Give your pumpkins a modern farmhouse look with a few coats of gray paint. Use an inexpensive foam brush ($2 for 4, Michaels) to paint vertical and horizontal stripes on your pumpkin with light gray paint, then fill in the overlapping squares with a darker shade to create a DIY buffalo check pumpkin. If you’re planning to display this pumpkin again, go with a faux pumpkin and tuck it away for next year. Consider the real thing if you want to embrace the natural colors, textures, and patchy spots. For the best of both worlds, hot-glue real stems to faux pumpkins.
9 Pumpkin Decorating Trends That Will Be Huge This Year
Skip the classic jack-o’-lantern and embrace these unexpected pumpkin decorating ideas.
Emily VanSchmus is the assistant digital home editor at Better Homes & Gardens, where she covers home decor, entertaining ideas, and more.
Katy Kiick Condon is a home and lifestyle editor for Better Homes & Gardens focused on interior design, cleaning, DIY projects and crafts, and all-things holiday and entertaining. Katy has hundreds of hours invested in testing cleaning equipment and products (just ask, and she’ll introduce you to your perfect robot-vac match). She has hands-on DIY experience, including wood working, outdoor gardening and building projects, crafts, and painting. Katy has edited publications detailing high-end interior design including “Country Home,” “Décor,” “Elegant Homes,” “Country French,” and “Tuscan Style.” She has contributed works to The Magazine ANTIQUES, MODERN Magazine, Art in America, and the book “Utopian Images and Narratives in Advertising: Dreams For Sale.”
Katy Kiick Condon started her career as a historian, earning her M.A. in the history of design from New York’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum and The New School. She’s never lost touch with her background as an intense researcher and is the self-proclaimed Better Homes & Gardens historian. Between stories on interior design trends and holiday crafts, she can be found flipping through her favorite archival issues: The WWII-era magazines when BH&G exhaustively covered ways to do more with less (wash your garden tools, people!), and attending numerous trade shows and houseware launch events to stay up to date on what’s new and next. Katy holds a B.F.A. in the history of art from Syracuse University, along with a minor in English and Textual Studies. She earned her M.A. in the history of design and curatorial studies from Parsons School of Design and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, writing her thesis on “‘The good life’ in post-war America.”
Updated on July 26, 2021
Carving jack-o’-lanterns is one of our favorite Halloween traditions, but this year we’re also planning to decorate a pile of non-traditional pumpkins as well. No-carve pumpkins have been popular for years (here are 47 painted pumpkin ideas we love) but as the spooky season approaches, we’re seeing that people are ditching the carving tools altogether. Instead, bright colors and patterns created with paint and non-traditional tools have replaced the typical carved faces.
To help inspire your Halloween decor this year, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite bright and bold pumpkin decorating trends. Put down the carving tools, pick up a paintbrush, and start decorating!
Geometric Pumpkins
These neat and tidy ribbons of color are wonderfully at odds with the pumpkin’s irregular contours. We traced the circle with a bowl and used electrical tape ($3, Target) to block out the stripes since the tape’s elasticity lends itself to working around curves. With the tape in place, brush on crafts paint. When the paint is dry, carefully remove the tape and do any touch ups with a small paint brush.
Etched Pumpkins
If scooping pumpkin guts and carving out shapes aren’t your jam, try etching your designs instead. Most basic pumpkin carving kits ($4, Walmart) include an etching tool you can use to create a freehanded floral design or pattern. Of course, you can etch a regular orange pumpkin, but we love the look of these pumpkins that were painted all white before they were etched.
Painting Halloween Pictures
Your loved one can paint pictures of ghosts, witches, pumpkins, and other Halloween staples to relax his or her mind. You can also purchase adult coloring books with a Halloween theme. Painting Halloween pictures is a fun activity that promotes socialization, relieves stress, increases hand-eye coordination and dexterity, and enhances quality of life.
If you have a senior loved one who needs help maintaining a high quality of life while aging in place, reach out to Home Care Assistance, a leading provider of home care Roseville families can rely on. All of our caregivers are bonded, licensed, and insured, there are no hidden fees, and we never ask our clients to sign long-term contracts.
Making Halloween Crafts
Creativity is a great way for seniors to prevent boredom and reduce the risk of depression and other health conditions. Your loved one can decorate a pumpkin, create a witch’s broom, build a small scarecrow head, or design a Halloween lantern. Encourage your loved one to be as creative as possible. Making Halloween crafts is a fun activity that can increase concentration, hand-eye coordination, and cognitive function.
Your loved one can plan this activity for the grandchildren or do it with other family members and close friends. The purpose of a scavenger hunt is to keep the mind active and engaged. You can hide some Halloween-related items around the home, including small pumpkins, homemade ghost trinkets, and candies, and encourage your loved one to look for them. Participating in a Halloween scavenger hunt could boost your loved one’s mental and emotional health.
Staying physically and mentally active is one of the many ways seniors can slow the progression of several diseases and age-related conditions. If your elderly loved one is living with a serious medical condition and needs help managing the tasks of daily living, reach out to Home Care Assistance, a Roseville home care agency you can trust. Our caregivers are available 24/7, there are no hidden fees in our contracts, and we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee on all of our in-home care services.
Attending a Costume Party
Choosing a Halloween costume can be fun, but wearing the costume to a theme party could be even more exciting. Attending Halloween parties is a great way for seniors to increase their social interaction, which could benefit their physical, mental, and emotional health. Your loved one will be engaged with his or her costume as well as the costumes of other partygoers, which could provide a sense of belonging, boost self-esteem, and enhance mood.
Your loved one can make marshmallow ghosts, strawberry pumpkins, cat cookies, and other Halloween treats. In addition to being fun, this activity could provide your loved one with companionship. Help your loved one choose the top recipes, then go ingredient shopping and bake the treats together. Baking Halloween treats can be a collaborative process that keeps seniors and their family members and friends socially and mentally active.
Hassle-free pumpkin painting ideas for older individuals
Posted Oct 20, 2022
It’s once again that time of year when green leaves transform to oranges, reds, and yellows. A time when we wrap ourselves in cozy sweaters and look forward to the coming holidays.
Autumn – the perfect season to take a breath of fresh air and enjoy some quality time with your aging parents or elderly loved ones. After all, companionship is what keeps relationships healthy and thriving.
If you’re already making your autumn plans, don’t miss these fun fall activities to do with your grandkids. They also support healthy aging!
Fun Fall Activities
Paint The Season’s Harvest
Garner inspiration from autumn’s colours and textures to create art using acrylic paints, watercolour, or pastels. You can also be extra creative and swap out your typical artist’s tools with some of the season’s harvest. Trade in your paintbrush for an apple stamp. Or rethink your canvas and paint a still-life on a seasonal squash or pumpkin.
- Host an all-ages pumpkin painting contest
- Preserve and paint fall leaves
- Make a leaf and pinecone garland or wreath for your door
- Use apples and pears to paint ornaments
Crafts and painting have the added bonus of being beneficial for those experiencing early cognitive decline, dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease. The therapeutic aspect of art can improve mood and cognitive function.
Take a Walk in Nature
Albert Camus once said, “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower”.
Short walks around the community allow seniors to admire the fall foliage and get some fresh air before the snow flies. Going for a walk during this colourful season is sure to benefit both the body and mind. A low-impact physical activity , it can be done anywhere and it’s free. Walk to a park, walk around the block, or walk somewhere fun for a little treat.
- Visit your local zoo
- Explore a corn maze
- Check out an apple picking farm
- Go to a botanical garden.
If your grandkids are visiting, ask them to help you collect leaves and twigs, then make a rustic bouquet of autumn roses for each other. The artistic possibilities for colourful fallen leaves are endless.
Create Fall Kitchen Delights
Baking delicious treats for friends and family is a great way to celebrate the autumn season. Pumpkin spice cookies, apple tarts, cinnamon coffee cakes and more will fill your home with tempting aromas and tastes.
Baking with grandchildren is a great way to build bonds, share skills, and spend valuable time with your little loved ones. Some kid-friendly recipes are:
- Marshmallow pops
- Apple hand pies
- Fudge
- Microwave Rice Krispie Squares.
When you’re ready to enjoy the delicacies you’ve made, pair them with apple cider. Drink it cold or heat it up with a cinnamon stick to keep warm on a crisp day.
Indulge in Autumn Colouring Pages
Those who are less skilled with crafts can try their hand at coloring. Your grandkids will also love to see you get involved in an activity that they enjoy. You can get a fall-themed adult coloring book, or simply use reds, oranges, and browns to shade in a forest scene. Adult coloring books have made big strides in popularity over the past few years for good reason. According to WebMD, colouring:
- Relaxes your brain and improves brain function
- Induces a meditative state
- Enhances motor skills and focus
- Improves sleep
- Reduces anxiety and stress.
Create Wearable Art through Knitting or Crochet
Knitting, crochet, and cross-stitch is a relaxing, therapeutic activity. If you love needlecrafts, why not join a knitting club? It is the ideal way to combine a hobby you’re passionate about with a fun social occasion. Other reasons to get practically crafty with a social group:
- Find new inspiration
- Meet new people
- Create gifts for family and friends
- Give back to the community by knitting or crocheting for charity.
Teaching older grandkids to knit or crochet can turn into a lifelong hobby that your both enjoy. Just be sure to purchase larger needles and hooks – size 10 are perfect for little hands!
Attend A Fall Festival
Fall festivals and trips to the apple orchard or pumpkin patch are all great ways to spend a day celebrating autumn. As different vegetables come into season, farmers markets offer a changing array of fresh foods for you to take home. Bring a tote bag and stock up on root vegetables, apples, pumpkins, and all manner of treats such as honey, apple butter and freshly baked breads to enjoy at home.
Picking and Carving Pumpkins
Picking and carving jack-o-lanterns is a classic family tradition that can be adapted to meet every senior’s ability. Visiting a local pumpkin patch is guaranteed to get everyone into the Halloween spirit. For an extra dose of fun, select a farm that offers fall-themed games and activities for everyone to enjoy!
It’s a Spooktacular Time of Year at ASC
We want you to spend quality time with your elderly loved ones this coming season. With activity calendars packed with fall crafts, Halloween-themed games, outings, and events, there is something for all tastes and interests.
Let the passionate and well-trained caregivers at ASC take care of the basics so that you can enjoy more quality time and continue making new memories with your whole family this autumn and all year long.
At All Seniors Care Living Centres , a family-owned and operated community with a reputation for providing high standards of care and service, we believe that ageing can be beautiful with the right care, healthy diet, companionship, and an active lifestyle.
Contact us today and explore the options near you, from independent seniors’ apartments to memory care.
Writer – Julianna McLeod
Julianna is a health and wellness expert at All Seniors Care. Her mission is to create content that empowers seniors to form sustainable solutions for lasting health and happiness. She is an experienced writer, editor, and Recreational Therapist living in Toronto.
