Pastel Halloween Decor: Ombre Skull Tree Tutorial

I was provided product by DecoArt and compensated to write about this project, but all thoughts, opinions, and ideas are my own :)

Who says that Halloween decor has to be black and orange? I'm all for changing things up, and truthfully, making things not so scary since I have littles running around the house. Of course, my oldest did tell me that the pink skulls look scarier than the original ones. So, I'm not sure if I helped things or not :) 

Today is the first project in a serious based on Pastel-oween decor :) (see what I did there? ha!) Today, I'm going to share with you how to make an awesome ombre skull tree. 

 This tree is pretty inexpensive and super easy to make. Here are the supplies I used:
DecoArt Americana Neon Lights in Pink Explosion and Green Energy
DecoArt Americana Acrylic Paint in Snow White
48 small skull heads (found these at Michaels, comes in a bag of 12)
1 medium skull head (found at Michaels, comes in a bag of 6)
1 11" tall paper mache cone form
Hot glue
Small flowers

Here's a look at the skulls and tree form before they were painted. 

 Step 1: We want to make a pastel color with the Neon Lights Pink Explosion. To do that, I started off with a good about of Pink Explosion and then added the Snow White in a 1:1 ratio.

 I mixed the pink and white together to give a slightly subtler pink. I painted the cone form with two coats. 

 I then painted the first layer of skulls, 12 of them, with the same first shade. Then I gradually started adding more and more white. So, the next shaded was 1:2 Pink Explosion to Snow White ratio. This layer held 11 skulls. The next layer up had 9 skulls with a 1:3 ratio. The next layer from that had 7 skulls with 1:4 ratio. Then 6 skulls with a 1:5 ratio. Last row had 4 skulls with a 1:6 ratio. By the top row, the pink should be pretty light. Each of these skulls received 2 coats of paint. I sat them on some wax paper to dry. 

 Step 2: (although step 1 probably had about 20 steps :) ). Using the hot glue gun, I placed a dab of glue on the back of each skull and circled them around the bottom. I made sure to keep a "front" area and "back" area. The front is where all the skulls line up perfectly. The back is where there may be bigger gaps where a skull didn't have room to fit. But, since this is in the back, it doesn't matter that much :)

 I then went layer by layer securing the skulls to the cone, making sure to follow the colors from darkest to lightest. 

 Step 3: Paint the medium size skull (comes in a bag of 6, but you can use the rest in one of my upcoming projects). I used a 1:2 ratio of Green Energy and Snow White to paint this one. I did two coats.

There was just enough room on the top of the "skull tree" to add the green skull. There's a hole on the bottom of the skull which I made a bit larger, and it sat perfectly on the very tip top.

 Step 4: I then added random pastel pink flowers in some of the gaps. You know, just to give it more flare :) 

 And there you have it! Who says you can't have pink skull trees at Halloween time?

 You can see really well from this angle the ombre effect. I'm not sure why my little one thinks pink skulls are more scary than bone brown ones, but to each their own, I guess :) 

Be sure to check back this week for more Pastel Halloween projects!

And also, be sure to check out DecoArt and their social media for more inspiration!
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”