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When Acorn Crafts Go Terribly Wrong

Ack, we’re painting the hall bathroom, and we can’t wait to finish, shoot pics, and share them with you guys! But since that’s still in progress, I thought this stellar example of things not always working out might make you guys smile. We always get asked “what happens if you try something and it doesn’t work?” and I always say “we blog about it, of course!” You know, like this and this and this. We love sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly. And we can totally relate to a failed craft project or ten. So here we go…

In Richmond it has been raining men. If by men I mean acorns. Seriously, those little buggers are everywhere.

  Acorns1

So I got a wild hair and decided – most definitely inspired by all the crafty acorn projects on sites like Martha & Pinterest – that I would do a cute little acorn craft. So I gathered up some acorns with my trusty assistants (those would be Clara and Burger, who actually worked against me the whole time by throwing/kicking/chasing them away from me) and put a few dozen into a bag.

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Then I froze those suckers because I remember hearing a few horror stores about bugs or other odd things “hatching” from acorns, and those I did not want.

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I left them in the freezer overnight, which I hear is all that it takes to kill off anything suspicious (although I did think to myself “self, doesn’t it get that cold outside? what is superior about a freezer that makes it better?”).

Then a day later I took them out of the freezer and let them thaw out. Later I poured some leftover craft paint (a little tube of acrylic paint that was originally like two bucks from Michaels) into a bowl. Then I took all the “hats” (you know, those little top parts of the acorn) off and dipped the end of them into the yellow paint.

  Acorns4

Then I realized this was a terrible plan since I had no way to keep them from rolling all over the place and smearing, until I looked over at the pretzels that we keep in one of those big glass containers on the counter next to the cereal. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

Yup, I totally made little pretzel stands so they wouldn’t roll around. Oddly enough it actually worked. I know, I was just as surprised as you are at this fortuitous turn of events. Don’t worry, things go bad later.

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After dipping a bunch of acorns and setting them in their little pretzel holsters to dry I turned my attention to the $2 faux flowers that I’d grabbed at Michael’s (50% off thanks to those ubiquitous mailer coupons). When I got them… yeah- not so hot. But it wasn’t anything a little trimmy-trim and a cute vase couldn’t solve.

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Ah, much cuter. And kinda fall-ish in that not-putting-fifty-gourds-everywhere way. Understated and easy, if you will. And then a few hours later when my little yellow tipped acorns were dry they came into the picture too. See them chilling in that glass container?

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Here’s a panned out shot of the console with a few other tiny fall tweaks. I switched out the blue and gray books for some leaf-colored yellow and red ones…

  Acorns7

… and grabbed some old vase filler from my fall tupperware bin in the form of some tiny faux apples, that I shoved into a clear cylinder vase leftover from our wedding (it’s the same one that held lemons and limes on the table).

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Then I felt very chuffed (that’s my favorite English word along with “the till”) until about a day later when I saw this. What the…?

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I popped the top and looked a little closer and it was totally mold. Boo! And I know you guys get a kick out of the what-didn’t-work projects just as much as the ones that did – so there ya go. My name is Sherry, and I somehow made beautiful yellow tipped moldy acorns. I’m not quite sure what went wrong, but I’m pretty sure that mold is not the new chevron, so it’s not going to be sweeping the DIY world anytime soon. Just say no to mold.

Acorns11

Actually, to say that I don’t know what went wrong is a lie. I totally know what went wrong. I’m just not adept enough to dabble in acorn crafts. The stakes are just too high. Glue guns? Sure. Paint? Ok. Drills and power saws? Yes please! But acorns? They send a shiver down my spine. I’m clearly not ready for them yet…

So I did the loving thing and threw those moldy paint-dipped acorns away and whipped out some fun old printing letters for a rustic fall-ish feeling without the threat of mold (we have a ton of these with all of our initials, our wedding date, and even “YHL” thanks to a sweet friend who sent these three our way).

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So other than a few tiny and cheap (well almost all of them were actually free) fall tweaks in the form of some leaf-colored books, a few cut down fake-blooms from Michael’s and some cute little apple vase filler, we’ve learned one thing. I’m clearly not attentive enough to master the delicate eco-system that is an acorn. So I’m leaving them to Martha and you crafty folks on Pinterest who can manipulate them into wreaths and decorative orbs and all of those other wildly creative things without so much as batting an eye. I’ll stick to cutting down faux flowers and popping them into a bright little vase thankyouverymuch. Eh, who am I kidding, I’m totally going to try my acorn luck again next year. It’ll be like an epic annual battle that keeps no one on the edge of their seat but me.

Has anyone else mastered the acorn or done any especially cute and not-at-all moldy fall crafts? Do tell. I promise I’ll only pout a little…

Comments

  2. Emma says

    Soaking them in vinegar might ward off mold. That’s what I do with any berries that come into the house. They looked cute for a day though!

    Reply

  3. carrie_b says

    next time dry them in a warm oven or put them on a warm radiator for a few days (if you have one). that’s what we usually do with the tons of chestnuts our son brings home, and it works without a problem!

    Reply

  5. Nichole K says

    I’m sorry :( The dipped acorns were super cute! Maybe letting them dry out really well (in the sun room?) then sealing them with lacquer would prevent mold? I think there was just too much moisture in that cute little glass container with a lid.

    I’ve never tried anything like this because I’m allergic to nuts and I try to stay away from them even if I’m not eating them!

    Reply

    • Nichole K says

      I just realized how bad my “not eating nuts” comment could sound…whoops! Sorry :) I’m too used to talking about food allergies to realize when I’m being unintentionally dirty!

  6. Cristina G. says

    I just lost my YHL virginity! Been waiting for an uncommented post to be the first to comment. Love everything you two do!

    Reply

  7. Cathy says

    “Then a day layer..” –> I think you meant “later”. You don’t need to post this in the comments though – lol.

    Reply

  8. Alanna says

    ha! the exact same thing happened to me last year. i gathered up a huge bag of acorns from my mother-in-law’s house and a day or two later they were covered with mold and bugs. obviously, i hadn’t heard the freezer trick.

    Reply

  10. Amanda says

    Definitely a bummer — also explains how stores get away charging $15 for a bag of them!

    They kind of looked like m&ms in the container… reminded me of the fall bridal shower decor you did involving peanut butter m&ms.

    Reply

  12. Sara WW says

    I did a painted acorns project this fall too and had the same problem! I baked mine in the oven for over an hour and spray painted the entire bottoms…and they got moldy. So I threw away the moldy ones and recovered the rest with several coats of Mod Podge…and they still got moldy. Finally I decided they needed more air and spread them out with store bought scented acorns and cinnamon sticks and that seems to have done the trick.

    Reply

  13. Jayme says

    I’m almost relieved that happened to you!! I had the same thought a few weeks ago… why not do something with all the acorns laying around? So I tried to use them as a vase filler with a pillar candle in the middle… and two days later, they were all covered in that nasty mold!! I didn’t freeze them beforehand, so I’m not sure what happened :(

    Reply

  14. Mallory D. says

    Bummer that it didn’t work out! I was loving the acorn DIY crafts I’ve been seeing on Pinterest. But maybe like the comments above, it was because they were frozen and then covered.

    I may attempt this still. Thanks for the inspiration (or hopeful inspiration anyhow)!

    Reply

  16. Nickie says

    Last year for Christmas I needed a vase filler and so I decided to spray paint acorns silver…. I did the baking at a low temp and still had the mold issue… It was so sad as my silver acorns were so lovely…

    Reply

  20. Amanda says

    Bummer. I probably would have either baked them at like 150 or 200 for an hour or so or put them in my dehydrator for a little while….the good news is, you aren’t out any cash and there is probably a lot more where those little guys came from. :) You can always give it a second go-round.

    Reply

  23. lisa says

    Maybe you could discretely hide a desiccant package or two in with the acorns (you know- those little “do not eat paper packages that come in shoes).

    Reply

  24. Erin says

    Sherry, this totally happened to me when I painted some styrofoam-balls-covered-in-tacs vase fillers! I don’t think it has anything to do with the acorns. I did it again and let the paint cure for 48 hours before putting them in a sealed apothecary jar and all was well. Doesn’t help your current acorn sitch, but might be helpful for future crafts :)

    Reply

  25. Afton LeSueur says

    Haha, did I miss an announcement that you were going start using the phrase “wild hair” in every post, or something? I noticed a couple of posts ago because I’d never heard before, and I think today was like the third day in a row it has popped up!

    Reply

  26. Lorien says

    Just dry the acorns in the oven (on a low heat) to get all the moisture out! Then they won’t mould, and there won’t be any bugs either :)

    Reply

  29. Angel says

    They were so cute! I think you should have oven-ed them instead of freezer-ing them (aka, kill creepy things with heat and also dry them out). BTW we have the same ice cube tray… way off topic but I love those. So much easier to get the cubes out than the plastic ones.

    Reply

  30. Staci @ My Friend Staci says

    Gross. Actually, I had a whole wad of cash saved up in a mason jar… when I took it out to count it was totally moldy and nasty! I washed it with dish soap, hot water, and a little vinegar to boot (and “money laundering” jokes aplenty). Then the bills were clean but still discolored (purple and gray in some spots!)
    Now I’m careful about putting things in closed containers.

    PS–stalking the mailman, hoping my book comes today. Totally jealous of the commenters who got theirs early!!

    Reply

  31. susan says

    Sherry, don’t feel bad. I thought I could do wonderful pine cone crafty stuff with the beautiful, huge pine cones that fall from the trees around my home. But when I looked into dealing with the sap and kept coming up with instructions about letting it melt out of the cones in my oven . . . well, let’s just say that I decorate with pine cones from a store and I understand why they don’t always cost mere pennies.

    Good on you for trying!

    Reply

  32. katie says

    You have to dry them out in the oven. Bake at 175 (or as low as your oven will go) for 2-3 hours. A few will crack but for the most part they will be fine. This should take care of both the mold and the critters.

    Reply

  33. Niamh says

    After having a close encounter with the mold kind with my first attempt at an acorn project, I discovered a magical little trick! I grabbed a couple of those silica packets (you know, the kind that come in shoe boxes, etc) and threw them in a tupperware with the lid off. I put them on the window sill and let them REALLY dry out and Voila! No more mold problems!

    you can see the project here: http://nearlydomesticated.blogspot.com/2012/09/three-day-weekend.html

    Reply

  34. Terra says

    I ran into the same problem, but some of mine had worms too…yuck!
    I went back outside and picked up more acorns (without worm holes) and laid them on a baking sheet and baked at 175 F for about 25 minutes. No problems with them cracking at all! No mold or worm problems yet either! :)

    Reply

  35. Amy says

    You can put one of those little silica packets (like in new purses and such with the “do not eat” sign on them) in with acorns to absorb moisture. I save them up during the year for that purpose because I had a funky/moldy issue a couple of years ago. I also try to only put acorns out in open containers.

    Reply

  37. kara @ launching our life together says

    This totally happened to me a few weeks ago, except I totally skipped the freezer part and stuck ’em in a jar the day I brought them in. I didn’t get any bugs, but the mold took over quickly. My sister-in-law stuck hers in the oven until she got that ‘roasted nut’ smell, and she had much better luck. I’m sure it didn’t help that we put ours in jars with lids. Guess we’re not meant to be hunters and gatherers.

    Reply

  38. Robin says

    I’m still in the process of making an acorn wreath…It’s only been a month…(But I was really busy with a baby shower so totally not my fault!) and I baked my acorns for 15mins at 350. About half of them cracked but the other half didn’t. So I’d suggest just over gather. I just glued the cracked sides down so it didn’t bother me too much. And no mold has grown.

    Reply

  39. Catharine @ Your Modern Couple says

    I definitely think it was the freezing + sealed container combo. I’ve been wanting to make an acorn wreath and the blogger who did so said to bake them at 350 for 15min to kill of any bug-a-boos :) She didn’t say anything about them cracking but it couldn’t hurt if you have so many right? We have a TON in our yard too and the squirrels are super chubby this year ;)

    Reply

  40. Rachel says

    Same thing has happened to me before. This time I let them sit in my storage room to fully dry (for a whole year) so I am using last years acorns to decorate this year. I’m still crossing my fingers though.

    Reply

  41. Jessica says

    That’s too bad. :( I love the pretzel trick though! I bet you could use those little desiccant packets that come with shoes to keep the moisture out. Baking seems like a good plan too.

    Reply

  42. Sarah says

    I tried my hand at an acorn fall project this year and had the same moldy results. I didn’t freeze them and just had them sitting in a mason jar (with no lid on) so they were open to the air. Not sure why the mold set in…plus I also had little worms coming out of some! ICK!!

    Reply

  43. Ryan says

    I did the same thing the first year I collected a bunch of horse chestnuts and put them in a glass vase. Within a week they were all moldy and gross. So this year I looked up a solution on the internet. Take your tiniest drill bit and drill a hole in the nut. Then bake in a 200 degree oven for a few hours.

    It’s supposed to help evaporate excess moisture. I think you’ll still want to avoid sealing them in plastic for storage or even lidded display. My bag of horse chestnuts is still on the front porch but hopefully this weekend I’ll get some prepped for display.

    Reply

  44. Leslie says

    Interesting… I would have guessed that you’d do something with the tops of the acorns, I love the look of the felted wool acorns with the real tops :)

    Thanks for keeping it real Sherdog!

    Reply

  47. Michelle says

    Ummm. . so I also totally had a moldy acorn incident a couple of falls ago. I collected them outside (I didn’t freeze them so I don’t think that’s what did it to you) and just tossed them in the vase. No hatch-lings but a few days later LOTS of mold. Yuck. There has got to be a secret that folks are holding out on.

    Reply

  49. Amie says

    Maybe they didn’t have enough time to dry out before you sealed them up. I know my son has some in little storage containers that he saved from a camping trip, and they’re not moldy. Come to think of it, that camping trip was over a year ago…I wonder if he’ll notice if I throw the acorns away?

    Reply

  50. Amanda says

    I’ve collected both acorns and buckeyes for years. I put them in the oven at about 200 degrees for a while. I’m not sure how long though. Maybe 30 minutes to an hour? Then I let them sit out for a day before putting them into anything.

    Reply

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