13 Creative and Different Pumpkin Decorating Ideas for Kids

Pumpkin carving can be difficulty with young kids, but there are other creative and different pumpkin decorating ideas for kids that you can use this year.

13 Creative and Different Pumpkin Decorating Ideas for Kids (1)-min

Pumpkin Decorating

The first time we decided to carve a pumpkin with my kids, my daughter was 4 and my son was 1. They kind of hated it. Well, I guess hate is a strong word. They didn’t really like it because they couldn’t get involved and my daughter thought it was super gross. She also wanted me to carve an elaborate drawing that was pretty much impossible. After that I decided that we would wait a few years before doing it again when they could help do the carving and not possibly die.

Over the years we done several different types of pumpkin decorations. I also found a lot of other creative and different ways to decorate pumpkins, and if you are running into some of the same issues, hopefully this post will help you come up with some ideas for your kiddos too.

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13 Different Pumpkin Decorating Ideas for Kids

Paint a Pumpkin

I think this is the most obvious thing you can do with your pumpkins. Kids love to paint, and even more they love to paint objects that aren’t paper. But you don’t have to just paint it plain, you can get creative with how you paint your pumpkins. Here are a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing:

Here is the freestyle version. This is what we went with this year. I just let my kids go to town with whatever they wanted to paint. My daughter did a whole scene.

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Hudson Inspired Pumpkin Painting

This idea by Heathered Nest is super cute and simple enough for kids. They are Hudson inspired painted. Kids love lots of colors, so this is a great option, plus you could use it as part of your home décor.

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A good spin off of these would be rainbow pumpkins.

Spider Web Pumpkin with Rhinestones 

What kid doesn’t love their bling? This cute pumpkin inspired by Elle Marie Home is a painted spider web with rhinestones. This is a cute addition to any pumpkin. This would be simple enough for kids to paint, and they would LOVE placing the rhinestones on.

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Gold and Black Pumpkins

These adorable gold and black pumpkins by As For Me and My Homestead, are amazing. You could have the kids stick to a color scheme, which would look adorable on a front porch. The gold just pops.

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Other Great Ideas for Painting Pumpkins with Kids

  • Paint their name
  • Use pumpkin stencils to paint any design.
  • Shapes, numbers, or the first letter of their name
  • Rainbow
  • Paint with glitter
  • Paint a face
  • A character from their favorite show or movie
  • Polka dots
  • Lines

Halloween Games

Pumpkin Faces

Another popular way to decorate a pumpkin with kids is to use the tack on pumpkin faces. You can get pumpkin stickers or you can get the push in kind that are 3D and plastic. We did this last year and again this year after we painted them.

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Prayer Pumpkins

This is a very unique idea, and a way to get into the grateful and giving seasons, by Coffee With Us 3, prayer pumpkins. Write on your pumpkin all the people or things you are praying for with a sharpie. This is a great way to remember to have a prayer in your heart for all your loved ones.

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Nature Pumpkins

Here are some super creative nature pumpkin ideas by Thimble and Twig. You can use pressed flowers, or turn your pumpkin into a nature animal with these cute pumpkin ideas.

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Gratitude Pumpkin Decorating

Create a gratitude pumpkin, inspired by Coffee and Carpool. This goes hand in hand with the prayer pumpkin, but write down all the things you are grateful for. This is a great activity for kids to remember to be grateful during the Holiday season.

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The Paranoid Pumpkin

This is such a cute and fun idea that I think kids will love. I think my daughter would love if we did this. This is the first time I’ve seen this idea by The Boondocks Blog, the paranoid pumpkin. A pumpkin that looks paranoid.

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Mummy Pumpkin

The Mummy pumpkin is such a clever idea by Mombrite. Just with a few supplies, including white tape, you can make a mummified pumpkin.

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Decoupage Pumpkin

Another great idea by Elle Marie Home create a tissue paper decoupage pumpkin. Use a decorative pumpkin, some tissue paper, and mod podge to create an awesome looking pumpkin that will last forever!

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Map Mod Podge Pumpkin

An alternative Idea. Really you could decoupage almost any paper to a pumpkin and it could be a real pumpkin. A good example of this is a map mod podge pumpkin by Heathered Nest. But you could also do coloring pages, or pages from their favorite book (obviously you would have to buy another copy). Any color tissue paper or magazine clippings would also work great!

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Pom Pom Pumpkin

Another amazing idea for kids from Heathered Nest is the Pom Pom Pumpkin. Kids LOVE pom poms, so how cool would it be to cover a whole pumpkin in pom poms? You can buy a bunch of them on Amazon for pretty cheap.

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I hope these ideas have sparked your creativity to make some special pumpkins with your kiddos!

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