Beaded Pipe Cleaner Pumpkin
Four orange pipe cleaners, one green one, and a pile of orange pony beads. That's the whole supply list. Kids as young as four can do most of the beading, and a grown-up can help with the twisting and shaping at the end.
- Time
- About 30 minutes
- Skill
- Easy
- Ages
- 4 and up, with help
- Makes
- One pumpkin
Supplies
- 4 orange pipe cleaners, 12 inches long
- 1 green pipe cleaner, 12 inches long (plus a second one if your stem comes out long)
- About 130 orange pony beads (16 for each of the 8 arms)
How to make it
-
Twist the bundle
Hold the four orange pipe cleaners together with their ends lined up. Twist them around each other two or three times right at the middle. You now have eight arms coming out of one center.
-
Spread the arms
Fan the eight arms out flat, like the spokes of a wheel, with even gaps between them.
-
Bead every arm
Slide orange pony beads onto each arm, about 16 per arm. Stop when a little more than an inch of bare pipe cleaner is left at the tip. You need that bare end for twisting in the next step.
Tip: bend the tip of each finished arm over a little so its beads can't slide off while you work on the rest.
-
Gather the ends
Bend all eight arms up so their tips meet above the center. Hold the bare ends together and twist them a couple of times. That twist keeps the beads from sliding and holds the pumpkin together.
-
Make the stem
The twist on top is your pumpkin's stem. If it looks too tall, fold it in half and twist it again.
-
Round it out
Gently push each beaded arm outward from the middle, curving it as you go, until the pumpkin is round. Space the arms evenly so they look like the ribs on a real pumpkin.
-
Wrap the stem
Wind the green pipe cleaner around the stem until no orange shows, leaving about 3 inches free on each side. A long stem may need a second green pipe cleaner to cover it.
-
Curl the vines
Wrap each free green end around your pinky finger, then slide it off. The coils become the pumpkin's curly vines.
Make a few and line them up on a windowsill, a mantel, or down the middle of the Thanksgiving table.
Make it your own
- Use white or cream beads for a white pumpkin.
- Mix a few yellow or red beads into the orange for a speckled look.
- Short on orange beads? Pick them out of a mixed bag of pony beads.