Carve and Craft: Pumpkin Designs And Decorating Tips To Set The Halloween Scene
Pumpkin carving is the most celebratory of the numerous enjoyable and original fall hobbies, and it’s not exclusively for Halloween. Jack-o-lanterns are a delightful addition to any yard or autumn patio décor arrangement. Additionally, it is a fun activity that keeps kids engaged and produces tasty pumpkin seeds. Who can resist those?
This collection is a treasure trove of projects for every individual, from straightforward drilled-hole patterns that are relatively easy for anybody to handle to towering creations that showcase your expertise. Whether you’re a novice or a seasoned carver, you’ll find something that will encourage you to let your creative juices flow. Let’s see which of the many designs catches your eye. These incredible creations will help you become the center of attention this spooky season!
Ancient Egyptian Jack-o-Lantern
Now, would you look at this? No Halloween is complete without something that belongs in ancient Egypt, and this cute mummy pumpkin is just the thing. It will look fantastic on the front walkway and add mystic flair to your exterior decorations.
This ancient pumpkin from the shores of the Nile will keep you company throughout the Halloween season. It doesn’t require much carving; you only have to make the opening for the mouth. The rest is just carefully wrapped linen!
Lace pumpkin
Ready to try something new with your fall decorations? How about a pumpkin embellished with genuine lace? While most of the ones you might come across are carved to feature a frilly design or are painted, this is the real deal.
This might look daunting, but it’s much simpler to execute. All you need is patience, imagination, dedication, and exquisite lace. The key is painting your pumpkin white to achieve an effect that features a strong contrast such as this.
A witch’s pumpkin
This absolutely stunning pumpkin design is the handiwork of a blogger. For something that doesn’t involve carving, this looks really pretty. This would go well with the rest of our decorations, and we can’t wait to make our version.
The conical witch’s hat adds to the overall vibe quite nicely. We love the decision to paint the pumpkin white, beautifully contrasting the black hat! Also, adding “Boo!” is a nice touch! The season is incomplete without that word.
Jack-o-lantern vase
You will see many fantastic designs as you scroll down this list, but how about something unconventional, such as using a pumpkin as a vase? Isn’t it the ideal receptacle for a floral arrangement? We think so, and we’re 100% behind the idea.
We love the thought that has gone into this design and the magical incorporation of the leaves, pinecones, flowers, and berries. It is simply outstanding. All the elements strongly suggest fall, providing the necessary vibe. This would make any table look pretty.
Tinkerbell pumpkin
If you are a fan of Peter Pan, this will be right up your alley! Just look at it! One of our favorites is this not-so-subtle nod to J.M. Barrie’s beloved tale of a mischievous child who can fly and stays young forever.
All you need to create this effect is a drill. You hadn’t thought of that, did you? Most people assume otherwise, given the amount of precision involved. Creating something as lovely as this is possible if you’re handy with the drill and have the patience to match.
Pumpkin pandal!
This reminds us of a pandal, a permanent or temporary structure constructed as an archway at an entrance. They are made during religious festivals, and this Halloween pandal is just the thing for your house of horrors.
It is most likely made using a mix of foam pumpkins, reinforcing bars, and PVC piping. This will look incredible when lit up at night. With correct planning, assembling this lightweight structure should be relatively easy. Who wants one for their home?
Sunflower owls!
These gorgeous owl designs are just what you need if you want to carve pumpkins but wish to spend your time on something not complicated. Sunflower seeds are the most essential of all the components needed for this. You’ll also need a glue gun.
Apart from that, only a few resources are needed to make this happen. They actually look like one of those new-generation Pokémon that are too adorable for words. Look no further if you want something cute for this year’s scary season.
Pumpkin with the Chesire cat template
Printing out a template before carving pumpkins will make the process easier and quicker. We think this Cheshire cat layout with the signature broad grin is charming to the core (pun intended), and we have grown quite fond of it.
Transfer the pattern by simply drawing it onto a surface, pasting it, and punching gaps into it. Remember to use a dry-erase marker while drawing a design so you can easily erase your mistakes. This is something you can easily do with the kids over the weekend.
Monogrammed pumpkins
Sometimes, when the fall mood gets to you, you only want to make a grand spectacle for Halloween. But if you don’t have the time and energy, a project like this is perfect because it looks like you put in a lot of effort.
This is a little less flashy and vibrant, screaming, “Less is more,” suitable for minimalists who don’t want too much fuss. Although it took several steps to achieve the initial application to the pumpkin with such precision, the final product is quite attractive.
Teal pumpkins
If you want to do something for Halloween that has yet to be done, why not try this for a change? These teal pumpkins represent a rather contemporary decoration idea and are used to highlight households providing non-candy products. It is good to know such things exist nowadays.
When people see this on the porch, they know the house provides non-candy products for folks with sensitivities or dietary limitations. This activity educates youngsters about empathy, a big plus in our books. Additionally, this novel approach looks cute and delightful.
Troll pumpkins
Remember the DreamWorks animation movies Trolls and Trolls World Tour? Those took the world by storm, and the past several years have seen a huge increase in troll popularity. Those little creatures are adorable, so it’s not surprising they’re popular.
Poppy is the fan favorite among them. As you can see, this craft project is simple, easy, and quick to put together, and fantastic for children of every age! If you think of it, these could also work as Christmas decorations.
Creature feature pumpkin
This became a favorite the moment we saw it, one of the best examples that you don’t need to be excessive to do a decent job with pumpkin carving. The trick is to find something that looks like an amputated limb.
This prop does the job too well and might send people running away, frightened. Since it’s completely covered, the “leg” can be virtually anything given the correct measurements. Also, the “blood” isn’t fake blood or red dye; it’s hummingbird food! Clever, isn’t it?
Dragon pumpkins
Now is the best time if you’ve always wanted to carve a continuous image across numerous pumpkins. But remember to ensure the Chinese dragon design is as seamless as possible to achieve an effect similar to the picture below.
Although the idea of a flowing image spanning numerous pumpkins isn’t new (you’ve witnessed it displayed occasionally), it is still striking and draws interest immediately. Remember to add a pumpkin before the dragon head, with flames coming out!
Quilt design
Have you noticed how this pumpkin has a lovely traditional quilt pattern? It makes you think this was a long and challenging job, right? This design was transferred using decoupage. For those who don’t know, decoupage is the process of fixing paper decorations on a hard surface using glue.
If you want a more straightforward method, use one of those geometrical cubes that kids usually play with. Using such a cube, you can recreate this design or let your imagination take flight by dipping it in paint and using it as a stamp.
Monster movie carving
This Frankenstein design is so cool! Look at how deftly carved and detailed the castle, and the mob with pitchforks are. This is a fantastic concept for Halloween, something folks who love classic monster movies would love to have on their porch.
You can’t see it because of the way this was photographed, but gourds were added as wheels on the bottom. Now that, we think, is quite ingenious, a moving gallery of sorts and something you don’t see every day. Absolutely brilliant.
Cute pumpkin owl
More often than not, the most commonplace materials can be used in inventive and unusual ways. When utilized properly, they can produce a fantastic result; this owl is the best example of what we’re discussing. Isn’t this just adorable?
It was created using pumpkin and cupcake liners. The cupcake liners are ideal for the eyes and the wings. However, we lack enough imagination to come up with something as creative as this. Guess we’ll just have to copy whatever’s online.
Crystal appliqué pumpkin
This is not a real pumpkin but an imitation. Some use it instead of the real thing when food waste is a concern. You can buy these plain, and it’s up to you to bring them to life. The designer of this delightful setup did an excellent job.
The crystal appliqués look like something out of a fairytale. We would expect this to be the centerpiece at Cinderella’s wedding, and we can imagine the bigger version of this as her mode of transportation to the ball.
Black pumpkin cats
Some pumpkins deviate from the norm and come in unusual shapes, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be used to embellish your yard. Those weird shapes can come in handy, and this is a great example. They’re not round like their cousins but perfect for decline designs.
Look at how stunningly slick, lustrous, and purr-fect these black cats are! They could easily pass for witches’ familiars. This is an excellent reminder that the most incredible decor comes in all shapes and sizes and that elongated pumpkins are equally beautiful as round ones.
Webbed pumpkins
The black and white pumpkin carving ideas on this list include painting a pumpkin white and adding black graphics or letters. Here’s a somewhat distinct concept and the opposite of what we just mentioned: pumpkins coated black and decorated using white paint.
The design features webbing and bones, unmistakable elements of Halloween, with a charming refinement that gives them a remarkably finished appearance. It’s incredibly amazing how the piece with the wires adds interesting texture.
Goth pumpkins
Although Goth flew under the radar for many years, it has always been there, and now the fad is resurfacing. This year, carved black and white pumpkins have become fashionable again. A goth house needs these, adorned with lace, swirl patterns, and lovely typography.
They have an emo vibe, and we can imagine the band My Chemical Romance trying out this design for their deco. These may grab your attention from a distance because of the remarkable contrast. Would you consider it for your home?
Stencil patterns using a lace doily
Returning to the notion of lacy pumpkin decorations, here is another decorating idea for the scariest time of the year. Take a lace doily, snip the middle off, and place it atop your pumpkin to create a stencil in the form of a ring. Easy enough, right?
Apply paint with a stencil brush, and leave to dry thoroughly. After that, take the doily off. You will see a gorgeous layout similar to what is shown in the picture. Its intricate design reminds us of a Samoan tattoo.
No pumpkin? Use a gourd!
Although a gourd was used for this design, you could utilize the same concept to make an owl pumpkin light! By the looks of it, it was dried first before the holes and patterns were drilled, which would explain the patina on the gourd.
Although this requires enormous effort, a steady hand, and patience are also necessary for this project. Technically, this doesn’t involve any carving because you’re using an electric drill, but we still think it belongs here.
Carved pumpkin pillar
You might remember the last continuous image concept with the Chinese dragon covered earlier in a landscape orientation. If you want a portrait orientation, stack the pumpkins on each other. Easy-peasy, right? This picture might give you the inspiration you need.
Ensure you pick the correct size of pumpkins to stack so they won’t topple, and never put heavy ones at the top. Since there isn’t any spacing between the pumpkins, this design works effectively, creating a substantially more dramatic appearance than the dragon one.
Burlap ribbon design
People take different paths when it comes to having a fall decoration using pumpkins. Some go the traditional route, carve them the old-fashioned way, and stick a candle inside for that spooky look. Others decide to experiment with what’s in and new and take risks.
Then, some just want to make the most of what they have. And that’s where this pumpkin design takes center stage. It’s a simple setup, but the presentation elevates the aesthetics. The ribbons highlight the contours of the pumpkin brilliantly.
Constellation pumpkin
See how far a simple idea can take you? This decoration is straightforward, but its apparent simplicity makes it stand out. You only need to hollow out the pumpkin so you can fit a bulb inside snugly and achieve the effect in the photo.
This project calls for LED rather than a candle. Punch a couple of holes and paint it a bit. There isn’t much cutting required. While you’re at it, this is a fantastic method for educating your kids and introducing them to astronomy.
UFO diorama
When your gut feeling tells you to follow your idea, do it. You could end up with something remarkable. That’s exactly what this person did, resulting in a remarkable UFO diorama. Before delving into the project, make a sample or a model. You can also write down and sketch what you have in mind.
The large pumpkin was decorated to look like the UFO, while the small ones served as the aliens. How cool does that look? This is not common during Halloween, and its novelty will delight the children and make them laugh and laugh.
Apple core from a pumpkin?
Now that we have covered numerous simple and complex designs, we have the privilege of presenting something unusual carved from a pumpkin, a giant apple core. The only question we have about this is, whoever thought of this?
Nothing is wrong with your eyesight, and you don’t need to see an opthalmologist. That is a pumpkin expertly carved and refashioned to look like a larger-than-life apple cor. We want to give whoever came up with this a high-five.
Fairy/gnome house pumpkin
What you see here is a pumpkin “fairy house.” It’s made by removing a sizable portion of the pumpkin’s front to create an internal space. You can cut openings for the doors and windows to take this up a notch and make it look more lifelike.
Remember to leave the front-side portion of the pumpkin undisturbed. You only need to carve a bit before adorning the outside. This exemplifies the “less is more” aesthetic that we have seen on some of the carvings on this list.
Snail pumpkin
This is nostalgic for us because it reminds us of Gary, SpongeBob’s pet snail, and what a lovely design this is. Any moment now, we expect the snail to meow. A butternut squash was used as the snail’s body.
To create the snail’s curly shell, the top portion of the pumpkin was cut down to a swirly form and was kept on its side to emulate the look and feel of a shell. Now, how adorable is that? This takes us back to our childhood.
Fabric yo-yo pumpkin
The sky is the limit when adopting a good design for fall. You can go with this concept if you want to try something new this year. We haven’t seen this done many times, and it will give your pumpkins a classic, vibrant, and vintage appearance.
The pumpkins are painted, and afterward, fabric yo-yos are used to ornament them (for those unfamiliar, they are essentially small, collected circles of fabric). It is a simple design, but the outcome is top-notch, something you’d expect in a stop-motion animation.
Pumpkin bats made with duct tape
Time and patience are the two most important things needed for a successful fall decoration. If you don’t have enough time and want to put something together as quickly as possible, this is just the thing for you.
This is right up your alley if you want a quick, low-cost, and enjoyable pumpkin decoration project. It also works wonderfully for little gourds. What you can achieve with some duct tape is remarkable when you have the right mindset.
Lacking lawn space? Not to worry!
You might be passionate about making fall decorations but lack the lawn space to showcase them. Worry not; all you need is to think outside the box! The varied activities you can accomplish with stairways and a little imagination are endless.
The best way to approach this is to design something for what you already have. This house has a staircase, so a row of pumpkins is seen ascending the stairs while writing out the word “Halloween.” It’s awesome and works wonders.
Abstract pumpkin
The perception of art lies with the spectator. With the current trends in expressionism, why not incorporate them into your fall project? This easy project will show you how to decorate a pumpkin using fascinating patterns of geometric shapes.
These designs are reminiscent of stained-glass windows or abstract works of art. It’s easy; all you have to do is draw boundaries with tape and color the areas in between. The next thing you know, you have a work of art in your hands!
Carousel pumpkin
We don’t have to sugarcoat this at all. As you can see in the photo below, this is a daunting and time-consuming project, but if you are blessed with the necessary talents, it could make for a truly spectacular creation.
The carousel appeared to be whirling when the wind passed through this pumpkin, making quite the effect! If the pumpkin could be set up on a movable wheel, it could pass for a real carousel! How about that?
Cinderella diorama
Now, here is a person who took advantage of the source material! The fairy godmother used a pumpkin to transform it into Cinderella’s carriage. This would be the perfect project to do with your kids. Imagine their faces when they see the finished product!
The Cinderella pumpkin would need various supplies to make it look the part. But little to no carving needs to be done, and that’s the beauty of it. Also, this would serve as the perfect centerpiece for any prince or princess tea party.
Porcelain pumpkins
As you can see, these pumpkins are expertly and meticulously hand-decorated. If you were to complete this undertaking entirely from the ground up, it would require a lot of effort and patience, yet the outcome would be remarkably realistic.
These pumpkins look like the kind of antique ceramic ware you can expect to find in a museum or prestige auction house. This is well done and pleasing to look at. No one would complain if they were given this as a gift.
Cheeseburger pumpkin
We have to warn you about this one. We will not be held responsible if it gives you hunger pangs. We have seen countless interpretations of this concept, and each one is astounding. Pick one that’s easy and quick for you.
This looks like a cheeseburger you can sink your teeth into. If you were to keep this among the real things, you would be tempted to order it off the menu. Come to think of it, that’s not such a bad idea!
Washi tape pumpkins
We have come across pumpkin decorations that take a minimalist “Less is more” approach but still look fantastic. Remember the project that used ribbons to highlight the contours of that pumpkin gracefully? It didn’t require much, but its effect would make you think it’s expensive.
This project achieves the same effect with washi tape. These pumpkins are incredibly fashionable and valuable because they can be used to spruce up virtually anything with minimal effort, but the best thing about them is they can be made in an instant.
Quoth the raven, nevermore.
We wondered why we didn’t encounter anything about Edgar Allan Poe in this list. After all, his work is as gothic as it can get. That’s why we smiled when we saw this. The poem “The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe is quoted here.
The matte finish on the pumpkin brings out the features of the crow, which has “nevermore” printed in Gothic letters. Also, the decision to make the crow white brings out the poem’s vibe. We’d happily spend money on this.
Bougie centerpiece pumpkin
We have shared several black and white pumpkins with you throughout this article. But bear with us for the last time as we highlight this creation because it deserves to be in the spotlight, too. One look is enough for you to see what we mean.
It looks like something you would have on display at a stately home. This looks absolutely magnificent, even though it has a rather minimalist approach. They only needed a glue gun, shiny embellishments, and ribbons to achieve this look.
Proper Jack-o-Lanterns
We were waiting to see something like this, and thank heavens, we weren’t disappointed. This person picked up on the wordplay with a splendid visual representation of the term “Jack-O-Lantern” in the word’s truest sense. They look so good!
These pumpkins are skillfully decorated and carved using pictures of lanterns that genuinely shine from their interiors. This project will be ideal if you are unwilling to undertake intricate cuts because there is little carving needed for this one.
Decoupage using fall foliage
Remember how we introduced some of you to the art form of decoupage? It is a truly amazing method for producing lovely artwork. As you can see, the same decoupage method was used to decorate these pumpkins. Why do something complicated when the process can be simplified?
The artist who created this thought outside the box and chose to use pressed leaves rather than paper to create the designs. They contrast beautifully with the white background and look beautiful enough to be preserved in resin for longer.
Nightscape diorama
There isn’t anything we can say to depict this pumpkin’s greatness adequately. What delights us is the highly realistic interior scene, achieved primarily with authentic supplies from nature. You can never go wrong with such a method.
The rest is craftwork that requires patience and time. The pumpkin’s black color emphasizes the “nighttime” motif, concentrating your focus squarely on what’s happening inside. It has that distinct stop-motion animation vibe. If only we could create something as remarkable as this.
Character-based pumpkin design
Remember we showed you a fall pumpkin design influenced by Edgar Allan Poe in a previous slide? It alluded to Poe’s famous poem, “The Raven,” and had quite the Gothic vibe with its two-tone color palette. We can’t get enough of the great writer, so we had to include this.
This design takes the premise up a notch. Instead of highlighting the titular raven, the designer incorporated lines from the poem into their design. Aesthetically and creatively, this manages to get full marks. Again, this is a creation we would happily pay for to bring home.
Drill-based designs
Anyone who has ever carved a pumpkin knows it’s nothing like cutting butter using a warm knife. But there is one method that can help you avoid awkward contours and edges while “carving” a pumpkin. Use a drill instead of a blade.
You can make a variety of fascinating geometrical layouts by drilling holes of different dimensions. The best thing about this is that anyone can try to make one of these. All you need is your imagination and some elbow grease.