Printable Pumpkin Carving Patterns
And Stencils You Can Use

Use these printable pumpkin carving patterns and stencils to make an cool pumpkin carving this Halloween.

Some people carve their pumpkins free hand, or just draw their own pattern onto the pumpkin before they start sawing away.

However, if you want to do something more intricate, like the picture to the right, or you want your pumpkin carving to be even on both sides you will need to use a pumpkin carving stencil or pumpkin carving pattern.

How To Use Your Printable Pumpkin Carving Patterns

Cut the lid out of your pumpkin, and scoop out the pulp and seeds. Try to make your pumpkin's walls about an inch thick, at least where you will carve. That way the wall of the pumpkin will stay relatively sturdy, but not be too hard to cut, especially for intricate designs.

Step 1: Tape or pin the printable pattern to your pumpkin, making sure it is smooth, especially if it is an intricate design.

You may need to strategically cut the paper to help it lay smooth, since a pumpkin is naturally rounded in shape. Be sure to pin down these cuts to keep the paper from moving around.

Step 2: Following the lines of the pattern use a push pin, small nail, or bent paperclip to poke holes through the paper and the pumpkin itself to make a dotted impression of your template on the pumpkin itself.

This can take some time, and the more intricate your printable pumpkin carving pattern the longer it will take, because the holes will need to be even closer together.

Step 3: Once you have poked all the holes from the pattern into the pumpkin take off the paper and use a dry erase marker to connect the little dots into the pattern from the paper onto your pumpkin.

Hint: Why do I say a dry erase marker? You will most likely not cut exactly on the lines, and if you use a permanent marker, for instance, you will see black marks around parts of the pumpkin where it is cut. Not attractive.

The dry erase markers will wipe off, making it look like you cut it without using the lines. Much cooler.

Step 4: Begin to carve your pumpkin. Before beginning make sure you have decided which areas should be completely cut out, and those where the pumpkin should have the skin shaved off, leaving just flesh behind.

Many of the intricate patterns seen below use this second technique, as does the picture at the top of the page. You don't want to cut all the way through the wall of the pumpkin when using this technique, or it will not look correct and the pumpkin will most likely collapse as its walls weaken.

Free Printable Pumpkin Carving Patterns

Here are some free pumpkin carving stencils and patterns I have found around the web.

Please contact me if you would like me to add your link to more free, family friendly, printables.

• Bat Pattern Template
• Blue's Clues Pattern Template
• Cat Pattern Template
• Happy Clown Template
• Spooky Ghost Template
• Smiling Jack O'Lantern Template
• Owl Head Template
• Smiling Skull Template
• Spider Web Template
• Flying Witch On A Broom Template
• ExtremePumpkins.com - 48 Free Pumpkin Patterns - These patterns are pretty good, because they come from expert pumpkin carver Tom Nardone, who has been featured in many TV segments about carving pumpkins. Several are scary though, and may not be suitable for kids.
• Kid Friendly Character Pumpkin Patterns - these come from ZombiePumpkins.com, and are free once you join the site (there are also lots of other patterns to choose from once you visit the site)
• Parenting.com's Pumpkin Carving Stencils - These are all pretty kid friendly, since they come from a parenting site.
• Nick Junior Pumpkin Stencils - these stencils are generally pretty easy, skill wise, and are characters from some of the shows on Nick Junior and Nickolodeon
• Pumpkin Carving Patterns From Celebrating-Halloween.com - These look pretty cool, although some are quite complicated. I especially like the dancing skeleton one.

Pumpkin Carving Stencils And Patterns You Can Purchase

There are many books you can buy which contain printable pumpkin carving patterns. Make sure to make a photocopy of the template you are using, so you can use it again the next year if you want.

Have fun carving your pumpkins this year with your family. If you make some cool ones using any of the templates linked to from here I would love for you to send me a picture, which I'll feature on the site!

Related Links At Household Management 101

Holidays And Celebrations With Your Family

How To Roast Pumpkin Seeds

Recipes For Halloween + Addtional Fall Meal Ebooks

Printables And Checklists For Your Household Notebook

Go From Printable Pumpkin Carving Patterns To Household Management 101 Home Page