I love a classic jack ‘o lantern, but no carve pumpkins are less stressful to make with kids. Another bonus, they don’t rot nearly as fast! I also love that you can do any of these unique pumpkin ideas on real or faux pumpkin. Here are 22 clever, easy no carve pumpkin ideas.
Oh and if you prefer pumpkin carving, don’t miss these posts:
No carve pumpkins are brilliant in warm climates because they don’t rot and attract bugs nearly as fast as carved pumpkins do.
Storybook Pumpkin Ideas
My kids make storybook pumpkins in 3rd grade, but I love when I see clever pumpkins in libraries around town too!
1. Dragons Love Taco Pumpkin
Turn a pumpkin into your favorite picture book, Dragons Love Tacos! I used cardboard and red spray paint to make the dragons body. We used card stock to make the tacos. We attached the dragons head and tail to the pumpkin by hot gluing a popsicle stick to the neck and tail and then using an XACTO knife to cut a slit in the bottom of the pumpkin and sliding the popsicle sticks into place.
2. Piggie and Elephant Pumpkins
Turn your favorite storybook duo into pumpkins! These Piggie and Elephant pumpkins are easy to make with cardboard, card stock, and a hot glue gun!
3. Finding Nemo pumpkin
If you have a Finding Nemo obsessed tiny human in your life, this is the perfect no carve pumpkin for you! Find the complete Finding Nemo no carve pumpkin tutorial at C.R.A.F.T.
4. Charlotte’s Web Pumpkin
One of my all time favorite crafting supplies makes the perfect spider web on a pumpkin painted white. Grab a permanent marker and make a web! Fore more details on the office supply no carve pumpkin, check out C.R.A.F.T.
No Carve Pumpkins
Consider using office supplies to decorate pumpkins with kids. Hunt down thumbtacks, Duck Tape, and a permeant marker to make some wild, cute no carve pumpkins with the kids!
5. Thumbtack pumpkin
Who knew office supplies made such great pumpkin decorating supplies?! Simply stick the thumbtacks into the pumpkin in any shape, word, deisgn or single letter for cute, easy no carve pumpkins. See the complete no carve thumbtack pumpkin tutorial at C.R.A.F.T.
6. Duck Tape Pumpkins
These pumpkin are also made with Duck Tape. I used my Cricut cutting machine to cut fill sheets of Duct Tape into a pumpkin face and a skull. It doesn’t get any easier than this! Get the full no carve, Duck Tape pumpkin tutorial at C.R.A.F.T.
7. Gold thumb tacks
Here’s another no c rave pumpkin idea with thumbtacks. For a fancy feel, cover the entire pumpkin in gold thumbtacks. Who knew office supplies could make a few fake pumpkins look like a million bucks! For more details check out Rosyscription.
8. String Art
Use string, nails, and a hammer to dress up a pumpkin this year! For more details, check out the complete tutorial at Lines Across.
9. Magazine Faces
Let the kiddos cut up the old magazines hanging out in the junk drawer to make crazy faced pumpkins.
DIY Painted Pumpkin Ideas
10. Flower Painted Pumpkin
I used blue, orange, white, and green paint to paint 3 different flowers and vines all over a faux pumpkin. I love how it turned out!
11. DIY Painted Disney pumpkin
Love Disney World? The whimsical, hand painted pumpkin was inspired by the “It’s a Small World” ride at Disney!
12. Doodle pumpkins
These patterned painted pumpkins are amazing. I love them! See more at Blazer Designs.
13. Rainbow Pumpkins
Rainbows make everything cuter, including pumpkins. Tutorial and lots more pictures at Whatever.
14. Finger Painted Pumpkins
John and Sherry used painters tape to block off the “P” and the pumpkin face. Then they let their toddler finger paint the pumpkins. Way more details at Young House Love.
15. Puff Painted Pumpkins
A little puff paint adds texture and pattern to these cute pumpkins. Complete tutorial at Young House Love.
16. Word Search
Love search words? Make a search a word search puzzle pumpkin with chalkboard paint and stickers At the Picket Fence.
17. Door knob
Give a faux pumpkin a new life with a paint job and an antique door knob stem! Genius! Details at Finding Home.
18. Clock pumpkin
You can literally turn anything into a clock, including a fake pumpkin! Simply paint a faux any color you’d like and then install a DIY clock kit for less than $10. Festive and timely, get the details At the Pickett Fence.
19. Eyeball pumpkin
This pumpkin requires a small amount of carving, but you only have to carve an oval/ eye shape into a large orange pumpkin! Then, paint an eyeball on a smaller, white pumpkin and place the white pumpkin inside the orange pumpkin. This creative eyeball pumpkin was created by Bee Moon Sketches.
Unique No Carve Pumpkin Ideas
20. Drill a Pumpkin
Use a drill to “carve” a pumpkin the super easy way, and make designs to let your pumpkin shine! Check out the tutorial at Crafty Nest.
21. Doily Pumpkin
Consider adhering a gold doily to decorate a pumpkin. It’s simple and beautiful! For details, check out 17 Apart.
22. Sticker Pumpkins
These simple neon circle stickers look amazing on a white painted pumpkin, don’t you think?
What’s your favorite way to decorate pumpkins? If you’re into thumbtacks, check out this thumbtack pumpkin decorating party I hosted at my local IKEA. If you want more pumpkin decorating ideas check out:
Comments & Reviews
Azores Traveller says
Wow, this is so neat! I love all the colors and the time clock pumpkin! You are an amazing writer as well! A nice surprise to find on a cold fall morning! Can’t wait to try some out tonight!
Cathey says
My favs are the finger painted pumpkins. What a nice family time to make something so unique!
capturing joy with kristen duke says
such fun ideas! I love the nail/string art!
Lolly Jane says
THANKS for including our painted pumpkins! Muah!
xo
Amy W says
I so love all these non.traditional pumpkin decorating ideas! I want to try the nail string pumpkin. I just made a cream felt pumpkin, a labor of love.
http://www.delineateyourdwelling.com/2013/09/felt-pumpkin.html
Amy