There’s absolutely nothing wrong with sticking to old reliables like a toothy jack o’ lantern or a spooky ghost. After all, they’re classics for a reason! Because they’re pretty simple, you can freestyle and carve the very design you’ve been imagining. Plus, nothing screams Halloween quite like a charming jack o’ lantern smile.

Over the years, pumpkin carving patterns have become significantly more elaborate. Now you can find patterns for basically any character that you like. You can always get creative with it and take it beyond simple carving. Implement techniques like scraping to add some depth or a more unique look to your jack o’ lantern.

When you scrape away the outer layers of the pumpkin, light faintly shines through the remaining portion. The more you scrape, the more the light comes through. You can use this effect to create some incredible patterns on otherwise normal pumpkins and make a super memorable carving. Make sure not to scrape too much away or you risk puncturing all the way through.

One of the funniest or creepiest things you can do with a jack o’ lantern is to place something in its mouth. Whether you choose to have it literally spilling its guts or gnawing on another pumpkin, anything in your carving’s mouth will take it to a whole new level. Other popular choices include using other gourds as cigars or as tongues sticking out.

When Halloween rolls around, we all get super excited to throw up the decorations and cut into some pumpkins. Unfortunately, pumpkins don’t last very long once you carve them, so you can only have them out for a few days. However, if you’re clever about how you carve them, you can incorporate the decay into your jack o’ lantern. The odd slumping adds so much goofy or creepy character.

A pumpkin carving doesn’t just have to involve removing material from the pumpkin. Feel free to add some flair and attach some other things to it. If you have some twine, you can make an incredibly eerie jack o’ lantern that horror fans will love. If you want a cuter pumpkin, you can use licorice as a tongue or attach a few googly eyes for some charm.

There are tons of ways to add character to your carvings, but teeth are among the best. Carving the pumpkin the old-fashioned way allows you to add some basic teeth. However, if you want to take it a step further, try scraping the pumpkin to give the teeth some additional dimension. If that’s a bit too intricate, leave the mouth empty and add teeth with pumpkin seeds are creepy or marshmallows on toothpicks. Get creative with it!

Once you develop your pumpkin carving skills, you can make some beautiful pieces. A decorative pumpkin doesn’t need to be scary or spooky. Why not express your creativity and make some art? With some special tools and hard work, you can carve a full pumpkin sculpture that will definitely impress visitors to your porch.

If there is one downside to pumpkin carving, it’s that some designs simply don’t work in daylight. Any errors become more obvious and the carving loses a lot of its spooky charm. If you plan on having your pumpkin on display during the day, you may choose to use a combination of paint and carving. Pumpkin carving is like art, so why not use every medium?

One of the coolest things you can do with pumpkin is carve both sides. When light shines through, the rear section will cast a shadow on the nearest wall. You can keep it thematic with a spider in the front, web in the back. Alternatively, have a pattern on the front and some spooky words on the back. Remember to be careful with this, as the rear pattern will be reversed in its candle-lit wall reflection.