While carving pumpkins is a Halloween tradition many of us enjoy, it can get pretty darn messy and it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Whether you don’t have the patience or time to carve a pumpkin this year, need no mess pumpkin activities for a Halloween-themed party, or just want to add a little extra style to your home for the holidays, we’re sharing our favorite no carve pumpkin decorating ideas below!
What I love most about these is that you can make them as simple or extravagant as you want, and you don’t need a lot of supplies. You’ll be amazed at what you can create with nothing other than a pumpkin, paint, glitter, glue gun, and whatever crafting materials you already have laying around the house.
9 Simple & Stylish No Carve Pumpkin Decorating Ideas
Simple Sticker Pumpkins
If you’re looking for no carve pumpkin decorating ideas for younger kids, a really easy option is to have them decorate their own pumpkin with Halloween-themed stickers! These Halloween stickers on Amazon are a great as the package includes everything imaginable – pumpkins, bats, spiders, ghosts, witches, and so much more! If the stickers don’t adhere to your pumpkin, try using craft glue or, if all else fails, get the glue gun out!
Rainbow Pour Pumpkins
If you have pouring paint in a variety of colors on hand, you can use them to create a beautiful rainbow pumpkin. Start by painting your pumpkin white and letting it dry so you have a good base coat, and then add each paint color to a separate Dixie cup. Next, pour each color onto the pumpkin in the order of the rainbow. Start pouring at the top of the pumpkin and let the paint run down to the bottom. Don’t move the pumpkin at all so as not to disturb the natural flow of the paint. Let it dry and viola!
Paint Splatter Pumpkins
If you have acrylic paints on hand, you can use them to create beautiful paint splatter pumpkins. Start by painting your pumpkins one solid color and allow them to dry. Next, mix your acrylic paints with a bit of water until they reach a creamy consistency, and then use paint brushes to splatter the paint onto your pumpkins. This is one of my favorite no carve pumpkin decorating ideas because you can choose color palettes to match your home and then use the pumpkins as center pieces and/or statement pieces throughout!
Crayon Drip Pumpkins
This is similar to the rainbow pour idea above, but instead of using pouring paint, you use crayons. You can use your pumpkin as is, or paint it white first. Just make sure you’re starting with a dry pumpkin! Once your pumpkin is ready, peel the wrappers off of your crayons and place them at the top of your pumpkin, one at a time. Next, apply heat to the crayon with a hair dryer so that it starts to melt. You can then move the pumpkin around as you wish to create beautiful, colored streaks. Repeat with different colored crayons until you’re satisfied.
Glitter Pumpkins
If you’re brave enough to craft with glitter (spoiler alert: I’m not), you can create beautiful pumpkins in minutes. All you need to do is spray your pumpkin with a spray adhesive, pour glitter over top, and then shake off the excess glitter. There are tons of ways you can get creative with this idea too! For example, you can paint your pumpkin one solid color, and then apply glitter that’s either the same color or slightly lighter/darker to only to the top or bottom of your pumpkin. Another idea is to paint your pumpkin a solid color and only apply glitter to the stem for a simple and unique look!
Jeweled Pumpkins
Another one of my favorite simple yet stylish no carve pumpkin decorating ideas is to hot glue jewels onto your pumpkins. You can keep things simple and apply them directly to your pumpkin, or you can pre-paint your pumpkin your child’s favorite color. This is a great Halloween party activity as everyone can create their own beautiful designs and then display them in their rooms!
Nail Polish Pumpkins
If you’ve ever wondered how to create a marble effect on your pumpkins, the answer is so simple it will surprise you: nail polish and water! Fill a bowl with warm water, pour a few drops of nail polish directly into the water, and mix it up a little with a wooden skewer. Next, grab your pumpkin by the stem and gently lower it into the water and move it around to create a marble effect. This will work on all pumpkins, but will obviously look more intense and striking if you use a white pumpkin.
Polka Dot Pumpkins
This is another great idea if you’re looking for easy no carve pumpkin decorating ideas for young kids. All you need is a pumpkin (a basic orange one will do, but you can get creative and paint it ahead of time if you desire), craft glue, and pom poms, round stickers, or anything else you have on hand that will allow you to create a polka dot effect. Another option is to paint your pumpkin white or black ahead of time, and then paint polka dots onto it with metallic acrylic paint!
Funny Faces
The last idea on my list of no carve pumpkin decorating ideas is to grab a sharpie marker and let your kids draw funny faces directly onto their pumpkins. They can add accessories like string for hair, a witches hat, or even a face mask to make it relevant, lol. The sky is the limit!
Oh, and one more idea…
Teal Pumpkins
If your life has been touched by food allergies and you want to help raise awareness in your neighborhood, paint a pumpkin teal and place it on your front porch. This signifies to trick-or-treaters that you will have non-food items available to keep kids with food allergies safe. Not sure what kind of non-food items to have available? Amazon sells tons of party favors in bulk. This set is a great one to start with!
Whether you’re organizing a Halloween party, or looking for no-stress ways to decorate your home this season, I hope this collection of no carve pumpkin decorating ideas inspires you!
