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View all stencils →About this stencil
A serene sleeping crescent moon with a sculpted profile face rests beside a bold five-point star, the pair wrapped in curling scrollwork flourishes and tiny accent stars. Everything is continuous-wall relief, shaved to different depths with no pierced holes, giving it an heirloom carved-wood look. An expert project; keep the moon's facial features shallow and rounded, saving your deepest cuts for the background around the scrolls. This design is rated Expert / Pro and takes most carvers around 240 minutes from trace to glow. Sculpting-grade work. Three or more depth layers, fine detail.
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 expert / pro carve like this you'll want a full ribbon tool set, clay sculpting loops, x-acto knife, and dremel (optional). 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.
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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.
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Speedball 4131 Lino Cutter Set
Handle + 5 interchangeable cutters
Interchangeable cutters for peeling and shading the face. Useful for the finer details.
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Community Pumpkin Carving Ideas
Carving ideas that use stencils like this one.
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Expert / ProMoon Profile and One Star
A serene man-in-the-moon profile fills a broad crescent, his closed-eye face, nose, and lips sculpted in layered relief within the shaved moon shape, while a single five-pointed star glows beside him. The moon is carved as continuous-wall shading at multiple depths and only the star area is thinned to shine brightest. This expert piece is all about depth control; rough in the crescent first, then sculpt the facial features gradually, checking the glow with a light as you go.
IntermediateFive Stars Around a Crescent
A crescent moon anchors one side while five stars and a scattering of small round dot holes twinkle across the rest of the pumpkin like a busy night sky. Every element is cut through, and the pattern wraps wide, which suits a bumpy or warty pumpkin beautifully. The medium rating comes from the sheer count of pieces, so drill or punch the little dots first as reference points, then carve the stars and finish with the big crescent.
Expert / ProBarred Eyes and Ten Grin Slots
A vintage sugar-skull-style face packed with detail: huge round eyes crossed by curved bars, arching brow flourishes, a diamond nose, ten scalloped tooth slots in a wide grin, and comma-shaped swirls framing the cheeks. Everything is cut through, with slim rind bridges holding the eye bars and tooth dividers in place. As an expert pattern, treat those bridges as sacred; cut away from them, never toward them, and remove waste in small pieces.
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 / ProGalaxy with Three Planets
A sweeping spiral galaxy wraps across the entire pumpkin face, its curved arms shaved in graduated depths so the core glows brightest, while three ringed planets and scattered stars orbit the edges in raised relief. Nothing is pierced; every effect comes from continuous-wall shading at different thicknesses. Expert-level patience pays off here: establish the spiral arms as broad shallow bands first, then deepen toward the center in passes to build the luminous gradient.
Expert / ProSpiral Galaxy and Four Stars
A sweeping spiral galaxy with two luminous arms curling around a bright core, surrounded by four-point stars and a scatter of small stardust dots. The entire scene is skin-shave work with no pierced holes: the arms are shaved wide and shallow while the dots and stars are picked out individually. An expert pattern because of its long tapering curves; keep your gouge moving in smooth continuous strokes along each arm.