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View all stencils →About this stencil
An ornate flared cross stands at the center of an oval field of sunburst rays that radiate outward to the design's edge. It is carved entirely in continuous-wall relief: the cross is left raised with beveled edges while the rays are shaved to alternating depths so light plays across the whole medallion. This hard shading piece rewards patience, so establish the cross outline deep and clean first, then carve every ray from the cross outward to keep the bevels crisp. This design is rated Advanced and takes most carvers around 150 minutes from trace to glow. Multi-layer cuts with skin-peel shading. Plan your cuts first.
Pumpkin size guide
- 🎃 Small (5–7") — print at 80%
- 🎃 Medium (7–10") — print at 100% (recommended)
- 🎃 Large (11–13") — print at 130%
- 🎃 Giant (14"+) — print at 150% on tabloid paper
Frequently asked questions
Can I resize this stencil?▾
Yes. The PDF is vector so it scales cleanly. Print at 100% for a 7–10 inch pumpkin, 130% for 11–13 inch, or 150% for a giant. Use your printer's "Fit to page" or "Custom scale" setting.
What kind of paper works best?▾
Standard 20 lb letter or A4 printer paper is fine. Heavier paper is harder to bend around the pumpkin curve. If your printer supports it, set the quality to 'best' so the lines are crisp.
How long will the carved pumpkin last?▾
Usually 5–10 days. Coat all cut surfaces with petroleum jelly and store the pumpkin somewhere cool overnight. Avoid direct sun. Battery LED pumpkin lights produce no heat and double the lifespan.
Can I sell pumpkins carved with this stencil?▾
Yes, the carved pumpkin you make is yours. The license covers personal and small-scale commercial carving (selling carved pumpkins, photographing them, posting on social). You may not resell the PDF file itself.
What if my printer doesn't print the whole stencil?▾
Set 'Page scaling' to 'Fit' in the print dialog and uncheck 'Auto-rotate'. If it still cuts off, the design includes 0.25" of safe-area margin so a small crop won't ruin it.
How to carve this stencil
This is a continuous-wall shading design: you never cut all the way through the pumpkin. On the printable pattern, light gray regions get just the skin shaved off for a faint glow, dark gray regions are scraped deeper so more light comes through, and white areas keep their skin untouched. The numbers give you the safest working order. Plan on about 2-3 hours from print to candle.
Set up first. Print the PDF at 100% scale on letter or A4 paper. Cut the lid at an angle, scoop the pumpkin clean, and thin the wall to about 1 inch behind the design so light can pass through the shaded areas. Tape the pattern on (snip small darts in the paper so it hugs the curve) and transfer the outlines by poking dots along every line. Work with a loop tool, clay ribbon scraper, or the back of a spoon rather than a saw.
Shading order
- Shave the oval pocket. Shallow-shave every gray region, starting at the left oval edge marked 1. Leave the white cross lip, fan ribs and outside skin fully intact. Keep the oval taller than it is wide.
- Deepen the central cross. Deepen the cross face marked 2, including the long shaft and four pointed ends. Keep its pale inside margin shallow and the white outer lip untouched. No part cuts through the wall.
- Light the surrounding fans. Deepen the seventeen dark-gray ray fields, with broad examples marked 3. Follow the unequal upper and lower fans. Preserve every white rib and all shallow space around the rays; tiny surface texture is consolidated.
Check your progress often: set a bright LED inside and dim the room lights, and the glow shows exactly where to scrape deeper. Go slowly near thin spots and stop before the wall flexes; a pierced wall cannot be undone.
Tools you'll need
For a advanced carve like this you'll want a linoleum cutter set, x-acto knife, peel tool, and pin transfer wheel. Here's the kit we reach for — start with whatever you already own.
Elmchee Pumpkin Carving Kit
13-piece kit with carrying case
Saws for the larger cutouts, plus a scoop for hollowing. Covers both jobs in one kit.
View on Amazon ↗
HOME MOST LED Pumpkin Lights
4-pack, battery operated, with remote + timer
Orange glow made for jack-o'-lanterns. The remote and timer light the pumpkin every evening without reaching inside.
View on Amazon ↗
Speedball 4131 Lino Cutter Set
Handle + 5 interchangeable cutters
Interchangeable cutters for peeling and shading the face. Useful for the finer details.
View on Amazon ↗
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A bold cross anchors the center of the design while ten tapered rays burst outward around it like beams of light. The cross and every ray are pierced through, leaving dark shell between them that frames the radiating pattern. Cut the large cross first to relieve pressure on the wall, then work each ray from its wide outer end toward the narrow tip so the points finish clean.
IntermediatePlain Cross with Nine Rays
A plain cross stands at the center while nine tapered rays of light fan outward around it, like a sunburst breaking through. This shaded design is carved on a continuous wall, shaving the skin away so the cross and rays glow warmly with no pierced openings, which suits a reverent, softer look. Shave the cross to an even depth first, then taper each ray shallower toward its tip so the light appears to fade outward.
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An ornate expert-level face framed by a full ring of small triangle cutouts circling the pumpkin, with chevron-crested brows, barred flame-shaped eyes, a diamond nose, and a huge jagged grin holding fourteen zigzag teeth. Everything pierces through, so the finished lantern sparkles from every angle like carved lace. Plan your order: punch the border triangles first while the wall is rigid, then work inward, saving the long fragile grin for the very end.
AdvancedVintage Arches and Round Grin
Arched triple line brows curl above big eyes divided by rind bars, a long triangle nose drops between them, and a huge grin shows a full row of rounded teeth with dotted curlicue accents swirling at each cheek. All the openings are cut through in a cheerful retro style straight off an old holiday postcard. Rated hard for its many small dots and thin brow lines, it rewards a fine detail saw and a drill for the dots.
Expert / ProRadiant Cross and Lower Leaves
An ornate flared cross rises from a bed of scrolling leaves while sunburst rays fan out behind every arm, all carved in layered relief. Nothing pierces the wall: the cross, rays, and foliage are shaved at multiple depths so the design reads as glowing sculpture with crisp raised borders. This expert shading project demands patience, so map your three depth levels first and always carve the background rays before refining the cross's beveled edges.
AdvancedBarred Eyes and Serrated Grin
This wicked traditional face stacks barred triangle eyes with heavy slanted brows above a huge serrated grin, then flanks the mouth with rows of small wedge and diamond accents across both cheeks. Everything is cut through, and the eye bars are thin strips of shell left inside each triangle. Cut on both sides of each eye bar before removing the surrounding pieces, and save the tiny cheek diamonds for last.