No Carve? No Problem!

Jack-o’-lanterns have long reigned supreme when it comes to Halloween decorating. But you don’t have to wield a sharp knife to make your fall pumpkin festive. Try any of these no-carve methods and enjoy the spooky-fun results!

• Emojis are everywhere these days, so why not put one on your front step come Halloween? The pumpkin’s round shape makes it a perfect canvas for emoji inspiration. Place your pumpkin on newspaper, then spray-paint to a solid shade of bright yellow. When the paint is dry, use black and red permanent markers to personalize your emojis with smiles, winks and the like.
• Because Halloween hours extend past sunset, glow sticks and glow jewelry such as bracelets, necklaces and crowns are smart purchases. Get your no-carve jack-o’-lantern in on the action by spray-painting it any glow-in-the-dark shade, then using permanent markers to draw funny or scary faces or designs.
• Pumpkins can also go glam when “bedazzled.” Buy larger plastic jewels and sequins at craft stores and use a good glue to prettify your pumpkin. Ribbons and bows make great additions.
• Chalkboard spray paint is another creative tool for making your Halloween pumpkin one-of-a-kind. Spray paint the entire pumpkin over a large sheet of newspaper and when dry, decorate with chalk. The sky’s the limit for what you write and draw on your pumpkin canvas. And because the chalk drawings are erasable, you can switch things up as often as you’d like!