Fabric-wrapped rock pumpkins

This fall project uses a free, natural material (rocks) and uses up a bit of your fabric stash. Use these rocks sans stems in a modern decor display, or add paper stems to make them more on-the-nose seasonal.
Start by collecting several rocks that are somewhat roundish, smooth, and ideally, can stand "up" on their own. Comb through your fabric stash and pick out any and all orange-ish patterns. If you don't have a stash, a trip to a fabric store is in order! Choose two or three fat quarters, and check the remainders bin for good candidates. 

Next, set up your work area. I put down newspaper (probably unnecessary) and waxed paper (definitely necessary). Then, tear strips of fabric: Cut a snip into the edge of one of your fabrics, about a half-inch in. Firmly grasp the fabric on either side of the snip, and pull them away from each other. 

To make them easier to handle, I advise cutting your fabric strips into lengths of no more than six inches.
Now for the messy part. Stir together a solution of half tacky glue and half water. (I tried a mixture that was  lighter on the glue, but the strips didn't hold after drying.) You don't need much, so start with just a tablespoon of each.

Place a strip into the glue solution, pressing it down so it gets completely saturated. Pull out the strip and run it between your fingers to wipe off any excess glue. Wrap the strip around your rock. 

Repeat with additional strips. When your stone is almost completely covered, you may want to cut a strip into smaller lengths to patch up the remaining holes. 

Let the rock (or rocks, plural; I recommend making several, as they look great in a group) dry overnight. 
Here's what they look like, stem-free. I rather like them!

To make them more pumpkiny, let's add some stems. For each one, tear or cut out a strip of brown paper. Dab some glue onto the strip, then roll it up tightly.

Glue the flat part of the stem to the top of the pumpkin. (If there's no flat end on your rolled-up paper, just trim off an end with scissors.) Repeat for all of the rocks. 

If your kids want to make jack o'lanterns, wrap your stones with fabric that's more monochromatic than the patterns shown here. Use a black permanent marker or paint marker to add faces to the dry rock pumpkins.
​xo!