painted toile floral pumpkins

i continue to be inspired by the current trend of painting pumpkins
to resemble blue and white Chinoiserie ceramics.
those colors aren't in our home decor palette, however,
so i painted a few more pumpkins
to match the brown toile pattern on some vintage dishes that i have.

my small collection of toile or 'Staffordshire' English china
 includes dishes from Royal Staffordshire, Alfred Meakin, and AJ Wilkinson.
the 'Brown Tonquin' pattern on almost all of them was designed by Clarice Cliff,
including the beautiful floral on the tiny saucer that inspired my artwork.

it's a beautiful look for fall that fits into classic, boho, farmhouse, and even coastal decor.

continue reading for more details...

the white pumpkins i began with were an 'ugly' thrift store find several years ago...
i painted them with satin-finish white house paint back then, and called it good enough.
they were the perfect blank canvas for this project.

some tiny brushes, craft paint, and gloss varnish were all i needed to transform them!


this tiny saucer's floral pattern appears in several ways on the pumpkins,
bringing out some of the smallest details:

on the right, the larger pumpkin has a full-blown replication of the florals on the saucer.
a few tiny sprigs of florets included, to coordinate with the other pumpkin.

on the left, the smaller pumpkin has a circlet of leaves around the stem
and sprays of the grasses and tiny florets that appear in the saucer's pattern.
there are three different grasses in 3 arrangements around the pumpkin:

four shades of brown appear in my painting, just as it does on the china.


in this photo, you can see the stems a bit more - i painted them copper,
just to 'gild the lily' and add one more decadent detail.

secret tip: i used copper nail polish! i like the subtle glow.

i actually love this arranged on the mantel so much that i'd like to leave it in place...
however, with completed projects to photograph for holiday content,
they can't live here!
i'll probably move them out to the scale on the kitchen island for November
and then use them in our tablescape for Thanksgiving.

speaking of which....
i shared photos of my Thanksgiving tablescape on the hwF facebook page!
click here to see more


oh, the mantel? it's a prop. i made it from scrap lumber.
more on that coming soon, along with loads of holiday inspiration!


shared online:

funky junk interiors | diy salvaged junk projects #553


thank you for featuring my project, Donna!


creatively beth | creative crafts linky party #17

links to related previous posts:

painted 'autumn leaf' patterned pumpkins

thrifted pumpkin makeover

fall, fall decorating, fall decor, pumpkins, pumpkin decor, pumpkin decorating, painted pumpkins, 

home decor, decorating, autumn decor, thanksgiving decor, thanksgiving,

october decor, november decor, chinoiserie painted pumpkins, toile painted pumpkins,

blue and white painted pumpkins, brown toile, neutral home decor, fall leaves, painting, boho style,

farmhouse style, coastal style, fall trends 2020