Concrete Pumpkin Project ~

Diana Wearing
by Diana Wearing

Summer is fading into fall so it's time for mums, football and of course pumpkins! I've made hypertufa-concrete orbs in the past and thought pumpkins would be a fun little project as well ~ cheap plastic treat pumpkins make great molds!

I gathered my supplies...hypertufa-concrete is a mix or peat moss, perlite & cement most recipes call for portland cement I used vinyl concrete patching cement I had left over from another project ~ I also added some cement color additive because I didn't want my finished pumpkins to be cement gray...

I mixed up my ingredients and added some color ~ my mix was approximately 2 parts concrete to 1 part each of the peat moss & perlite ~ I added enough water to make a thick cottage cheese type texture...

I covered the hole in the bottom with a piece of duct tape, sprayed the inside of my pumpkins with cooking spray to keep the mixture from sticking and filled them to the top...I used rail road spikes for stems I pushed them right down the center, the mix was thick enough to hold them upright while they dried...

I set them aside to dry for a few days and then got to work on removing the plastic pumpkin molds ~ I used a utility knife to slice down the sides and then pealed them right off...

Jack-o-lantern side for Halloween...

Turned around they work right through Thanksgiving!

DIY fall project ideas

For more creative autumnal decor projects, discover Hometalk's best DIY pumpkin ideas, DIY pumpkin decor for Halloween, and most unique fall creations.

Frequently asked questions
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3 of 49 questions
  • Carol Ewing Carol Ewing on Aug 04, 2019

    I know you listed ratios but do you have actual measurement of ingredients so I'll know how much to mix up to fill the traditional sized pumpkin?

  • Jenny Price Schunke Jenny Price Schunke on Sep 05, 2019

    I did a pumpkin and followed the directions regarding mixing. My pumpkin never fully dried on the top. Any suggestions?

  • Katen Katen on Jul 25, 2023

    Won’t the details of the pumpkin wear away with weather and you end up with boring grey concrete sphere? Terra cotta will hold shape and detail. Concrete not so much. Been there done that.

Comments
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5 of 283 comments
  • Sue Sue on Apr 25, 2021

    Yes I will try this I hate wasting pumpkins on jack-o-lanterns.

    • Cynthia Pliss Cynthia Pliss on Nov 24, 2021

      We feed the deer all the pumpkins at the end of the season.

  • Katen Katen on Jul 25, 2023

    Ok this is OLD. Not that there isn’t merit but to those who remember the goose fad that everyone dressed up and put on front porch? Well getting rid of them painful, can’t put in trash (destroys compactor on truck) so stuck driving hunk of concrete to dump that accepts construction debris. I propose using a material that when you’re done, easily discarded. Plaster of Paris maybe? My decorating style begins with an exit strategy because we all get tired of fads eventually

    • See 1 previous
    • Diana Wearing Diana Wearing on Jul 26, 2023

      I still love my pumpkins as much as I did when I first made them with no plans to discard them anytime soon, they're aging beautifully!


      I'm not sure how well it would work or hold up but Plaster of Paris might be a good option especially for those who like to frequently change out their decor.

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