Pirate Themed Pumpkin Projects - 10 to Check Out

So... here's the scoop.  We are terrible pumpkin carvers, always too ambitious for our own good and then we just make a big mess (lol). The fact that we live in the middle of Half Moon Bay and the pumpkin fest craziness, I think I just get overwhelmed with so many ideas and am intimidated by those out there that can really create the most fantastical creations out of pumpkins! 

This year, for our annual pumpkin carving round-up, we've decided to focus on a Pirate theme!  Why not? Pirates are a little scary (not too scary) and absolutely represent a nautical life at sea. So whip up a fun rum drink and go all "Yo-Ho" over these 10 designs!  We've tried to capture the right links to directions when we could find them - have fun!

1. Make a stack of Pumpkins with simple large Pirate Words!  The key to success with stacking them is to find pumpkins that are sort of uniform in size.

2. Adorn a hat and sport an eye patch!  Gotta love the attached "ears" and hoop earrings + sword too ... Source

3. NO Carve Sparkle Painted Skull Pumpkin.  So cool!  I think I would try a different color of leaf on the top, there's so many ways that you could dress up or dress down this design. The easy directions can be found at ModgePodgeRocksBlog.com

4. A "Casket" of Characters - including one charming Pirate complete with Parrot! 

"Purchase a pirate hat, patch, and feathered friend from a Halloween party store. Use your pirate hat as a measurement to purchase the right size pumpkin. Start by cutting a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin and cleaning out the inside. Use a washable marker to draw on the pumpkin's face, then carve along the lines, wiping off any existing marker when finished."  Directions and Source

5. This Pumpkin Pirate looks a little scary with his carved out scars! Completed with a kids pirate costume set - directions and printable stencil can be found here

6. For a more detailed Skull and Cross Bones scary look try this design from  Spook Masters!

7. This Felt Cut-Out decorated Pirate looks easy - and pretty mess free for small kids. Directions can be found on This Old House

8. One more NO Carve pumpkin option - love all of the fun fabrics and the teeth details that are used to make up this colorful Pirate! (so sorry - not sure of the original source)

9. Pumpkin Pirate turned on his side to use the stem as a scary nose! (sorry not sure of source!) 

10. And of course we LOVE Martha Stewart's Pirate Ship!  Looks like it will take a ton of patience, but could be a real masterpiece  Must see all the details in directions

Have fun - we can't wait to see your decorated pumpkins!