Pumpkins versus gourds

The weekly micro-decorating newsletter * Issue 5 of 13, F23 *
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If you love the colour orange, this is your season. Pumpkins proliferate, building up to Halloween's giddy chromatic explosion.

It’s not a time for decorating subtlety, but if you slow down and put some thought into it, you can create a display that evades the obvious.

One approach is to pare it down to the essentials. A single uncarved pumpkin on an improvised stand can have surprising impact:

Another approach is to expand your spectrum. Pumpkins come in many colours and including non-orange options in a grouping releases a playful juggle of possibilities:

Why not forgo orange altogether? Skipping the most expected choice leads to a startling set of hues, making for a memorable arrangement:

If you really want to experiment, venture beyond pumpkins to the world of gourds. While part of the same family – Cucurbitaceae, in case you’re curious – gourds have such distinctive shapes and textures they register as unique beasts.

Twisted, lumpy, covered in warts… these creatures seem hard to love, at least at first sight. By comparison, pumpkins looked Botoxed and perpetually cheerful. It takes some serious knife-work to make them look frightening.

Gourds are scary by default. We look out of curiosity, maybe even shock… and as that subsides, we might see their less apparent beauty. A smeared yet appealing colour-shift from orange to green. A curve that feels human in its particularity:

I’m more of a gourd person, myself. I like the challenge of being asked to dwell on something hideous and wait until it reveals its secret wonder.

But why not embrace both? Pumpkins and gourds can happily coexist, each bringing out the strengths of the other. When I caught sight of this window, it reminded me of the wisdom in not choosing, in simply embracing everything:

Do you lean towards pumpkins or gourds? Share your preference – and reason for it, if you can – in the Comments section below.

From the archives

Finding the shorter daylight hours hard to take? It might be time to acquire some gloom-busters.

Thank you for reading.