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This Jack Skellington Pumpkin painting idea is the perfect pumpkin craft for Halloween! Easy to make, budget friendly and mess free, it’s a fun activity that kids of all ages will love!

Originally published September 2018 – Updated September 2023

Jack Skellington pumpkin with black background

Happy Halloween! Okay, maybe not quite yet but I’m already getting ready for it. We’re planning our You’ve Been Boo’ed Baskets, making eye-catching Halloween snack boards and best of all, making lots and lots of of super cute DIY Halloween pumpkins!

I’m always on the lookout for pumpkin decorating ideas and when I saw a clip from The Disney movie The Nightmare Before Christmas, a no carve Jack Skellington pumpkin seemed such an obvious choice. After all, his head IS a pumpkin…how easy is that!

Fans of the nightmare movie will love making their own pumpkin king. It’s so simple and since all you need is a $1 pumpkin, white paint and a marker, it’s super cheap too. When the kids are finished with Jack, they can make a Sally pumpkin too!

Table of Contents

Why We Love This Jack Skellington Halloween Craft

Mess free – Pumpkin carving is super messy but when you use a fake pumpkin, you skip having to do all that cleanup.

Easy – This painted pumpkin couldn’t be easier! It just involves painting and drawing so it’s great for kids of all ages.

Budget friendly – There aren’t many crafts with a supply list quite this short. It makes for a Halloween activity that’s both fun and cheap…the perfect combination if you ask me!

What You’ll Need

Foam craft pumpkin (I find mine at Dollar Tree but you can also pay a little more and order from Amazon.
Black Marker
Glossy White Acrylic Paint

I LOVE these foam pumpkins and have used them for a ton of pumpkin projects. They’re only $1 and you can do so many things with them!

Ready to make your own Jack pumpkin? Let’s get started!

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Jack Skellington Pumpkin

Active Time 30

Drying time 1 30

Total Time 2

This no carve Jack Skellington pumpkin is the perfect Halloween craft! Made with just a few simple items, it's also a fun activity for a Nightmare Before Christmas movie night.

Equipment

Materials

▢ 1 Foam craft pumpkin
▢ White acrylic paint glossy or matte

Instructions

Start by painting the entire pumpkin white. Let the first coat dry for about 30 minutes, then paint another coat over it. Let dry completely (approx 60 minutes)
Take a black marker and draw Jack Skellington eyes on the pumpkin. They should be oval and slightly slanted.
Next, draw the nostrils. They’re also oval but a little more slanted and much smaller.
Finally, draw the mouth. You can make it a line that goes from side to side and curves up at each end. Then add a little more black in the middle to give the mouth definition. Finally add lines for the stitches.
Be sure the stitches extend beyond Jack's mouth. Once that's done, you're good to go.
Now put your pumpkin on display for everyone to enjoy!

Notes

I’ve found that usually when you go to buy the foam pumpkins, they are orange. However, I’ve occasionally seen white ones and those are best to start with if you can find them. It means few coats of paint are needed because you’re not covering any orange.
Be sure the paint on your pumpkin is completely dry before drawing on the face with a marker.

Did You Make This Project?

Share it with me on Instagram @funmoneymom and follow on Pinterest @funmoneymom for more!

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Make your own Sally Skellington pumpkin, then check out all these other awesome pumpkin decorating ideas!

Want more easy pumpkin painting ideas? Get all the tutorials here:

Looking for more Halloween fun? Check these out…

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Jack Skellington Pumpkin

Why We Love This Jack Skellington Halloween Craft

What You’ll Need