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What You’ll Need:

• 25 Corks
• Orange paint
• Green Paint
• Floral Wire
• Felt or Silk Leaves
• Paint Brush
• Glue

We’ll start with 24 of the corks. Start by pouring some orange paint onto a plate or dish and then dip the end of each cork into the paint. Dab excess paint onto a paper towel. Repeat for all 24 corks and then let dry. Repeat the same again on the opposite sides of the corks.

Paint the remaining cork green to make the stem.

Glue the orange painted corks together in rows, which should make five rows. The first and fifth row and have four corks, the second and forth rows have five corks and the middle row has six corks.

Attach all the rows together to form a pumpkin.

Add a stem to the top of the pumpkin, curling the floral wire around a thick paint brush or dowel to create a curly Q vine. Attach the vine, stem and then leaves to the pumpkin.

To make the pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern, use some black paint to make eyes and then a mouth.

We hope you had fun making a jack-o-lantern cork pumpkin, Happy Crafting!

The post How to Make a Simple Jack-O-Lantern Cork Pumpkin appeared first on Champagne and Sugarplums.

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What you’ll need:

• Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
• Chocolate icing
• Chocolate sprinkles
• Buttercream icing – medium consistency (we’ve included our recipe at the bottom of the post)
• Gel food coloring – orange and green
• Piping bags (2)
• Leaf piping tip
• Large circle piping tip (size 2A)
• Pretzel sticks

Let’s Decorate Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes!

Use a spatula to ice the tops of the cupcakes with chocolate icing. We used a store bought pre-made icing, but if you have time, you could make your own. We like this recipe from Lyne at Ottawa Mommy Club.

Pour a generous amount of dirt (otherwise known as chocolate sprinkles!) to cover the chocolate icing.

Add the pumpkins. Use a large circle icing tip for this. Apply consistent pressure to the piping bag. As the icing begins to build up, move the tip up, never losing contact with the icing. Stop squeezing when you are happy with the size of the pumpkin, and then lift the tip up and away from the ball.

Add one or two smaller pumpkins to the patch.

Break some pretzel stick stems and then add them to the pumpkins.

Use green icing to pipe leaves onto the pumpkins. To make the leaves squeeze the piping bag tightly at the base of the leaf, and thereleasing the pressure as you pull up and away. Stop squeezing completely and then pull the tip away.

TIP: If your leaves are cracking and don’t want to stick to the pumpkins, your icing may be too stiff, try adding 1tsp of water or milk at a time until you have a medium consistency icing. If your leaves fall flat, your icing may be too soft and you may want to add a bit of icing sugar so it will stiffen a little.

Finally, add more leaves at the base of the pumpkins to fill out the patch.

Print

Buttercream Icing Recipe

A deliciously creamy buttercream recipe, perfect for cakes, cupcakes, cookies and more. Use it for decorating festive desserts or as a filler.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword buttercream, creamy, dessert, icing

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 0 minutes

0 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 1 dozen (cupcakes)

Calories 295kcal

Author Champagne and Sugarplums

Equipment

• Electric mixer

Ingredients

• 1 cup Butter
• 2 tbsp Vanilla extract
• 4 cups Icing Sugar
• 3 tbsps Milk

Instructions

• Use an electric mixer to beat the butter until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes.
• Add the vanilla flavour and mix well.
• Add the icing sugar, one cup at a time.
• Add milk and mix until thoroughly combined. Creamy and delicious!

We hope you had as much fun decorating these cupcakes as we did! If you need some pumpkin decor to match your dessert – certainly try making our Wine Cork Pumpkin – it’s easy elegance wrapped in DIY.

The post How to Decorate Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes appeared first on Champagne and Sugarplums.

This blog post may contain affiliate links. What does that mean? We may get a small commission if you make a purchase using our links, which helps us to keep posting new holiday content every week.

If you haven’t used polymer clay before, these will be an easy introduction.  The polymer clay needs to be cured – or cooked. An old toaster oven (one you aren’t going to use for food anymore) is great for clay cooking. Today’s polymer clay design requires clay that comes in different colours, then when the sculpture is cured we need to paint the little eyes and noses.

Halloween Dessert Charcuterie Board Decoration or Dessert Centrepiece

What do you need to make a charcuterie board or dessert table decoration?

• Polymer clay in: white, black, orange, green and brown
• Clay pot
• Toothpicks
• Floral foam (to place in the pot)
• Spanish moss
• Glue
• Paint (for the small details) in white, blue, pink and black
• Pain brush
• Small crochet hook

How To Make The Cutest DIY Halloween Dessert or Charcuterie Board Decoration!

What are some Quick Polymer Clay Tips?

1. Firstly you’ll need to knead all of the clay to soften it, try to avoid creating bubbles and squish out any that do form.
2. Bake your clay in an oven or toaster oven. Polymer clay cures at 275 F which is even lower than baking cookies!
3. Polymer clay should be baked using the manufacturer’s advised temperature (usually 230°F – 275°F).
4. Baking times are typically 15 – 30 minutes for each ¼ inch thickness. Thinner sculptures will take less time than thicker.
5. Place your clay on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. For sculptures like ours, you can use a cornstarch bed or we prefer a polyester fibre to hold the characters shape.
6. To avoid browning you can use aluminum foil cake pans to place your sculptures in and cover with another.

How to make a polymer clay ghost:

Firstly, begin with the white clay, role a small oval with a point on the top, bend the point down, use the small crochet hook to create an open mouth. Secondly, place a toothpick into the bottom of the head, we will use this to attach the ghost’s body.

For the body of the ghost, create a long oval and form it into the shape of the ghost. Add two arms, beginning with a cylinder shape and then pressing one end with your finger to create a dent, add a toothpick to each arm. Stick the head and arms into the body of the ghost. Add a toothpick to the bottom of the body so it can stick into the foam.

How to make a polymer clay cat:

The cat is done in a similar fashion and therefore not very difficult. Create four cylindrical legs and a round head, insert a toothpick into each piece and stab them into the round body. Certainly don’t forget to add a long tail and some triangle ears! Add a toothpick to the bottom of the cat.

How to make polymer clay pumpkins:

Lastly, create pumpkins using the orange clay. Roll 2-3 balls of of clay, varying in size and shape. Create one oval, tall pumpkin and some smaller, rounder ones as well. Once you have your desired shape, use a toothpick to create the ribs of the pumpkins. Finally, add a brown stem and a shaped green leaf to the top of each pumpkin, you could get more detailed and add a small brown vine to some of the pumpkins! Don’t forget to add toothpicks in the bottom of each to stick into the foam.

Putting it all together:

Finally, place all of the pieces in the toaster oven and bake according to the packaging (see our quick tips above!)

While the clay is in the oven, cut and fit the styrofoam into the clay pot.  Place some glue into the pot to make it secure.  

Finally, once the cute characters have cooled you can stick them into the foam and use glue to adhere the Spanish moss around the characters to create the ground.

Voilà! 

We hope you loved The Cutest Halloween Charcuterie Board and Dessert Table Decoration!! We think it’s so cute and the perfect way to add a little cuteness to your Halloween party, work event or family dessert! If you’re looking for more Halloween projects certainly check out our amazing Glam Purple Pastel Jewelled Skull for a Stylish Halloween. Happy Crafting!

The post The Cutest Halloween Dessert Table or Charcuterie Board Decoration appeared first on Champagne and Sugarplums.

This blog post may contain affiliate links. What does that mean? We may get a small commission if you make a purchase using our links, which helps us to keep posting new holiday content every week.

This cute pumpkin arrangement is a lot of fun to make. Older kids will love to make their own, so get them involved too! To create this pie topper you will need some small tools such as toothpicks and small crochet hooks. You can either paint this project when it’s cooled and cured or use different coloured clay.  

What You’ll Need To Make a Charcuterie Board and Dessert Table Decoration

• Polymer clay in: orange, brown, red, green, yellow, light green. OR white and paint the cured clay when dry.
• Toothpicks
• Paint, if using white clay.
• Pain brush
• Small crochet hook
• Sharpe cutting knife

What are some Quick Polymer Clay Tips?

1. Firstly you’ll need to knead all of the clay to soften it, try to avoid creating bubbles and squish out any that do form.
2. Bake your clay in an oven or toaster oven. Polymer clay cures at 275 F which is even lower than baking cookies!
3. Polymer clay should be baked using the manufacturer’s advised temperature (usually 230°F – 275°F).
4. Baking times are typically 15 – 30 minutes for each ¼ inch thickness. Thinner sculptures will take less time than thicker.
5. Place your clay on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. For sculptures like ours, you can use a cornstarch bed or we prefer a polyester fibre to hold the characters shape.
6. To avoid browning you can use aluminum foil cake pans to place your sculptures in and cover with another.
7. Crochet hooks are amazing tools to use with polymer clay, the are perfect for smoothing and blending clay in areas that your fingers can’t reach!

Let’s Begin your Charcuterie Board and Dessert Table Decoration!

Firstly you’ll need to knead the clay to soften it, try to avoid creating bubbles and squish out any that do form. Once the clay has been softened, you can begin to create the cornucopia.

Using a moderate amount of clay, form a cone shape. To create the “opening” use your thumb to indent the large part of the cone. Build the opening of the cornucopia by adding a small, long rolled piece of clay around the indented opening, blend this in using the crochet hook. Add some details to the body of the cornucopia using your toothpick. Once the cornucopia is finished you will see the size of it to better judge how many “fruits and vegetables” you’ll need.

Next, create the harvest fruits and vegetables. Grapes and leaves are perfect for filling holes and left over space. Be sure to use the toothpicks and crochet hooks to smooth the apples and likewise, the grooves in the pumpkins. 

To create the clay fruit and vegetables:

• The apples can be made by creating sphere’s with dents at the top 
• Grapes are tiny, tiny sphere’s that are piled on top of each other
• Create corn by rolling a small cone and adding texture using the toothpick, wrap the corn in thin husks
• The leaves are made by creating flat disks, cut the shape of a leaf out and smooth the edges with your fingers or crochet hook
• Create the pumpkins by creating varying sized sphere’s. Use a toothpick to create the ribs of the pumpkins and add a small stump to the tops.

Add the fruits and vegetables to your cornucopia, you may want to add a base to your sculpture, which makes adding all the harvest pieces easier. When you’re happy with your arrangement, we can go ahead and bake!

Finally, bake your sculpture using the clay manufacturer’s instructions. Allow the sculpture to dry completely, and be careful because it will be HOT when the timer first dings!

If you decided to use white clay, go ahead and paint your creation when it has cooled completely.

It’s now ready to placed in and around your charcuterie board or dessert spread! This sculpture looks awesome on a pumpkin pie also, but be sure to piece of waxed paper under it so the clay is not touching the food directly.

We hope you loved DIY Cornucopia Harvest Charcuterie Board and Dessert Table Decoration!! We think it’s the perfect way to add some festive fun to your Thanksgiving celebration, dinner, work event or family dessert! If you’re looking for more Thanksgiving delights certainly check out our amazing Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes. Happy Crafting!

The post Charcuterie Board and Dessert Table Decoration – DIY Cornucopia Harvest appeared first on Champagne and Sugarplums.

This blog post may contain affiliate links. What does that mean? We may get a small commission if you make a purchase using our links, which helps us to keep posting new holiday content every week.

Mini white pumpkins are a popular fall decor crafting material and it’s easy to see why, after all they can be painted, glued and glazed. This DIY Thanksgiving craft was fun and easy. We gathered all of the materials at the dollar store, apart from the real white mini pumpkins, however you can find some false ones at the dollar store too if you prefer.

DIY Thanksgiving Centrepiece Idea – Mini Pumpkins

The Painted Pumpkin

• Paint brush
• Black acrylic paint

Painted Mini Pumpkin – Using a paint brush and some black acrylic paint this pumpkin stands out all on it’s own! If you have extra pumpkins paint a few more with different patterns like chevrons, lines and polka dots.

The Glitter Pumpkin

• All purpose glue
• Paint brush
• Gold and orange fine glitter

Glitter – Apply some all purpose glue to the top of the pumpkin, use a paint brush to spread the glue in a specific pattern if wanted. Then add some glitter.  Allow the pumpkins to dry completely.

The Elegant Twine and Ribbon Pumpkin

• Twine
• Neutral colour ribbon

Twine – perhaps the easiest way to decorate a pumpkin is to add some twine or ribbon around the stump handle, simply elegant.

The Jewel Pumpkin

• Stick on jewels

Jewels – We found these jewels at the dollar store and they happen to come pre-lined on a sticky strip.  Easy peasy! If you can’t find this sticker variety, simply use some all purpose glue to adhere some jewels.

The Famous Confetti Pumpkin

• All purpose glue
• Origami paper in gold and black (or prepared confetti)
• Scissors

Confetti – This one is our favourite! It’s very simple to do and looks amazing. It’s made with confetti pieces. We made our own by cutting small triangles out of origami paper and it worked perfectly, you can also buy confetti at a party store.  All you need to do to get this look is apply some glue to your pumpkin, then dip the pumpkin into the confetti, placing a few individual pieces on the top.

The Paint Pen Pumpkin

• Paint pen

Paint Pens – Like painting with acrylic paint but easier, also more detailed! These paint pens allow you create some intricate designs like letters, small polka dots, waves and lines, so pretty.

The Fun Washi Tape Pumpkin

• Washi tape

Washi Tape – Another quick decor technique.  Simply add some washi tape to the pumpkin around the base horizontally or similarly add a few vertically. Cut some of the washi tape into thinner strips to create some different looks, for example, have a thick piece of washi tape with a thinner piece placed above.

Gather the pumpkins together when finished to create a beautiful fall centrepiece.

Which way will you decorate your mini pumpkin centrepiece?  

So what do you think of this DIY Thanksgiving Centrepiece Idea – Mini Pumpkins? If you’re looking for a delicious dessert to go with this centrepiece this Thanksgiving, certainly check out our Apple Cinnamon Dessert. Happy Crafting!

The post DIY Thanksgiving Centrepiece Idea – Mini Pumpkins appeared first on Champagne and Sugarplums.