{"title":"How to Make a Paper Pumpkin","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/paper-crafts/how-to-make-a-paper-pumpkin","category":{"slug":"paper-crafts","name":"Paper Crafts"},"creator":{"name":"Art for Kids Hub","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5XMF3Inoi8R9nSI8ChOsdQ","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzXumjRXBw8"},"tldr":"Turn one sheet of orange construction paper into a round 3D paper pumpkin with tape and a stapler. Ten photo steps, sizing and classroom tips.","quickAnswer":"Turn one sheet of orange construction paper into a round 3D paper pumpkin with tape and a stapler. An easy project: about 30 minutes. You need 6 things, including orange construction paper, green construction paper and clear tape. The 10 steps start with cut the Orange Construction Paper in Half Lengthwise, tape the Two Orange Paper Strips End to End, fold Both Ends of the Paper Strip to the Center and accordion-Fold the Orange Strip Into a Paper Fan.","totalDurationSeconds":768,"videoDurationSeconds":768,"difficulty":"easy","project":{"difficulty":"easy","projectMinutes":30,"waitMinutes":null,"totalMinutes":30,"estimatedCost":null,"yield":"1 paper pumpkin"},"tools":["scissors","stapler","pencil"],"materials":["orange construction paper","green construction paper","clear tape"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Cut the Orange Construction Paper in Half Lengthwise","text":"Put the green sheet off to the side for now. Fold the orange construction paper in half the long way and crease it hard. Open it and cut down that fold line so you have two long, skinny orange strips. The crease is your cutting guide, so you do not need a ruler or a pencil line here."},{"number":2,"title":"Tape the Two Orange Paper Strips End to End","text":"Lay the two orange strips end to end on the table so they butt up against each other. Tape across the seam to join them into one long strip. Try to keep the two pieces lined up straight. A little crooked is fine, but a big angle makes the fan folds uneven."},{"number":3,"title":"Fold Both Ends of the Paper Strip to the Center","text":"Take one end of the long orange strip and fold it over to meet the middle, where the tape seam is. Crease it flat. Now bring the other end over to the center the same way. The two ends should meet at the middle without overlapping. This sets up the panels for the accordion."},{"number":4,"title":"Accordion-Fold the Orange Strip Into a Paper Fan","text":"Fold each center edge back out to the outside edge, like starting a fan. Flip the strip over and fold those edges to the center again. You should now have a zigzag accordion that opens like a fan. Fold the whole thing in half down the middle so it looks like a little book."},{"number":5,"title":"Cut a Green Paper Pumpkin Stem","text":"Pick up the green construction paper. Cut a small stem shape from one edge: two curved lines up the sides and a slanted cut across the top. It only needs to be about an inch tall. Keep the rest of the green sheet, because you will use it for the curly vine at the end."},{"number":6,"title":"Tape the Stem Inside the Center Fold of the Pumpkin","text":"Open your orange book to the middle. Check that the last fold edges point down, toward the bottom of the pumpkin. Lay the green stem in the center crease with the top poking out past the paper, and tape it down. Press the tape tight, then close the book back up like a bookmark sticking out."},{"number":7,"title":"Staple the Folded Paper Pumpkin Along the Center Crease","text":"Line the stapler up on the center fold of the closed orange book, near the top. Push down hard and fast so the staple goes through every layer. Add a second staple near the bottom, the same way you would staple a small booklet. Two staples hold the whole pumpkin together."},{"number":8,"title":"Cut the Folded Paper Into a Rounded Pumpkin Shape","text":"Hold the book with the stem pointing out. Cut off the top corner beside the stem, then round the side from the bottom all the way up toward the top. Leave the center of the bottom edge alone so the pumpkin has something to sit on. Trim the other top corner, but do not cut off the stem."},{"number":9,"title":"Open the Pages and Tape Them Into a Round 3D Pumpkin","text":"Open the book. Take the outside page on one side and the outside page on the other, pinch them together near the bottom and tape them. Now the pumpkin is a loop. Tape the next pair the same way, pinching close to the staple so they meet. Spread the pages apart until the pumpkin looks round."},{"number":10,"title":"Curl a Green Paper Vine Around a Pencil and Tape It to the Pumpkin","text":"Cut a long, thin sliver from the green paper, thick at one end and skinny at the other. Hold the thick end on a pencil and wind the strip round it, then slide it off. You get a curly vine. Tape the thick end next to the stem and twist it a little more so it curls around."}],"commonProblems":[{"question":"Why won't my paper pumpkin close into a round ball shape?","answer":"The staples are probably off the center fold. Pull them out and restaple right on the crease, since the staples have to sit exactly on the fold for the accordion pages to close into a ball."},{"question":"Why do the pumpkin's pages keep springing back open?","answer":"Add a second small piece of tape at the top near the stem as well as the one at the bottom. One piece of tape per seam is often not enough to hold eight layers of construction paper closed."},{"question":"My paper pumpkin won't stand up on its own, what's wrong?","answer":"A pumpkin that won't stand usually has a pointed bottom. Trim a flat spot off the base before you tape the pages into their final round shape, so it has somewhere flat to sit."},{"question":"Why does my paper pumpkin look lopsided with one fat side?","answer":"Sloppy folds are the cause. Every page of the finished pumpkin is one panel of the accordion, so run a thumbnail along each crease before moving on, since even, sharp folds give you even sections that spread into a round, balanced shape."},{"question":"Can you make the paper pumpkin with cardstock instead of construction paper?","answer":"You can, but it is harder for small kids to fold through eight layers and the stapler may not punch all the way through. Standard 9 by 12 construction paper holds its shape well and is the easiest weight to work with, while printer paper folds easily but comes out floppy."}],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-10-15T15:54:29.142Z","published":"2026-09-24T15:27:39.878Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit Show Me Step by Step with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure. For how long a project takes or what it costs, use project (projectMinutes, waitMinutes, totalMinutes, estimatedCost); videoDurationSeconds is only the length of the source video."}