Face Painting Pumpkins - SF Comp
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The following is an entry sent in for our monthly Silly Farm Supplies Competition!
“Face Painting Pumpkins” - SF Competition
Sent in by Mollie Stofan a.k.a. “Mollie the Painter”
Face Painting…Pumpkins?
This fall, I was hired to face paint at a local farm, Janoski’s. Their “Pumpkinland” activities go on every weekend in October. After my first weekend painting, my boss told me that she was very impressed by my designs and detail. She then asked me if I would paint 32 apple-sized pumpkins for her. She wanted to give the pumpkins out as party favors. I eagerly agreed and took the pumpkins home.
My first thought was, “What paint should I use?” I decided on using acrylic paint that I had lying around the house. I sat down and began to paint. My happiness turned to panic as I painted because the acrylic was not sticking well to the pumpkins skin.
Skin! Now I knew what I needed! I went downstairs and took out my face paints.. I started to paint again, only this time with my Paradise and Snazaroo paints. Painting on the pumpkins was as easy as painting on your arm or leg. The paint also went on very smoothly.
The only problem that I ran into was that the paint would smudge if you touched it. I fixed this problem by spraying each finished pumpkin with clear polyurethane. That way, the design became permanent and the pumpkin also now had a beautiful shine!
Each pumpkin took me about 16 minutes each to complete. I did each pumpkin differently, mostly because I had a lot of fun coming up with different designs. So if you are looking for another way to use your face painting talents, why not try face painting pumpkins!
Happy Halloween!
–Mollie Stofan a.k.a. “Mollie the Painter”
e-mail: molliethepainter@yahoo.com
BIO: I learned the art of face painting from one of the best known face painters, Sandy Johnson, a.k.a “Sunshine the Clown”. (www.sunshinetheclown.org) I have painted at fairs and at a couple of parties since my start in August. I am 18 and in my first year of college.
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October 13th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
they look awesome!
October 13th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
I love your little painted pumpkins! They are adorable! I was recently shopping and saw painted pumpkins for sale in a grocery store. I think it’s a novel idea and it seems to be becoming more and more popular. People are very interested in buying painted pumpkins…it could very well be a lucrative seasonal business for facepainters in the fall.
October 13th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
OMG!!!!!! HOW CUTE IS THAT! I too had tried painting with acrylic paint and wasn’t too impressed on the outcome. I never thought of using face paint. Great idea Mollie! I can’t wait to try it out!
October 15th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
Hi Mollie!
I just wanted to say that I adore your pumpkins! Painting on a pumpkin is fun whatever age you are! Also, a painted pumpkin also won’t shrivel or rot as quickly as a carved one. This is also great for little kids because it doesn’t involve any sharp objects.
I just wanted to comment and add a few things:
- I agree with you about the acrylic paint. You have to apply more than 1 layer in order for it to be clearly seen. So that means that it isn’t great for doing detail work. I haven’t tried the face paint yet but that sounds like a terrific idea! It could also be a wise choice because if you mess-up, all you have to do is wipe it away with a baby wipe.
- And you also said that you sprayed each finished pumpkin with clear polyurethane. An idea that I have seen to make the paint stick is to also spray with the polyurethane BEFORE you paint. It kind of gives you an easier surface to work with. How about doing that AND use the face paints?!
- Another thing, did you label anywhere on the pumpkin so that they know that you painted it? I think that it would be a good way to attract business!
I am going to try my hand at “face painting pumpkins” tonight! I am a face painter as well and business is kind of slow with the economy and everything. I hope to sell some of my finished pumpkins at a craft festival coming up. People ARE very interested in buying painted pumpkins to decorate their home, probably because you don’t have to worry about them rotting quickly or fruit fly’s always buzzing around.
I agree with you and Erin Wainwright. I feel that this is a great addition to ANY face painter’s business.
Just think, we can paint amazing works of art on even the busiest child. Imagine the possibilities when the “canvas” is still!
October 16th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Kailey - Yes, I did label my finished pumpkins. With curling ribbon, I attached a business card to the stem of each one. I also have a stamp that says “Mollie the Painter”. I stamped the lower back of each pumpkin. That way, even if they removed the business card, people looking at the pumpkins could still see that I was the one who painted it. Its great free advertising since the paint will last as long as the pumpkin and many more people will see what I can do!
If you could, e-mail me some of your finished pumpkins. I would love to see them!
♥ Mollie the Painter
October 23rd, 2008 at 7:57 am
I face-painted my pumpkins this weekend! What a great idea Mollie!
And another idea that I used is to use silver and gold fabric glitter on the pumpkins! It adds that special touch! I used it on spiderwebs and such!
I am also now going to buy some of that Graffiti Glitter that you can use on people. I have seen some of Heather Bank’s videos and it is beautiful when shes adds it!
October 23rd, 2008 at 6:59 pm
I face-painted my little pumpkins this weekend! What a great idea Mollie!
And another idea that I used is to use silver and gold fabric glitter on the pumpkins! It adds that special touch! I used it on spiderwebs and such!
I am also now going to buy some of that Graffiti Glitter - Liquid Bling that you can use on people. I have seen some of Heather Bank’s videos and it is beautiful when shes adds it!
November 6th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
I have been painting pumpkins with acrylic paints for over 12 years now. I put on a base of white first and then add my colors to make them POP! I do mostly faces with traditional eyes, round eyes, and even with black sunglasses with confetti glitter on top of the black. Also, I use fabric glitter paints with the narrow tips and make “braces” on the teeth. Your imagination is unlimited. I spray my finished product with clear coat and always tell my customers how delicate the pumpkins are, since the paint will just scratch off. No one has minded yet! Happy Painting!