Make a Pumpkin Using Old Keys
Do you have some old keys lying around that you no longer use, or for that matter, even know what they go to? Today’s project will make a pumpkin using old keys to spruce up your fall décor.
Fall is in the air. I’ve already busted out my sweatshirts and have sat by our chimnea on our patio several nights enjoying the crackling wood, dark night sky, and coolness in the air. Ahhh, fall….
Today’s fall project is inspired by my junk drawer. Any number of items could work for this project, but I chose keys.
Pumpkin Supplies
First, determine the size you would like for your pumpkin. I originally wanted something I could frame in an 8 ½”x11” frame. But I found some small canvases I had tucked away from a clearance sale and used those. Depending on the number of keys you have you could go bigger or smaller. My pumpkin used 15 keys. At the time of the picture, I was planning on using an O-ring that the keys come on as the pumpkin vine, but as you’ll see by the end, I decided against the O-ring.
- Keys
- Paint, black
- Small Canvas (or frame, or piece of wood)
- Coordinating scrapbook paper
- Glue
- Embellishments
Pumpkin Design using old keys
First, I covered the small canvas by cutting the scrapbook paper to size. I attached strips around the side of the canvas, and then cut a square piece for the front of the canvas.
Layout the design of your pumpkin and ensure it will fit within the dimensions of your background. Feel free to mix things up and incorporate other junk-items into your pumpkin layout. I chose to stick with just keys, but you could use other items like the pop tops from a soda can, random nails, screws, or washers, or anything else you might have laying around. Just be sure that the keys you DO use aren’t for your current vehicle, house, bike lock, storage shed, etc.
Once you’ve decided on your layout, lightly trace the outlines of each key onto the background…or simply take a picture of it. Because the next thing we will do is paint them, and they could get mixed up.
Painting the keys
Using spray paint, paint both sides of the keys, including the one for the stem. I debated on painting mine orange or black and ultimately decided on black, thinking I would add wording in orange or an orange ribbon to it. Oh, and I applied 2 coats of spray paint.
Allow those to dry for a few hours.
Putting it together
Recreate your pumpkin layout on the canvas based on the picture (or pencil traces) you did. Glue the keys into place and allow to dry.
Add any other embellishments. You could write a saying like “Happy Fall, Y’all!” Or add ribbon or fabric snippets to pretty it up. Or you could leave it as-is and go or a simple, classic look. If you make multiples of these framed pumpkins, you could hang them together in a series. Think about the shape of the pumpkins and whether you want to vary their sizes and shapes.
In hindsight, I think I would have liked to use a toothbrush to lightly spray some orange paint onto the keys, just to give them a bit more character, but alas, done is better than perfect, eh?
And there you have it, a quick and easy pumpkin craft that also helps clean out your junk drawer.
If you were inspired by this project, check out these other projects:
How did yours turn out? I’d love to hear about it. And please, no stories about how you made this and someone in your household complained about missing one of their spare keys! LOL. Leave me a note in the comments!
Make a pumpkin using old keys
