Emergency Room Pumpkins

WOW!!! What a crazy few days I have had! I started these pumpkins last week, and was hoping to post them a few days ago, but they have been the cause of 2 (yes TWO!) ER visits!
When I started these pumpkins, the cost was $0 because I was just using scraps and paint I already had, but after two ER visits, and the ruined clothes and porch, I would have to say they cost me a whoppin' $150!!! Probably the most expensive craft I have done yet! :D
So, here is where it all started...I am shopping at Hobby Lobby (big surprise) when I see these:

I instantly fell in love and thought, I can make those!

I bought them to duplicate (shhhh...don't tell, I still have to return them) $3.99 each!

I raided my scrap wood bin, then free handed the pumpkins on the wood.


It took all of 5 mins (if that) to cut the pumpkins out with my SCROLL SAW (can I just say I LOVE my scroll saw?!)

I then took my DREMEL with a drum sander bit on the end and gouged the edges and rounded details. See the difference?



For those of you who don't know what a dremel is...

Next I painted them black (not completely) just where the crackle would go.
Once the paint dried I put on the crackle medium

After about 30 mins of dry time, I was able to paint my pumpkins orange. (I mixed a couple of different versions of orange by adding brown and red)

I love the way crackle works! (I have to confess, I haven't used my crackle in 8 years or more, remember when everything was crackled? I guess it has made a come back!)
I am lovin' the results!

I let them dry overnight (and finished reading the Maze Runner while I waited!)

I free handed the damask designs on with pencil (I copied the ones on the HL pumpkins) and I also copied some damask designs from some scrap book paper I had.

I then took brown paint and hand painted over my pencil designs. It was a little tedious, but didn't take too much time - maybe 30 mins tops...


This is where ER visit #1 comes in to play!
So I am just about done painting the damask designs when my little one year old, Josh, bangs his head on the bar stool I am sitting on! (you know how they like to play at mom's feet at all times) I pick him up and see this instant bump right between his eyes with a pretty deep cut.

I rushed him to the instacare by my house, and they said I needed to take him to Primary's in downtown SLC. So we head down there, and wait 5 hours to get two stitches.
He was such a trooper! He laughed and smiled most of the time!

He loved the slurpy they gave to wake him up!

I think he got a little drunk from the drugs and slurpy! :D

Red crayon bandaids are the best!

We were both exhausted by the time we got back, so I decided to finish the pumpkins the next day.
So this morning (the very next day) when I laid Josh down for a nap, I decided I could FINALLY finish the pumpkins. I finish the paint from yesterday, sand the edges up a bit, then it is time to stain.

Being good I go out on my porch to stain the pumpkins. There are only 6 of them, so I figured it would take about 5 mins. I am half way through staining them when my 4 year old has a lost shoe crisis. No big deal right? Just help him find his shoes, then finish the staining. Here Comes ER visit #2! I go inside, can't find them anywhere and decide to look in the room where my baby is sleeping (and of course he is wide awake and won't let me leave w/o getting him out) so I get him out, find some shoes, and go outside to talk to my neighbor who was taking my 4 year old to the park. About 1 minute later, we hear this coughing, I turn around to see my little one year old Josh coughing with a ring of stain all around his face, and stain pouring out his mouth and all over my porch and him. AHHHHHH!!!! I rush to him, my neighbor calls Poison Control for me, and I try to help him. He is coughing like crazy and trying to throw up. PC tells us to get him to the hospital ASAP, good thing it is only 1 mile from my house! I rush him there, PC has called ahead and informed them I am bringing in a baby who swallowed wood stain, they immediately take him back, get his vitals, then nothing. After all that rushing, I end up sitting in a room trying to keep him entertained, and I wait for 1 1/2 hours! The doctor finally comes in saying that PC will call me 6 hours after the incident to check on him and that I am free to go. Seriously ??? I just payed $50 bucks to have someone tell me to wait for a phone call??? They thought they would x-ray his lungs, but then decided not to, and said to wait a few hours to see if his lungs would start reacting to the stain. I guess if he inhaled any it can cause pretty bad pneumonia, so we are still waiting to see. Personally I think he is fine, thank goodness!

The nurses were great and brought him plenty to play with, unlike at primary's!

Josh and I getting pretty used to this ER business!

I feel so horrible about the whole thing! And now I have a constant reminder stained into my porch concrete of what an idiot I am!!!
Once we got home, and I got him back down for a nap, I decided it was now or never to finish them. My stain was gone, but I was able to salvage enough from the shirt he was wearing to finish the last few pumpkins. (how sad is that?) I then threw away his clothes, and mine are next. :(
Last step, FINALLY! :D
I twisted some bailing wire around the stems with some needle nose pliers to finish them off.

What do you think? I think they are cuter than the store bought ones! Even if they ended up costing a whole lot more! :)

I love them on my shelf wedges in my kitchen! Too bad it is only August, I want to leave them there!

Fall will be here soon enough...patience!



Cost:
Wood: Free
Paint: Free
Wire: Free
ER visit #1: $50
ER visit #2: $50
ruined clothes: about $50 :(
Cost: Way too much for little wood pumpkins!!!
Oh well, at least Josh is okay (number 1 priority), and besides, I still think they turned out great!

Moral of the story...don't leave stain out where a small child can get it! And ALWAYS have the # for Poison Control where you can see it!
Happy Crafting! :D


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