Picasso Pumpkin

Caitlin, my sister in shameless fall revelry, insisted we go to the pumpkin store across the river. Imagine my surprise when entering; giant bins of every.single.color pumpkin possible. Even those PALE BLUE ones! It was at that moment that I knew, we had entered pumpkin nirvana. It was in this ethereal place that I would lose myself, my money and the respect of my husband.

As Caitlin and I meandered around the store, she discovered a flat-ish green pumpkin. After inspecting it for a brief time, she exclaimed, it's a beret! She popped it atop a giant white pumpkin and we both laughed. Obviously, the pumpkin was a Picasso in the making. I drained the bank account, buying all manner of pumpkins, gourds and everything in between. It was awesome.

Now to make your very own.

Gather:

Acrylic paint/brushes

Pumpkins in varying sizes

Create:

1. To create your Picasso Pumpkins, decide which pumpkin you most think resembles a face. Of course, Picasso's abstract faces don't have very realistic shapes. Let that take the pressure off you.

2. Look through Picasso's painting and find inspiration. We absolutely love "Portrait of of Dora Maar", 1937.

And "Girl Before a Mirror", 1932.

Of course, I'd be flattered if you took inspiration from our Picasso Pumpkin too.

3. Start with your black paint. Create a line to divide the face. Create two distinctly different eyes. Add hair, if desired.

4. Once you have settled on the basic face structure, add color in blocky, geometric shapes around the curves lines.

5. Consider using only 4-5 colors. Look at Picasso's paintings for color inspiration!

6. Continue adding paint. Move around your pumpkin, painting one of the five or so colors you have chosen, filling in areas around the black outline.

7. Add a "cheek" circle or an S shape to resemble an ear. Consider using an S shape on its side for the nose! Have fun with it!

Once you have finished, place another pumpkin on top for a hat! Maybe add two!

One thing I discovered during the process of creating this Picasso inspired pumpkin, is the paint comes off pretty easily if I scratch it. That worked well when I wanted to change a bit of the outline. That does not bode well if you want to place your fella outside. Add a bit of Mod Podge to seal it and that should protect it fairly well. Otherwise, I would suggest just leaving this magnificent beast indoors.

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial! Share far and wide!