Super-Fast Pumpkins with No-Carve Designs

Grab an apple corer and create these pretty, mess-free Halloween pumpkins in just a few easy steps -- no cutting or carving required!

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Pretty Pumpkins

Cute to the Core

Fall Flowers

Scratch the Surface

Floral Fun

Add Some Color

Mix and Match

Family Fun

Spell It Out

Boo-tiful Pumpkins

Ghostly Gourd

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Pretty Pumpkins

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.

Cute to the Core

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.

Fall Flowers

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.

Scratch the Surface

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!

Floral Fun

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

Get more pumpkin ideas that use an apple corer

Add Some Color

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.

Mix and Match

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.

Family Fun

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.

Spell It Out

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.

Boo-tiful Pumpkins

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.

Ghostly Gourd

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.

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Super-Fast Pumpkins with No-Carve Designs

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