Super-Fast Pumpkins with No-Carve Designs

You don't have to remove the pulp for these pretty pumpkins. Using a clay-loop tool (see next slide) allows you to design a cool look that lasts longer than conventional carved pumpkins. We love this floral design, which uses a different colored plug as the base, and etching for the petals.

Sketch your design with a washable marker. Use your thumb to stabilize your hand when cutting the design with a clay-loop tool. This easy carving technique is almost mess-free -- no gutting required!

To get this sophisticated look, use an apple corer to punch through the pumpkin's rind to create a perfectly round hole. Buy three different colored gourds, and mix and match the different colors of plugs.

Use a plunger-type apple corer for double-duty decorating. Leave the holes open for a glowing look, or place the punch in a different colored pumpkin.

Combine the apple-corer and clay-loop tool techniques to create an intricate, multidimensional flower on your pumpkin.

Simply pull the plug from one pumpkin and place it in a hole of another to use autumn hues to create a pretty, polka-dotted pumpkin.

This multicolored kabocha squash incorporates harvest hues from a variety of pumpkins and winter squashes. It looks great on a doorstep or entryway to greet guests -- or trick-or-treaters.

Kids will love using apple corers to create fun and easy Halloween designs. For thick pumpkins, use a rubber mallet to help pound through thick walls.

Use a washable marker to draw a letter or initials on your pumpkin, and use the apple corer to punch along lines. Create a letter on each pumpkin to spell out a spooky message.

When illuminated, the apple corer holes emit an eerie glow. This big "Boo!" looks like it took hours, but with the help of a plunger-type apple corer, large letters are easy to knock out. Be sure you get the scary point across by using a serrated knife and a metal biscuit cutter to create a simple exclamation mark.

Try an apple-corer spin on an old-fashioned jack-o'-lantern. Use a rubber mallet to tap a metal biscuit cutter into a white pumpkin to cut eyes and mouth. Cut pupils and teeth from eye sections with an apple corer. Attach pupils and teeth with toothpicks, and dribble a few seeds from the pumpkin's mouth for extra spookiness.