10 Creatively Carved Pumpkins
Stray away from the typical jack-o'-lantern look and get creative this year with these fun and festivepumpkin ideas!
1. Pumpkin Man
Why should your jack-o'-lanterns always be deprived of a body? Stack two pumpkins to give your display more presence. Carve the body to look like a shirt, and give jack a spiky hairdo.
Related: 10 Printable Pumpkin Carving Patterns
2. Fishy Pumpkin
Tuck a fishbowl into a gutted pumpkin, and fill with bottled drinking water (not tap water from the faucet, distilled, or deionized water.) Find creative props at the pet store. This tiny gravestone is perfect. Paint smaller pumpkins black, and stack them up to create a cat. Scrape away flesh to create eyes, and use discarded pieces of the orange pumpkin to make ears. Your fish friends will be purr-fectly frightened. Note: Replace about 20% of the water in your fishbowl with fresh bottled drinking water twice a week. As a bonus, the discarded water is great for plants. Avoid placing the bowl in direct sunlight, and move it indoors if the temperature dips below 65°.
Related: 5 New Ways to Decorate with Pumpkins
3. No Evil Pumpkins
Something evil this way comes? Do as the monkeys would, and see no evil, speak no evil, and hear no evil. Simple garden gloves elevate three jack-o'-lanterns from typical to terrific. Stuff the gloves with leaves or straw and tie with raffia.
Related: 15 Ghoulish Treats and Sweets
4. Pumpkin Eat Pumpkin
It's a pumpkin-eat-pumpkin world out there. To get this look, you will need one large pumpkin and one small pumpkin. Carve an expression of fear into the smaller one. Hold the small pumpkin up to where the large one's mouth will be, and trace around it. Be careful not to cut the mouth too big. You want the small pumpkin to fit snugly so that it won't roll out. Carve sinister eyes into your big pumpkin. This guy is a cannibal, after all.
Related: Party-Perfect Halloween Appetizers
5. Hairy Pumpkin
Turn your pumpkin on its side. The stem makes a wonderful nose. All you have to do is cut out eyes and a mouth. If the pumpkin is a little too wobbly on its side, cut out some flesh to flatten it. Spaghetti noodles dipped halfway in boiling water for a few seconds make great hair. Stick the uncooked portion into small holes cut in the head.
Related: Spooktacular Treats for Halloween
6. Etched Pumpkins
Etching will leave an artful design on your pumpkin. The technique allows your pumpkin to last longer and is less messy than traditional carving.
Try some of our etching templates to get a perfect design.
7. Diorama Pumpkin
Create a diorama effect. Cut out a large square from the front of your pumpkin. Use that piece to carve a small figure. Use toothpicks to reattach the figure to the side and bottom of the pumpkin.
Related: Easy DIY Halloween Costumes
8. Polynesian Pumpkin
Add some Polynesian flair to your Halloween gathering. Create a tiki design by scraping away the pumpkin's outer flesh. Props increase the fun factor. Look for oversize paper umbrellas and drinking straws at a party-supply store.
Related: How to Make a Party-Perfect Pumpkin Centerpiece
9. Silhouette Pumpkin
The black cat is a classic Halloween image, and the rounded opening has the look of a glowing moon behind this fierce feline. Use a stencil or create a design on your own. The idea is to create a silhouette instead of the traditional jack-o'-lantern.
Related: Halloween Pet Parade
10. Pumpkin Cooler
Trade fire for ice as your pumpkin filling of choice. Cut the top from a large, wide pumpkin with a serrated knife, and scoop out the seeds and pulp. Line the bottom and sides of the pumpkin with a 2-gallon zip-top plastic bag. Fill the bag with ice and assorted beverages. Use this idea at a party, or on Halloween night use it to pass out juice, water, or soda to the trick-or-treaters.
Get Creative with 21 More Pumpkin Ideas!
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