & red paper eyeball shapes.)
    Both methods are easily un-doable & would totally “up” Bunny’s freaky factor…

    Reply

  9. michele says

    you GUYS! this post could not have come at a better time. i love ALL things halloween and pumpkin carving, and i’ve had a rough hour.

    (one of those days where you have some floor guys in giving you a bid to fix all the water damage in your 2 month old house and they use your kids’ bathroom and find MORE – and unrelated – water damage from an improperly seated toilet? oh, this is just MY afternoon? okay then, carry on.)

    needless to say, i needed a smile and your pumpkin post did it. well done on the powertool carving!

    Reply

  11. Sabrina says

    Awesome! We carved our pumpkins and the whole time I was telling my DD that we are going to make yummy pumpkin seeds and pumpkin seed brittle. Well the insides smelled like someone died and had mold on the seeds, even though the pumpkin itself was still firm and fine. Epic Fail!

    Reply

  12. Vanessa and Stephen says

    Super glad that we’re not the only ones who use power tools to carve pumpkins! My husband and our bestie got sick of the repetitive and slow sawing motion a few years back and busted out the sawzall and it’s been a staple ever since!

    I always love your festive decor – thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  13. Jac says

    Hmmm. Did anyone else picture John going all Tim the Toolman Taylor and making a weird laugh-grunt-woofing sound before bringing out power tools to carve a pumpkin? Then possibily asking Sherry if he should give the drill ‘More Power?’ And Sherry saying…’I don’t think so, John’.

    No? Uh… Me either.

    Reply

  15. Ash says

    I’m planning on doing an “Arachnophobia” theme with my porch decor – my first time in my first house! Although I moved in a year ago, I was volunteering at a dessert-theater show the night of, so no decor or trick-or-treaters. This year? I’m doing some of these:
    http://pinterest.com/anglophileash/arachnophobia-halloween-decor/

    Specifically the hard-boiled eggs, the egg sac made of pantyhose and foam ball, lacy pumpkins… oooooh. Should be good!!!

    Reply

  16. sarah k says

    whoah. Those seriously creep me out. Although I’m sure that’s what you’re going for, so–well done! I just can’t even look at the picture! :)

    Reply

  17. jennT says

    so snoop is grand and all, but I was singing this: HOLD UP WAIT A MINUTE LET ME GET SOME BATS IN IT… ( I sing that alot ackshuallie). You might be able to hear me better here: http://youtu.be/g_0mb21fimc (also clean but warning, you are gonna NEED to dance to this…)

    oh gorsh–I <3 halloween fo' real.

    Reply

  18. Casey says

    I’m not sure if it would work, but you might try mixing red rit dye or food coloring into rubber cement and painting “blood” over “love.” Then, you can rub it off the glass after Halloween.

    Reply

  19. Kathy says

    Great juxtaposition with the creepy Halloween decor and the “All You Need is Love” signage. I really LOL’d!

    Reply

  21. Desiree C. says

    Hold up, play
    We gonna rock it til the wheels fall off…

    Love me some Dr. Dre! He and Tu Pac may or may not play through my car speakers all summer…and I’m almost 27. Not yet sure what I will do when my husband and I have a baby in the backseat. Guess they’re going to have to enjoy wearing earmuffs.

    How did Clara like the pumpkins with the worms/snakes? It’s a great spin off the traditional pumpkin carving!

    Reply

  22. Emily says

    Is there glass in that picture? If so you could draw the blood on with dry erase marker. Or you could probably just use craft paint on the glass. Oh and red eyes on your ceramic bunny would be awesome.

    Reply

  23. Carly says

    Alright, as ridiculous as this sounds: When I saw the first photo come up in my feed I had to double check that John wasn’t, in fact, wearing some rather fabulous bright orange nail varnish.
    Pretty sure that says a lot about my strange mental state right now!

    Reply

  25. Joyce C says

    Great job-you all are so much fun. Also just have to tell you that I saw in my latest issue of Country Living. Way to go! That dresser redo was amazing!

    Reply

  28. Knitting Liisa says

    Hi Sherry and John!

    You could paint “blood” by mixing buttermilk and watercolours. It’s easy to clean afterwards. :)

    Reply

  32. Kat says

    I never comment on famous blogs ;) – BUT: You should totally paint “blood” on the sign! You can grab a piece of clear plastic kind of like a transparency or something, and stick it in the frame over the quote. Then paint “blood” on that.

    Reply

  33. Amanda says

    Hey there… Not sure if this already came up in the comments but just in case it didn’t… If you have glass over your art you could always use a red whiteboard marker to make your drippy blood. It totally washes off.

    Reply

  34. Amy says

    I just love your Halloween-style wedding photo!! We have a door decorating contest every year at my office, and I am always the team member in charge of our door. (We are a team of Realtors) and I used PicMonkey.com to create some Zombie-fied pics of my team…you should totally check the website out – it has a ton of halloween overlays, edits, and other really awesome stuff. And check out my finished design: https://www.box.com/s/8st4tkx8g1wkr15d9gpo

    Reply

  35. harmony says

    I love the pumpkins. Their all bumpy and imperfect, its fantastic.

    As for the painting, you should wrap it in craft paper and then write across it. That way you dont have to store it, just pull it off and toss it. :)

    Reply

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