Cool Pumpkin Carving Ideas for Kids

Nothing screams Halloween like scary and fun pumpkin carvings! Carving pumpkins is one of the best activities of the season not only because it allows your children to show off their creative skills but also because it can be your inexpensive Halloween décor option! Whether you are looking for something super scary or simply a fun little pumpkin face to lift your Halloween spirits, there is something for everyone!

10 Easy Pumpkin Carving Ideas for Children

Check out the following ideas and find out your favorite one from this wonderful collection!

1. Pumpkin House Number

Let your mailman’s job become a bit more fun and easy with this cute pumpkin carving idea!

Materials Needed

• Hot knife
• Foam pumpkin
• Printout of the house number in a preferred font
• Tape
• Needle

How to Make

• Take a printout of the house number in any font you prefer, with the size of the number being large enough for the pumpkin.
• Center this printout on the front of the pumpkin and secure this using tape.
• Punch holes in the pumpkin over the printout along the outer edges of the number. Remove the paper, and you will be able to see the outline of the number.
• Using the hot knife, carve each number through the dots to remove the inner parts of the number. Once done, smooth the edges using sandpaper or a nail file.
• For a really spooky effect, clean the insides of the pumpkin by taking out the pulp and seeds and place a candle inside. This way, your house number would light up in the dark.

2. Etched Pumpkin

Using simple templates, you can make your own beautiful etched pumpkins to decorate your home.

Materials Needed

• Required template
• Tape
• Scissors
• Paring knife

How to Make

• Print out the required template (for example, if you are looking for a non-scary design, then you could go for the autumn leaves template).
• Cut out the pattern from the paper after leaving a ½-inch border around the outline. Use tape to hold the pattern over the surface of the pumpkin.
• Using the paring knife, pierce over the outline of the design through the pumpkin. Remove the paper and peel the skin inside the pattern using the knife. Do not cut it out; instead, etch through the surface of the design.

3. Candy Land Pumpkin

Turn your children’s Halloween into something sweet this Candyland, a creative pumpkin carving idea.

Materials Needed

• Large pumpkin
• Pumpkin carving kit
• White Jack Be Little Pumpkin
• Craft foam
• T-pins
• Artificial moss
• Candy (white chocolate, gumdrops, candy corn, sugar straws, liquorice, peppermints, and more)
• Polyester batting

How to Make

• Take the large orange pumpkin and hollow out the insides through a round opening at the top.
• Cut out 3 rectangles for the door and windows at the front.
• Make a slight hill of craft foam and cover it with artificial moss. Place the pumpkin on the hill.
• Cut the top off the little white pumpkin and then cut the rest of the pumpkin in half to create window boxes. Attach these a little below the windows using T-pins.
• Paste a few more details like gumdrops for the roof, polyester batting for smoke, shutters of white chocolate.
• Use sugar straws for window frames, and white chocolate bars with gumdrop handles as a door.
• Small pieces of white chocolate bars can also be used for the steps from the bottom of the moss hill all the way to the door.

4. Robot Pumpkins

Give your Halloween a futuristic twist with this funny pumpkin carving idea!

Materials Needed

• Mini pumpkins
• Metallic gold and silver spray paint
• Bolts, hex nuts, felt scraps, screws
• Googly eyes
• Wire
• Hot glue gun

How to Make

• Spray paint the little pumpkins and leave them aside to dry completely.
• If you want the nuts and bolts to be colored, then spray paint these as well in any colors your kids’ love.
• You can paste the other parts to the pumpkin in any design you want using the hot glue gun.
• For arms, you could paste the bolts, and the nuts can be the eyes (paste googly eyes over the nuts for a funnier look), the washers, and the wire can be any decorations on the body of the pumpkin.
• This craft can also be done on gourds so you can make an army of futuristic robots of various shapes and sizes for Halloween.

5. Stacked Pumpkin Topiary

Looking for traditional and scary pumpkin carving ideas? Check out this stacked pumpkin topiary this Halloween!

Materials Needed

• Halloween lighted pumpkins (5)
• Pot
• Wood dowel (1” circumference)
• Flower
• Primer
• Spray paint (white and black)
• Extension cord

How to Make

• Prime three pumpkins and spray paint two of the pumpkins black and the others white.
• Spray paint the wood dowel black as well.
• Once the pumpkins are dry, drill 1-inch holes into them. When drilling holes, ensure that one pumpkin that is supposed to be kept at the top of the stack is drilled only at the bottom (meaning that it would have only one hole).
• Put some soil and flowers into the pot and place the wooden dowel in the middle once the spray paint dried.
• Stack the pumpkins through the dowel in alternating colors. The final pumpkin with one hole can be placed at the top such that the dowel rests inside the pumpkin.
• Attach some lights through the back of the pumpkins, and you have your own scary Halloween stack!

6. Sick Pumpkin

The simpler the pumpkin face, the more laughs it is going to get at your Halloween party!

Materials Needed

• Huge pumpkin
• Knife
• Needle
• Spoon
• Bowl

How to Make

• Cut out around at the top and hollow the pumpkin using a spoon. Save the insides to be used later inside a bowl.
• Use a needle to punch holes on the outline of your pumpkin’s expression. Carve out a face of pure agony (make sure the mouth is wide-open) using a knife.
• Arrange the insides of the pumpkin from the bowl near the mouth such that it looks like the pumpkin is puking its guts out.

7. Pumpkin Candy Dispenser

A DIY pumpkin candy dispenser is a very seasonal decoration idea you should definitely try this Halloween!

Materials Needed

• Large orange Pumpkin
• Rope
• Knife
• Hot glue
• Spoon
• Bowl

How to Make

• Trace the bottom of a storage container or a glass bowl onto the front of the large pumpkin.
• Use the knife to cut around the outline and take the area out. Use a large spoon to scoop out the seeds and the pulp of the pumpkin.
• Insert the bowl inside the cavity (you can make the hole slightly bigger, if necessary).
• Using hot glue, paste the thick rope around the edge of the opening and fill the bowl with sweet Halloween candy!

8. Pumpkin Barrel

Show off your Halloween candy this season with a fun decoration like this Pumpkin Barrel!

Materials Needed

• Large orange pumpkin
• Spoon
• Poly-fil
• Burlap fabric
• Knife
• Upholstery tacks
• Hot glue
• Ribbon

How to Make

• Cut the top quarter using a hot knife off of a large orange pumpkin and scoop out the seeds and the pulp.
• Paste three ribbons around the pumpkin using hot glue – two ribbons below the center and one a little above the center of the pumpkin.
• Stuff three-fourths of the hollow part of the pumpkin with poly-fil.
• Into the cavity of the pumpkin, place the burlap fabric and fold an inch of cloth over the outside; hold it in with the upholstery tacks.
• Finally, fill the fabric with candy!

9. Lollipop Pumpkin

Let the children help themselves to sweets with this adorable lollipop pumpkin.

Materials Needed

• Large pumpkin
• Lollipops
• Knife
• Needle
• Linoleum cutter

How to Make

• Cut the circle at the top of the candy and hollow it out with a spoon.
• Carve a semi-circle with a single tooth for the mouth, a triangle for the nose, and two little upper semicircles with pupils for the eyes. You could etch the pupils using a linoleum cutter.
• Using a needle of a large enough diameter to hold the stick of the lollipop, poke holes about 1 ½ inch apart across the head of the pumpkin.
• Push the lollipop sticks into the holes to create the hair.

10. Mummy Pumpkin

Spook your little trick or treaters with a fun and creepy mummy pumpkin!

Materials Needed

• White pumpkin
• Knife
• Toothpicks
• Beans
• Spoon

How to Make

• Take out the white pumpkin, cut off the top quarter, and scoop the pulp and the seeds.
• Starting around 1” to 2” (based on the size of the pumpkin) below the opening, cut out the pumpkin all the way around horizontally.
• Repeat the above step 4-6 times until the last piece is around 3” in height and separate the pieces.
• Keep the bottom and the top pieces the same and restack the other pieces in any order.
• You can rotate the pieces to form any shapes you like, and once you have decided on the position, use toothpicks to secure it in place (you can take the pieces off carefully, press toothpicks into the top of each piece, and press the upper pieces over it, restacking it in the process).
• Once done, carve two holes for the eyes and carve out a scary mouth.
• Place beans into the eye holes either using hot glue or half toothpicks.

Gather a few pumpkins, take out your carving knives, and settle in for a fun-filled day with your family!

Also Read:

Halloween Crafts for Children
Halloween Makeup Ideas for Children
DIY Halloween Costume Ideas for Children