There is a magic to fall that no nay-sayer can ever spoil for me. The cool breeze, the permission to wear all my sweaters, the warm tones, the hot drinks, the spookiness; these all speak magic to me.

Even in Florida where we stay pretty green all year and “cool” breezes still can be in the 70s, fall is the best time of year. Floridians can escape their AC driven safety caves and enjoy their morning coffee outside. It’s a big deal here.

Last year, I purchased a brown, twisty vine, a pumpkin leaf garland, and a bag of tiny pumpkins to make into a fall garland for my front door from Michael’s. It came out pretty cute! but I ended up with a few styrofoam pumpkins. The realistic painting of the original pumpkins didn’t match any of my inside decorations.

But then wait! Paint. Paint is a thing. A transformative thing. And these little pumpkins need not be mismatched, unattractive, or forlorn. New life for them was possible. What a great distraction on a Sunday afternoon? And here they are. Cute pumpkins. Tiny pumpkins. Hurrah!

How cute did they come out??? I used Jo Sonja paint and this metallic paint from Michaels. No other special equipment needed. I will say that metallic paint kills my brushes, so I always use inexpensive brushes to paint with it. Worth it though.

I think I will keep them on this little ledge in the hall bathroom.

Everything looks great on the mantel, but it can easily look busy if there isn’t enough large scale.

Morale of the story: paint is not just for walls, people. And our leftover craft supplies have a place!