No Carve Pumpkin Decorating for Kids with Chalkboard Pumpkins

I've seen so many wonderful ideas to decorate pumpkins without carving, but none of them seemed just right for my 2 year old twins. They love to paint, but they sometimes lose interest quickly and want a new piece of paper. I imagined them painting a pumpkin with one stroke then wanting a new one! I'm too frugal for that, so I wanted something that they could enjoy more than once.

They love chalk, and sometimes love erasing more than drawing. They really enjoy the repetition of drawing, erasing, and starting again. I thought we could incorporate this into our pumpkin decorating this year and our Chalkboard Pumpkin was born!


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The secret to this project is this awesome clear chalkboard paint. I used another chalkboard paint for a different pumpkin project and the DecoArt Clear worked a million times better. It doesn't peel and holds up to toddler heavy-handedness.

All you need is your pumpkin, chalkboard coating, and a sponge brush. Try to select as smooth a pumpkin as you can for a better drawing surface.

Apply your coating with the sponge brush in 2 coats - one going vertically down the pumpkin and one going horizontally around.  Wait an hour before applying the second coat.

Once your second coat is dry (mine took about an hour), prime the surface by rubbing some chalk on it and wiping off.

That's it! Let your toddlers enjoy drawing and erasing as much as they want. I got mine started with a jack-o-lantern face and let them embellish from there. It was fun! And it's great because we can do it over and over again.