Halloween Cupcake Liner Topiary

I am almost done my Halloween crafts this year! Granted, I only had 4, but I gotta leave some for next year, right? And well, I don't have much space in this small apartment with barely no surface to decorate :(

So today I am copying COM with her Halloween Cupcake Liner Topiary. I originally saw it this year made by Jenn at Clean and Scentsible. Be sure to check theirs out, too!

Here's my finished product:


I liked the idea of it being an interchangeable decoration, so I told myself I would make 2, to go on either ends of my future kitchen shelf (still only in my head), and I would make some for every season/holiday. I want to decorate my kitchen with stuff from the kitchen, so cupcake liners fall in this category.

I saw the warnings about how much time consuming this was, but frankly I didn't think it would take so long. After all, it's just fold, glue dab, jab on ball, wait 10 seconds, repeat, right? In the end, I think it only took time because I made 2. But I made them in 1 day, with a few breaks because it does get monotone. My cute fuzzy spiders took WAY longer to make than these!

First, I had to find Halloween cupcake liners! That was the real task. I was really hoping to find some at a dollar store (I saw some at Hallmark for 2$ for 50, thought that was too pricey, and they weren't that pretty), and finally after the 4th Dollarama I went to, I finally saw some!! They didn't have that many left either, so I took 2 packs of 50, 2 different colors, and hoped it would be enough. I had already gotten my terracotta pots and styrofoam balls (the second biggest ones, they came in a pair).



So I separated my cupcakes in 2, 25 of each color; I wanted to mix up the 2 liners I got. I started applying my liners, far enough apart because I was really afraid I wouldn't have enough. And when I ran out of the half I had taken to do this, I panicked. As soon as the store was open, I went back to that Dollarama and prayed that they would still have the same liners. But alas, they didn't. I debated for a while whether I should just take 2 other ones. They weren't as pretty, and my topiaries wouldn't match, though. In the end, I went what the heck and took them.

I also took the opportunity to pick out a paint color for the pots. I wanted a neutral color that would go with every season/holiday, since I planned on reusing the pots at least for my next ones. I didn't want white (beige walls, wouldn't pop), and I didn't want black (too depressing), brown was an option, but when I noticed the gold, I went for that.



And might as well show you now the wooden buttons I got. I thought they'd be practical and I could paint them any color I need them to be, since I don't have a button collection.



Cost breakdown:
- terracotta pots, pckg of 2 (1$)
- styrofoam balls, 2 pckg of 2 (2$)
- Halloween cupcake liners, 4 packs (4$)
- Halloween ribbon (1$) (but barely used any, for an other project as well)
- paint, gold (1$)
- buttons, (2/40 of 1$, 5cents...)
- branch (free! from my backyard)
- green moss (1$, also reusable)

Total cost: 11$, but 6.50$ specific to this project only.

Instructions pretty simple, take a cupcake liner, fold it, put some hot glue, glue it on the ball. Repeat. I made a little modification. I wanted to try and flip the liner inside out, and see if that would make a difference in the amount of white/ backside you would see (sorry, no pic, realize now it couldn't been useful). The purple and orange one is made that way, and then I filled in the holes without bothering to flip inside out. The black and orange one is made the original way. Don't think it made that much of a difference, but take a look at the end and see for yourselves. Also, I use a plain marker instead of the dowel, since I was gonna use a branch instead.

Here is my ball (2nd one) under way.



Now for the pot, I used the same size styrofoam ball, but it wouldn't fit in the pot. So I cut it with a knife. If you're the kind of person who cannot stand the sound of styrofoam, plan to not cut a ball (my bf was going nuts as I was doing this). I just found that the next size balls would be way too small for the job. In the end, I had to cut it a lot. I even cut it in half. I don't know how I didn't get chills during this part, guess I was really focused and on a mission! Here's how I cut it:



I couldn't get it all the way down in the pot, so it just floats up there. I pushed it down enough to put some moss to cover it though, but might paint it green once I get green paint.



As I mentioned, I had gold paint for the pots. That color didn't cover very well. I ended up applying 5 coats, and still not sure I was satisfied. I also painted the buttons black. For the ribbon to be removable, I cut it to size, wrapped it tightly around the rim, and glued it to itself. It should stay in place since no kids will be playing with it. I also notice with this picture that I should paint the inside of the pot a bit, shows that it's not painted there :S



Here they are all finished up! Remember, the orange and purple one I turned the liners inside out, but the black and orange one I let them have their natural fold. I don't really see a difference...









For now, they are decorating my bedroom, until I get my shelf in the kitchen. If you are curious, I'm planning on making a shelf over my kitchen sink, because there's a huge space between the counter and the cupboards. I will put hooks under to hang mugs. I really love mugs, some are so pretty!, and I hate that they are always cooped up in the cupboard, and no one sees them. So this will be a little display, and add some decoration to my kitchen!



Also, plan on using 100 cupcake liners per ball. That way you don't run out like me, and then get stuck with 2 different topiaries.

Thanks for reading!! Would love it if you said a little hello on your way out. I seldom get comments :(

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