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The full outline of Minnesota carved as one glowing state-shaped window, from the flat southern border up to the jagged Arrowhead along Lake Superior. The entire silhouette is cut through in a single piece, leaving the surrounding pumpkin wall to frame it. Take your time on the notched northeast shoreline, sawing gently along each small zigzag, and pop the big piece out in sections rather than all at once. This design is rated Intermediate and takes most carvers around 75 minutes from trace to glow. Comfortable knife handling required. Small details and curves.
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
- 1Print it
Download the PDF and print at 100% scale on letter or A4 paper.
- 2Prep the pumpkin
Cut the lid at an angle, scoop the guts, thin the wall to ~1 inch.
- 3Tape it on
Snip darts in the paper so it lies flat against the curve.
- 4Transfer the design
Poke along every line — about one dot every 1/8 inch.
- 5Carve it
Connect the dots with short straight cuts. Center first, work outward.
- 6Light it up
Drop in a battery LED pumpkin light and you're done.
Tools you'll need
For a intermediate carve like this you'll want a x-acto knife, poker tool, ribbon scoop, and painter's tape. 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 ↗
Community Pumpkin Carving Ideas
Carving ideas that use stencils like this one.
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A six-point sheriff-style badge star with rounded ball tips glows proudly from the pumpkin in this tribute to law enforcement. The full star is removed as one big cutout, so the badge shines as a single bold panel of light. It is an easy carve despite the fancy silhouette; saw each point from its ball tip back toward the star body, and rotate the pumpkin as you go so every cut is at a comfortable angle.
IntermediateHawaii Island Chain
The Hawaiian island chain sweeps diagonally across the pumpkin, with eight separate glowing cutouts running from Niihau and Kauai down to the Big Island. Each island is its own small pierced opening, so the surrounding shell needs no bridges at all. Carve the largest island first to get a feel for the wall thickness, then use a fine detail saw for the smaller islands so their shapes stay distinct.
AdvancedMaryland State Shape
Maryland glows inside a carved rectangular window, its straight northern border on top and the deeply notched Chesapeake Bay splitting the eastern shore from the mainland. The bay itself is left as standing pumpkin wall, so the two glowing landmasses frame it dramatically. That narrow bay peninsula is what makes this a hard carve; cut away from it on both sides, keep the strip at least a finger wide, and brace it from inside if needed.
IntermediateMassachusetts State Shape
The Massachusetts silhouette stretches across the pumpkin, complete with the unmistakable curled hook of Cape Cod flexing off the eastern end. The entire state is cut through as one opening so the whole commonwealth glows. That skinny Cape Cod arm is the trickiest part of this medium carve; leave it for last, support the wall with your free hand, and use gentle strokes so the curl does not tear loose.
AdvancedNorth Carolina State Shape
North Carolina stretches across the pumpkin as one long glowing cutout, from the pointed western mountain tip to the fringed Outer Banks coastline on the right. The entire state interior is removed so the distinctive wedge shape reads clearly at night. Rated hard because of the fine barrier-island fingers along the coast; cut the smooth northern border first, then work the ragged eastern edge slowly with a detail saw, leaving the thinnest points for last.
AdvancedMichigan Mitten Shape
Michigan's Lower Peninsula carved as one big glowing mitten, complete with the thumb of Saginaw Bay and the ragged shoreline notches along the lakes. The full state shape is cut through, so accuracy along that coastline is the whole challenge, which is what pushes this one to hard. Trace the outline with a fine saw, work the tight bay curves in several passes, and remove the waste piece in halves to protect the thumb.