These paint pen patterned pumpkins are a no-carve idea so easy that kids or adults can create them. It’s an awesome alternative pumpkin decoration idea that will update your fall decor to something modern and cool.

DIY Paint Pen Patterned No-Carve Pumpkins

Little white pumpkins have become my favorite canvas around this time of year, in case you haven’t noticed. I go to the store and buy a bag of ’em and sit and stare at them until I decide what my plan is.

This year, I just kept thinking of these patterns and how much fun I had making them, so I decided to give the pumpkins the same treatment. Good decision, me!

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No-Carve Pumpkin Ideas

I fully admit that I’m not a fan of carving pumpkins. I love a no-carve pumpkin idea like these patterned pumpkins for so many reasons!

First, painted pumpkins last longer! Once you carve a pumpkin the clock starts ticking and it’s only a matter of time until you’re left with a squishy mess.

Secondly, carving pumpkins is such a huge mess! And I know that being a crafty person, I should welcome creative messes. But for some reason this one just sends me running.

And finally, there are so many incredibly creative things you can to without carving a pumpkin! It opens up a whole new world of ideas.

And speaking of ideas, I went through our archives and selected our most popular pumpkin decorating ideas to get your ideas flowing. Be sure to pin your favorites so you don’t lose them!

The Best Paint for Pumpkins

These fun, modern patterned pumpkins are really simple to make, and you only need a few supplies.

I can’t recommend enough the Pentouch paint pens for this project. You’ll find links below to my favorites!

I love these particular paint pens for a few reasons. First, the coverage is beautiful and they don’t often leave a streaky finish.

Also, the flow of the pen is really smooth, unlike lots of other pain pens that I’ve tried.

Finally, they have a range of tips, from ultra fine to thick, so that you can really choose the right pen for the job.

Additionally, for covering a large area with paint when you’re painting pumpkins, I find that acrylic craft paint has a nice coverage. You’ll find a link to that below as well.

Decorating with Fake Pumpkins

Another thing to keep in mind about this project is that you can create patterned pumpkins with faux gourds as well!

I do love using fresh, real pumpkins. But! If you use faux pumpkins you can store them away and use them as fall decor year after year.

It’s a great way to save money on decor.

The paint pens work equally well on faux pumpkins for creating detailed patterns. However, I would recommend a spray paint rather than a brush-on acrylic craft paint for painting large areas.

And hey, you can do this to any size or color pumpkin you want! The best part? You don’t have to do that thing where you hollow out the pumpkin guts and get your hands all sticky. You’re welcome.

TIPS FOR USING PAINT PENS

Once you get the hang of it, they’re very easy to use! But there are a few tips and tricks that I’ve learned over the years that I’d love to share, so that you don’t have to learn by trial and error like I did.

When you use a paint pen for the first time, shake it vigorously with the cap on to mix the paint. Then, remove the cap, and hold the pen vertically over a piece of scratch paper. Depress the pen tip down a few times until you start to see ink flow into the tip. Allow the ink to fully saturate the tip. Now you’re ready to draw.
I recommend using a piece of scratch paper to test your pens before writing on your mini pumpkin. It’s nice to get the hang of how the paint flows.
Finally, I find that these pens work extremely well when you hold them somewhat vertically (as opposed to at an angle, as you may hold a regular pen). It helps keep the paint flow even, and not streaky or drippy.

Supplies for Creating Patterned Pumpkins

Here’s what you’ll need to create these pretty patterned pumpkins for Halloween!

Materials

small white pumpkins (or your favorite kind of gourd!)
Pentouch black paint pens
black acrylic paint
paintbrushes

How to Make Modern Paint Pen Patterned Pumpkins

Make Time: 10 Minutes per Pumpkin

Start by planning out your patterns or designs. Feel free to copy ours or make up some of your own!
If some of your pumpkins will have large painted areas with solid color, I recommend starting with those so that they can dry while you create the smaller detailed patterns.
Simply paint the pumpkin with a paintbrush as you would any canvas, set aside, and allow to dry.
For the patterned pumpkins, be sure you follow all of our tips for using paint pens above! Practice your pattern a few times on scratch paper and then apply it to your pumpkin.

That’s it! This is a particularly fun project to try with friends, or while you’re watching a Halloween movie. If you try our DIY, I’d be so happy if you could rate it below.

Have fun! xoxo