The new year ahead

It has been a busy yet fun last two months making gourds for the holiday season. Trust you are all enjoying the Christmas break. May your new year ahead be filled with meaningful relationships, good food, and beautiful gourds!

canons up close

canons up close, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

high gloss canon gourds. featured colors: cranberry, dark chocolate and cordovan.

What Not To Wear

Clinton Kelly from "What Not To Wear" is our most recent Gottagettagourd fan. A television special on Clinton's newly renovated home (including the gourds) will air on the TLC channel November 9. The gourds featured will be an array of 7 gourds in black.

that time of year

As some of you may know, Autumn season is the favored time of year at the Paschall home. To usher in the season, last week we lit fall scented candles all around the house, made a hot, spiced drink and put a movie on that "felt Fallish". It was wonderful. For our 10 year anniversary, Carrie and I are going to Vermont in October...we can't wait. So here's to cool evenings, grilled-cheese sandwiches & tomato soup, wool blankets, hot apple cider, pumpkin pie, maple oat-nut scones, "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown", warm jackets and...gourds.

Here we go

medium carmel, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

Well folks. the Fall season is nearing..do you know what that means? It means Danny is busy making up a new batch of gottagettagourds. I have to say that this is my best batch yet. I happen to be the first one at the farm as they were bring in the gourds...so I got the cream of the crop. Great shapes, and twirly stems with a ton of character. Happy Autumn to you. (Featured is a medium size gourd in the caramel stain.)

Ice tea

Ice tea is my inspiration for one of my most popular gourd stains. It looks great during this wonderful time of year. Trust you are all having a relaxing summer.

ton o gourds

ton o gourds, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

Many shapes, sizes and colors featured here. Pumpkin gourd in front mixed with canons, jugs and mini's.

Well, it's about that time. I am in the process of making up a new batch of gourds for the Fall season. I am busting out and introducing some new colors: Metallic Gold and Metaliic Green.

Visit to the gourd farm

The family spent spring break in Sacramento. We took a little trip over to Zittel's gourd farm today to pick out some new gourds. April is the perfect time to visit the farm because the gourds are fresh from the fields. When picking out a good gourd I look for ones that have a bit of personality to them. The curvier the stem the better. I also make sure there are no cracks or soft spots on the shell. For the Fall 2007 I am going to be introducing some new colors: light green, gold and mahogany.

the canon

single canon, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

There are hundreds of shapes and sizes of gourds...canon gourds are one of my favorites.

gottagettagourd video

CLICK HERE!

happines is...

bus stop close up, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

a gourd.

mantle frontview

mantle frontview, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

The great thing about gourds is there are unlimited ways to show them off and warm up a home. Here I placed some minigourds in hurricane lamps.

odd is better than even

down view, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

when it comes to creating visual interest in your home, be sure to place objects in odd numbers. picture frames in sets of three look better than a set of two or four. for all of you gottagettagourd owners remember that gourds look better in groups of 3,5, 7 and so on.

john

john features a set of canon gourds in his office which compliment his art collection.
proud gotta getta gourd owner for two years.

(gourds features: canon's in cranberry, chocolate, and pomegranate)

an element of surprise

minis in s row, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

any well designed room has what I call, an element of surprise. something that makes you take a second look, something unexpected: a white fur pillow, a blue crystal lamp, a set of red glass candlesticks or who knows...maybe even a tray lined with mini gourds.

color, pattern and texture

bus stop close up, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

the three elements that any well designed room should have are color, pattern and texture. do you ever walk into a room and feel like it's missing something but you're not quite sure what it is? It probably means the room is lacking one of these three core elements.

the wonderful thing about gourds are...they capture all three. if you're living room is in need of texture, throw a cluster of gourds on the coffee table, the gourd skin and stem provide great texture. if your dining room is lacking color, add some cranberry and cordovan gourds to the table all of a sudden you have a pop of color. if you are needing to incorporate a pattern, line up at least three gourds in a row and there you have it.

coal

cole, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

coal (black). a dramatic color that highlights the shape of the gourd.

contrast

dirty:kidney, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

a great picture showing a gourds great potential.

scratch marks

scratch marks, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

the great thing about gourds is they each come with their own unique scars and scratches.

aaron

"i like my gottagettagourd because it reminds of mom's homemade apple pie's growing up!"

gottagettagourd owner for 1 1/2 years

(gourd shown: apple gourd in cranberry stain)

tim

"So Tim, what is the one irreplacable object you would grab if your home was burning down?". "That is a very easy answer, I would grab my gottagettagourds collection!"

proud owner of a gottagettagourd for 1 1/2 years

(gourds shown: cranberry, chocolate and coal)

human gourds

gourds bus stop 2, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

gourds have personality. here are some folks hanging out at the bus stop.

gourds on mantle

gourds on mantle, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

Put some mini gourds in a glass hurricane lamp and place on the mantle...very nice.

the gourd conversion process

stem, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

As an introduction to my website I would like to walk you through my gourd making process. Read on!

step one

dirty gourd, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.
This is what a gourd looks like when I bring it home from the farm. They have black mold, clumps of dirt and a thick dirty film on the outer layer...they can also be kind of stinky. The first step is scraping off the outer shell. I have found the best supplies are a wire sponge, soap, warm water, and rubber gloves.

step two

gourd alone, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.
After cleaning the gourd it's important to let it dry for at least 8 hours. Now the fun part...decide what color you want to stain your gourd. I stained this gourd with a fun caramel stain...it's one of my lightest colors, it looks great when you mix it with darker shades. For stains I use a special liquid leather stain. I apply approx. 3 coats with a clean cotton cloth. It's important to use rubber gloves, otherwise your hands will be stained for a few days!

step three

black kidney, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.
After staining your gourd it's important to allow it to dry for at least 12 hours. I think gourds "pop" when they have a high gloss shine to them. So next I take them outside and spray on approx. 2 coats of a high gloss polyurethane. Be sure to apply light coats to prevent from drip marks.

step four

fire place gourds, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.
That last step is display. Gourds can look great anywhere in the home. You can place them on a dining room table for a dramatic statement, in a book shelf or on the hearth of your fire place. Gourds look best when you place them in groups of at least three. They also look best when you mix shapes, colors and sizes. Tune in for more great gottagettagourd fun!

gourds on table

gourds on table, originally uploaded by gottagettagourd.

Gourds come in incredible shapes and sizes. Some of my favorites are the mexican jug, the pumpkin,and the cannon.