Deer Woodland Critter Pumpkin

First, use your HotKnife™ tool to cut away some of the small pumpkin’s stem. Since this will become your deer’s head, you’ll want to cut the stem at an angle, so it can be glued to the larger pumpkin at a tilt.

TIP: Take a look at our project photo to see that the head is tilted slightly, as it naturally would be when the deer’s in a sitting position. That’s what you’re aiming for in your sweet deer!

Next, paint both pumpkins with a coat of Spanish Tile paint; then let it dry.

Use your pencil to draw a face onto one side of the small pumpkin.

TIP: Keep in mind that this pumpkin will be glued to the large pumpkin with its stem side down and a bit of a tilt. You may find it helpful to hold the pumpkin this way as you draw, so the face matches up with your deer’s posture.

Use your paintbrush and Iced Latte paint to contour a lighter section over the eyes, cheeks and jaw of your deer’s face. Leave its muzzle and the top of its head colored with the darker Spanish Tile for contrast. With a black paint pen, fill in the face’s details.

Add texture and details to the large pumpkin by painting in sections, splotches and dots with Iced Latte and white paint. Don’t forget to paint the larger pumpkin’s stem white, so it resembles a little tail. Let the paint dry for a bit. Then, with your black paint pen, draw in simple curves near the pumpkin’s bottom to become the deer’s reclining legs.

TIP: Remember that the larger pumpkin will be set on its side to look like the deer’s body, so paint in your details accordingly.

Once your pumpkins are dry, use hot glue to attach the deer’s head, stem side down, to its body. Hold the head in place for a minute or two as the glue cools and sets.

Now, cut a strip of felt and wrap it around the smaller pumpkin’s stem. Hot glue the strip in place with its ends together at the back of the deer’s neck.

Use scissors to cut individual blooms from the spray of roses; then hot glue them around the deer’s neck to make a flowery garland.

Next, use your pencil to draw two deer ears onto a piece of felt and cut them out. Hot glue these ears to another layer of felt in the same color; then cut them out again so the ears are doubly-thick. Likewise, draw a pair of antlers onto your white craft foam, cut them out and follow the same process to make them twice as thick.

Use a dab of hot glue to fasten each ear and antler to your deer’s head.

TIP: You may find it helpful to cut out two small rectangles of white foam, too. Fold each one into an ‘L’ shape; then hot glue it in place behind an antler to help it stand up straight.

Time to make a bed for your little deer! Take your floral foam wreath and cover it with a sheet of preserved moss. Pull the moss sheet down over the wreath’s sides. Working a section at a time, fold it underneath the wreath’s base and hot glue it in place, so the wreath is completely covered. You can trim away any excess moss.

Place your pumpkin deer onto the moss. If you like, you can hot glue it into place, too.

Almost done! Just tuck a few pieces of loose reindeer moss around the deer, on top of the wreath.

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