Seasons are quickly changing and fall décor is being sold in every store to bring home and add some pizazz to your home and garden. One of the most quintessential decorations for the fall season is the pumpkin! Whether you prefer a plastic pumpkin or a real one, there are many ways to customize them to your tastes and to match your style. If you’re looking to spice up your pumpkins, this guide will provide ways to carve, paint, and decorate yours. Be sure to download the Mopria Print Service App first, so you can print off your favorite designs once you discover them.
Carving Designs
Before you even choose a pumpkin, select a design you want to carve. This way, you can bring the design with you to the store, and pick the pumpkin that best matches the shape of the design you’re going for. Here are a few designs to pick from – scroll through, pick one out, and send it to print using the Mopria Print Service app on your phone. Once you’ve selected a pumpkin, lay out plenty of old newspapers for a clean work surface, and cut out the bottom of your pumpkin. If you cut out the bottom instead of the top, you’ll get a lot of the guts and seeds out more easily! Scoop out as much of the pumpkin as you can, as thinner walls make for easier carving. This is especially important if you’re carving pumpkins with kids for the first time. Pin the design to your pumpkin, and either lightly carve along the design with a sharpened tool, or poke holes along the path of the design to go across once you remove the paper. Then, all you have to do is carve. Once you’re done, spread a layer of petroleum jelly or vegetable oil along carved edges to keep your pumpkin from rotting. Just add a candle inside (real or fake!) and place your finished designs on the porch for all the neighbors to see.
Painting Designs
When painting a pumpkin, you can select any kind you like. Real, fake, big, small, green, or orange. Choose whatever pumpkin suits your style, and get a few supplies from the craft store while you’re at it to make things fun for the family. This can be a variety of paints (though acrylic is best), glitter, pom poms, feathers, or any specific details to make the pumpkin into whatever you want. If you buy some felt or foam, you can cut out ears and make a cat pumpkin, or a hat to make a witch pumpkin. You can even cut shapes into a sponge and create a stamp, to make things easier for younger kids. Just be sure to let the pumpkin fully dry, then you can display inside or outside.
With these helpful tips and tricks in mind, you’re ready to get carving. Bear in mind that you don’t need high quality tools to carve a pumpkin, but sometimes the cheaper kits can be flimsy and dangerous. Always keep an eye on younger ones who are carving, and help out wherever you can to keep things safe and fun. Should you need to scan and make copies of a pumpkin design you like in a book or from a kit, just use the Mopria Scan App to get that right to your phone or printer.
