Mouse In Pumpkin Fairy House Halloween Watercolor Illustration Painting
By Charlie

Living In A Pumpkin

Written by Charlie O'Shields

For our prompt of “Pumpkin” today, I would normally sketch the pumpkin that Philippe carves each year, but he hasn’t been inspired yet to do so. So, I had to pull from imagination and ended up sketching a little mouse family who decided to make a couple of pumpkins into a happy little home. As a kid, and still today, I love the idea of anything in miniature. I used to think it would be cool to be shrunk down to the size of a mouse just to see what the world might be like. If I could have had a fun pumpkin home to enjoy after my adventure, that would have made it even cooler. In reality, I’m quite tall and wouldn’t even be able to fit my head inside. Not something, I’m sure, the mice would appreciate were I to try viewing their abode. But, it’s fun to draw from imagination and see what appears on the page. Even if I can’t actually crawl inside a pumpkin house, I’m more than happy simply dreaming one into existence.

Philippe did actually purchase some pumpkins this weekend. A large one and two smaller ones that are still sitting in the garage waiting for his muse to strike him. Hopefully this will happen in the next few days, as I’m curious to see what he carves this year. His pumpkin carvings fit well for my doodles as they’re always happy little things, with nothing scary on display. If he carves one, I’ll be sure to slip it into a future drawing. If not, I’ll be tearing into one just to get those pumpkin seeds out so we can roast them! We’ve been watching movies lately that feel right for Halloween, but we’ve watched so many that we’ve already run out of them. We don’t typically watch this much television, but we also aren’t typically home quite this much either. We’ll be going to our first outdoor socially distanced theatre event this weekend, so that should be a nice change of pace. Though, in truth, I’ve rather enjoyed the slow and steady routine of these last few months.

There’s definitely something perfectly splendid about being safe at home. While I do miss going out to many places, having that extra bit of time at home has been rather refreshing. One would think this would mean I’d get more projects done or write that next book already. But, the reality is that I’m simply taking time to enjoy the moment and take life just a touch slower. Instead of rushing around like a crazy person, I’ve been taking time when I can to get lost in my drawings or read more of that book I have going currently. My head is still filled with lots of ideas and I’m letting them all spin and bounce into each other for awhile. It’s fun to float inside one’s imagination and just enjoy the time spent there. Being inside that dream of possibility that I adored as a child. A place where anything possible, even living in a pumpkin.

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About the Doodlewash

Da Vinci Paint Co.:  Hansa Yellow Medium, Yellow Ochre, Bezimida Orange, Quinacridone Red, Cobalt Turquoise, Terra Cotta, and Pthalo Blue. Lamy Al-Star Safari Fountain Pen with black ink in an A5 Hahnemühle Watercolour Book. Want to purchase a print of this doodlewash? Want to purchase a print of this doodlewash? Send me a note with a link to this post, and I’ll add it to my shop!
 Mouse In Pumpkin Fairy House Halloween Watercolor Illustration Painting Sketchbook Detail

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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26 thoughts on “Living In A Pumpkin”

  1. Awesome Charlie. I taped my accidental jack o lantern to my door today — it was meant to be a lesson in using chosen colours for each season even if those colours don’t match that season (Jean Haines, Atmospheric Watercolours). I would have poste dit here but there is no place to do it.

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  3. It would be kind of interesting to have a home where you had to eat up the insides in order to live there. Or maybe you’d bake them into a pudding and set them up for the kids to swim around in. I can just hear Mom, yelling at them to “get that pudding off your shoes before you come into the house!” Did you know that pumpkins were once called pumpions? Now how to work that little bit of trivia into a conversation. Oh wait! I just did!

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  4. So cute! I love all the little details you’ve put in this from the little windows and their flower boxes to the little ladder. Unfortunately these little mice won’t have this quaint little home for too long…..they will literally eat themselves out of house and home! Bahawahawa! ;P

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  5. That is the cutest house ever! It looks cozy, homey. 💜 I voted tonight and it was such a beautiful evening, Charlie. So beautiful! I was in line under a gorgeous, huge pecan tree and the breeze was blowing so wonderfully. Big beautiful purple, gray clouds looked so amazing in the twilight. Just a gorgeous evening. 🌌🌃🌆

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      1. Are you kidding me? My father would roll over in his grave if I didn’t vote. haha It also happened to be his 98th birthday so no better way to honor my dad. =)

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  6. Adorable! Great mice! This slowing down has had its upside for a lot of folks I think. It’s been a true misery for those who lost jobs and don’t have the resources to ride it out, and I feel very bad for them, but for others, it seems like they needed this reset.

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  9. Hello Charlie,

    I absolutely love the Living in a Pumpkin Doodlewash – but before I go on, I adored yesterday’s Doodlewash too! The squirrels seem to be having tons of fun. 🙂 Coming back to the pumpkins, I showed the image to my sister who said to tell you that had you been an architect, the world would have been such a lovely place coz people everywhere would have fun, creative, gorgeous homes like these. Two, if Phillipe hasn’t yet decided what to carve into the pumpkins yet, couldn’t he try doing a real life model of your Doodlewash above? You could actually put in little mice models and have tiny flowers in the windows. I’m sure no one would have a Halloween decoration that came anywhere close to yours! Just a thought…

    Love,
    Mugdha

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    1. Thanks so much, Mugdha! 😃💕 Aww what a sweet comment from your sister. That’s so nice! Yeah… people would have fun homes indeed, but not sure if they’d stand for very long. I tend to prefer aesthetic over any actual architecture! hehe Oh a real model would be so cool, but I barely have time to make my little sketch each day. I’ve wanted to try a bit of crafting, but it will probably be something I save for retirement.

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