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Get Into The Spooky Spirit With These 5 Halloween Pumpkin Ideas
The humble pumpkin has been an iconic symbol of Halloween for years. It is said that, traditionally, carved pumpkins - also known as jack-o'-lanterns - have been used to ward off evil spirits. They have also been said to have been chosen due to the orange colour resembling the colour tones of Autumn, the season for Halloween in America. Offering a nod to classic Halloween traditions, displaying a carved pumpkin or pumpkin themed decorations helps to signify that your household is celebrating Halloween and welcomes trick or treaters on Halloween night.
At Spotlight, we have so many ways for you to bring this beautiful squash into your home this October. From cute Halloween crafts to scary Halloween pumpkin carving designs, our Halloween pumpkin ideas are sure to get you into a wholesome Halloween mood at home!
Quick Links
- Craft Pumpkin Inspired Halloween Decorations
- Dress Up In A Pumpkin Halloween Costume
- Craft and Create Your Own Pumpkin Themed Accessories
- The Classic Way: How To Carve A Pumpkin For Halloween
- Decorate a Halloween Pumpkin Without Carving
1. Craft Pumpkin Inspired Halloween Decorations
If you love getting crafty at home, try making some of our Halloween pumpkin craft projects! Creating cute pumpkin crafts that you can display at home is a great way to add a personal touch to your Halloween home decor.
These projects will create many unique Halloween pumpkin decorations you can display, both inside and outside the home. For more spooky crafts to make, browse through our Halloween projects page.
Explore our Halloween Projects
Floating Pumpkins With @diaryofdespina
Make an eye-catching decorative display of floating Halloween pumpkins by recreating Instagram crafter @diaryofdespina's captivating work of art. This display of floating Halloween pumpkins is incredibly creative and is sure to stop guests and trick or treaters in their tracks. Using carvable pumpkins from Spotlight, follow along @diaryofdespina as she takes you through how to carve a pumpkin and decorate it, as well as how to arrange and install them in your home for a memorable Halloween decoration.
The best part about this project? Although incredibly lifelike, the carvable pumpkins used for this display will never rot, so you can simply store these Halloween pumpkin decorations away and reuse them next Halloween, meaning your creative work will never go to waste!
For more information on how @diaryofdespina created this showstopping Halloween decoration, check out her helpful Instagram reel.
What You'll Need
- Carvable Pumpkins
- Jo Sonja Paints - Carbon Black, Raw Umber, Brown Earth
- Paintbrush
- Hot Knife Cutter or Stanley Knife
- Fishing Wire
- Command or Suction Hooks
How to Make Floating Pumpkins
- Design your pumpkins - Use a marker to draw your spooky faces directly onto the carvable pumpkins.
- Carve - Carefully carve out the faces using the electric hot knife.
- Details - Paint the carved components of eyes, mouth and nose a darker shade of brown/black
- Creating the floating effect - Pierce a hole in the stem and attach clear fishing line securely to the top of each pumpkin and hang them at different heights to create the illusion that they're floating.
- Add the glow - Place an LED tealight inside each carved pumpkin for an illuminating glow.
- Turn down the lights - Once it gets dark, switch on the tealights and watch your floating pumpkins come to life!
Styling tip: Hang the pumpkins at different heights and at slightly staggered distances to make the floating effect more convincing. Keep the surrounding decorations darker and let the glowing pumpkins remain the focus of this decorative display.
Hessian Pumpkins
These rustic pumpkins will test your dyeing and sewing skills. This Hessian Pumpkins Project will guide you through creating a homely, wonderfully textured hessian pumpkin that looks great on any shelf or table. Perfect for a rustic twist on traditional Halloween decorations, this project is ideal for crafters with a little more experience under their belt.
Halloween Painted Pumpkins To Brighten Your Home
Simple but stunning, our Halloween Painted Pumpkins Project will help you create a bright, colourful and sparkly pumpkin that's perfect for displaying during Halloween. Using small faux pumpkins, you can create gorgeously-coloured Halloween decorations that are perfect for stacking, piling and showcasing in your home.
Fabric Pumpkins
Choose your favourite Halloween fabric and create a puffy pumpkin with this Fabric Pumpkins Project. Resulting in cosy, plush Halloween decorations, this project is the perfect way for beginner crafters to join in the fun of DIY Halloween creations. Make small, medium, or large pumpkins and fill your home with these sensational squashes!
2. Dress Up In A Pumpkin Halloween Costume
If you want a quick and easy solution to your costume woes, then our ready-made pumpkin Halloween costumes are just the thing you need. From a simple pumpkin tabard to a terrifying pumpkin ghoul costume, we have pumpkin Halloween costumes to suit your spooky preferences. Both our adults' Halloween costumes and kids' Halloween costumes can be shopped for in-store or delivered straight to your front door at your convenience. So, browse our costume collection and find the perfect pumpkin Halloween ensembles right here!
3. Craft and Create Your Own Pumpkin Themed Accessories
Spotlight has all the sewing supplies and fabrics you need to create your own pumpkin Halloween themed accessories at home. These include:
Halloween Beanie
For a simple, eye-catching and easy-to-make pumpkin-themed accessory, try making our Spook Pumpkin Beanie. This knitting project is suitable for beginners and guides you through creating a comfy beanie to keep you warm on chilly Halloween nights when trick or treating, or to wear all year round for a spooky touch to your everyday routine!
Halloween Treat Bags
When trick or treating, it's important to have a bag on hand to store all your sweets and chocolates. Add a traditional Halloween touch to your trick or treating trip by putting together a pumpkin themed treat bag. Check out our Crochet Bag Project for a step-by-step guide on how to crochet a pumpkin themed companion for trick or treat adventures.
Download the Marvel Crochet Bags Project
Halloween Earrings
Jewellery is the perfect accessory to any costume, so this Halloween, try your hand at crafting some fashionable Halloween pumpkin themed earrings. Following our Polymer Clay Earrings Project, you can shape miniature flat pumpkins from orange polymer clay for a joyful pumpkin themed accessory.
Download the Polymer Clay Earrings Project
4. The Classic Way: How To Carve A Pumpkin For Halloween
Mastering how to carve a pumpkin for Halloween into that iconic jack-o'-lantern grin can be intimidating, especially if you haven't done it before! Here are some of our best tips and tricks for creating an authentic jack-o'-lantern this October:
- Use a golden nugget pumpkin or Connecticut field pumpkin for the most authentic looking jack-o'-lantern. These pumpkins are almost perfectly round and orange, with a thinner rind that is easier to carve through. Try to choose a pumpkin with a stem (better looking) and a flat bottom, which will help the pumpkin stay steady as you carve it. Never carry your pumpkin by the stem, because if it comes off, your pumpkin will quickly rot and wither.
- Draw your design on your pumpkin using washable markers so you can remove the design later, or copy it onto a piece of paper, stick the paper over your pumpkin and poke holes using a fork or pin through the paper into your pumpkin to make an outline you can cut out later.
- Use a thin knife with a saw-like blade to cut out your design. For safety reasons, always cut away from your body and not towards it.
- Cut the lid at an inward 45-degree angle, so the lid doesn't fall into the pumpkin. You might also like to cut a small notch as you carve around your lid so it's obvious how to put the lid back correctly when you're done. Or cut a hole from the bottom, which prevents your pumpkin from collapsing prematurely and allows you to simply pop your jack-o'-lantern over a candle.
- Keep the pumpkin seeds for roasting! Mix with a little oil and salt and you've got yourself a tasty roasted snack.
- Create a small 'chimney' in your jack-o'-lantern if you are using a real candle, so heat and any smoke have a way to escape your pumpkin. A small hole cut into the lid of the jack o' lantern will suffice.
- Thin the walls where you will be carving the face of your jack-o'-lantern, so it's easier to cut through.
- Petroleum jelly can be added to the freshly cut surfaces of your pumpkin to help keep them looking fresh.
Decorate Halloween Pumpkin Without Carving
If carving a fresh pumpkin isn't your cup of tea, don't worry - there are plenty of other fun ways you can decorate them without bringing out the saw knife! Some of our favourite ways include:
- Create Halloween pumpkin designs by gluing on small craft accessories, like buttons, sequins or something spooky like fake spiders.
- Paint your pumpkin instead of carving it! Make sure to clean your pumpkin with a damp, soapy cloth (avoid wetting the stem) and then dry it with a rag before priming to help your acrylic paint stay on longer. Then seal at the end for a shiny finish.
- Add faux greenery and flowers for a more natural-looking pumpkin if you're not going for a fully scary Halloween.
- Add accessories like googly eyes, hats, headphones, a wig, or glasses to give your pumpkin some character! You can even give them their own mini-Halloween costumes, like bandages for a mummy, a red nose for a clown or a scary mask.
Bring Your Halloween Pumpkin Ideas To Life With Spotlight
Celebrate tradition with a creative and modern twist this Halloween with our favourite Halloween pumpkin ideas. Check out our craft and party hubs online or at your nearest store to find everything you need for your Halloween pumpkin craft and decor projects. Shop the whole Halloween range at Spotlight this spooky season, including our collection of Halloween craft supplies, Halloween costumes and Halloween decorations, all in one place.
