Pumpkin Carving Ideas

Whether you're a first-time pumpkin carver or an experienced pro, we have all the pumpkin carving tips to help you create a cool carved pumpkin to grab everyone's attention for Halloween. Start with our free Halloween face stencils -- you can download patterns for silly, wicked, and scary faces for your pumpkin, plus stencils for skeleton faces, clowns, and more! Our creative Halloween pumpkins give you tons of ideas for adding extra accents to your pumpkin to make a clever masterpiece. We have pumpkin carving stencils inspired by home design, dog breed pumpkin stencils, and iconic Halloween pumpkin stencils with vampires, werewolves, and ghosts. We even show you how our stencils look on carved pumpkins! Once you're ready to carve your pumpkin, head over to our free printable pumpkin stencils where you'll find our entire collection of pumpkin carving ideas, plus basics on how to carve a pumpkin and other helpful resources. If you're still deciding, take our pumpkin stencils quiz -- after a few easy questions, we'll help you find a favorite pumpkin carving stencil in no time!

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How to Clean Out a Pumpkin
Planning to carve a pumpkin or two this Halloween? The first step is getting a pumpkin that's seed-free and ready to be carved. Get our quick mess-free method for cleaning out a pumpkin today!
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Carve a Llama Pumpkin for Halloween
Llama decor is everywhere, and we're totally here for it. Carve your own furry friend for Halloween—our free pumpkin carving stencil makes it so easy! We'll walk you through carving and scraping the design and show you how to add embellishments with the help of a drill—we promise it's easier than it sounds. Plus, we're sharing our best pumpkin carving hacks so you can create the best looking pumpkins on the block.
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7 Simply Stunning Painted Pumpkin Ideas
If the ooh and goo of carving pumpkins doesn't put you in the Halloween spirit, grab a paintbrush instead. Painted pumpkins can be as festive or as chic as you want and customized to fit any decorating style.
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Creep It Real with These Pumpkin Carving Tools
Carve pumpkins into scary or whimsical jack-o'-lanterns with these sharp tools that get the job done!
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How to Carve a Pumpkin with a Cookie Cutter
Carve perfect shapes into your pumpkin by using cookie cutters. A little muscle makes it possible. We'll show you how!
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More Pumpkin Carving Ideas

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Willard the Warlock
Black iridescent marbles give this stern green fellow a spooky gaze.
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Pug Pumpkin Stencil
It's a pug… a pumpkin… a pugkin? We're not certain what to call this pug pumpkin stencil, other than adorable. With its widely spaced eyes and sweet, floppy ears, this carved pug pumpkin almost charmed us into dropping a quick kiss on its nose -- but the neighbors were watching, and that would have been strange.
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Free "Text Me" Pumpkin Carving Patterns for Halloween
Bring your texting skills to your Halloween pumpkin carving with our free stencils showing phrases, symbols, punctuation, and emoticons.
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Our Readers' Best Carved Pumpkins, 2008
We're impressed with your pumpkin carving skills! Here, we share our favorite Halloween pumpkin carvings submitted by BHG.com users.
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Your Best Photos: Carved Halloween Pumpkins, 2009
Get some great Halloween pumpkin carving ideas from these photos submitted by other BHG.com users.
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Related

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Pumpkin Carving: Tool Tutorial
These five pumpkin-carving tools are must-haves for the perfect Halloween jack-o'-lanterns. The tools are cheap to purchase, or you may already own them. Get our best tips on how to use each tool, plus see our favorite pumpkin-carving ideas.
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Your Best Photos: Halloween Pumpkins
You share our enthusiasm for Halloween jack-o'-lanterns. Check out these great pumpkin designs submitted by BHG.com readers.
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Free Pumpkin-Carving Stencils of Favorite Dog Breeds
This Halloween, carve a dog breed pumpkin that looks just like your pup with our free dog pumpkin carving patterns. Let your friends and neighbors know which dog breed is best by carving a Halloween pumpkin that looks like your favorite canine with these easy pumpkin carving ideas. Get our free Dachshund, Labrador Retriever, Pug, and other dog stencils, and get more ideas for sweet faces to carve!
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Pumpkin Carving Ideas You Won’t Believe
Get inspired by these creative pumpkin carving ideas so you can make your porch the star of the neighborhood on Halloween night. Give this year's jack-o'-lanterns distinct character with our free pumpkin stencils, designs, and instructions. Try one of these Halloween pumpkin carving ideas today!
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Happy Pumpkins for Halloween
Browse our gallery of grinning happy pumpkin faces and gather some free downloadable pumpkin patterns for Halloween. With easy pumpkin carving ideas and free pumpkin carving patterns, you can find the pick of the patch for your family. Make a happy, smiling jack-o'-lantern face or make your kids smile with a funny pumpkin.
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35 Free Pumpkin Stencils for Halloween
Use these basic pumpkin templates as starting patterns to create cute (or creepy!) Halloween pumpkins that will delight trick-or-treaters. If you are searching for inspirational pumpkin faces to make your own, these stencils range from perfect beginner stencils to advanced carve designs. Just pick your favorite pumpkin template, cut it out, and trace against your pumpkin. Once you’re ready, let the creative pumpkin carving begin!
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Free Pumpkin-Carving Stencils Inspired by Your Home's Design
Use the home design motifs you love on the carved Halloween pumpkins you display outside this fall.
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Top Halloween Pumpkin Stencils for the Master Carver
Show off your exceptional pumpkin carving skills with these challenging pumpkin stencils chosen especially for master carvers.
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Our Best Halloween Pumpkin Stencils and Ideas
We've put together a gallery of our best Halloween pumpkins -- for all skill levels -- so you can pick your favorites to display this year.
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More Stencils-to-Carved Pumpkins
See how your Halloween pumpkin will look after it's carved by checking out our before and after stencil images.
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32 Creative Halloween Pumpkins to Try This Year
Get in the Halloween spirit with these creative pumpkin ideas. From funny pumpkin carvings to no-carve pumpkin decorating ideas, find inspiration for your pumpkin decorations.
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Pumpkin Designs from Our Staff
We set our staff loose on our Pumpkin Stencil Maker, and here's what they came up with. Think you can do better? Check out this cool tool yourself!
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Our Best Pumpkin Carving Videos
Have your best Halloween yet with our great techniques and tips for pumpkin carving. We'll demo the basics, plus some outside-of-the-box carving tools and inspiration.
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Free Pumpkin Carving Stencils of Favorite Cat Breeds
Let your friends and neighbors know which cat breed you think is best by carving a Halloween pumpkin that looks like your favorite feline.
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Free Face Stencils for Fun Halloween Pumpkin Carving
Check out our pumpkin-carving stencils for the best Halloween faces for your front door. Use our free downloadable templates for carving jack-o'-lanterns with expressive face designs. From funny pumpkin-carving ideas to scary pumpkin stencils, every printable is free and ready to get you carving.
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Vampires, Werewolves, Ghosts & Other Iconic Halloween Pumpkin Stencils
Look no further than the classics for pumpkin carving ideas. Our free pumpkin carving stencils help you adorn your porch with favorite Halloween designs. Witches, werewolves, black cats, and more—there are simple pumpkin stencils for any age and ability.
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Free Woodland-Theme Pumpkin Stencils
Use these free pumpkin carving stencils to decorate your Halloween pumpkins. From an owl pumpkin carving to a raccoon pumpkin stencil, display a carved collection of furry woodland friends and forest motifs on your porch for Halloween.
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Free Printable Fall Pumpkin Stencils
Using our free printable fall pumpkin stencils, carve a pretty harvest-theme motif into your Halloween pumpkins. Our stencils feature leaves, pine cones, owls, and more! Make easy, scary pumpkins or cool, simple pumpkins. Use an artificial pumpkin if you want your design to last all season long.
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Pop Culture Pumpkin Stencils
Celebrate the year with pop culture figures carved as pumpkin stencils. We have a selection of top singers, actors, and even a certain stylish Duchess to pick from.
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Mythical Creatures Pumpkin Stencils
Try these free pumpkin carving stencils to scare up some mythical fun. Use a dragon stencil to create a fire-breathing beast or a vampire for a grinning ghoul. For even more pumpkin carving ideas, add some fright with a zombie pumpkin stencil featuring a withered hand reaching up to the moon.
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Free Pumpkin Coloring Pages for Kids
Get free pumpkin coloring pages for kids. They'll love the smiling jack-o'-lanterns in these free designs created especially for them this Halloween.
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Halloween Pumpkin-Carving Basics
Take Halloween pumpkin carving to a new level this year with our tips, tricks, and tools. Learn techniques to carve, sculpt, and decorate your jack-o'-lanterns.
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Halloween Pumpkins: From Stencils to Carved
Finally, a great way to select a pumpkin carving pattern! See our pumpkin stencils, then go to the next slide to see the actual carved pumpkins. To make, print the PDF, then size the pattern on a copier if needed. Tape it to your pumpkin and outline the pattern with pin pricks before carving your masterpiece. Discover fun, easy pumpkin carving ideas and learn the best ways to use your pumpkin carving tools.
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Sugar Skull Pumpkin Stencil
Yes, you could make a real sugar skull for the Day of the Dead -- if you have a proper skull mold and 14+ hours of drying time! But we think our gorgeously creepy and free printable pumpkin carving stencil, with its intricate etching and lovely floral designs, makes an admirable substitute. Did we mention our pattern is free to download? Just click below!
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Goofy Grouping Pumpkin Stencils
If you have a bumper crop of perfectly imperfect pumpkins, you're all set to create this motley crew! Download our pumpkin stencils to create gourds with silly grins, angry leers, and and other expressions.
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