How to draw a pumpkin
It’s fall and that is the perfect time to learn How to Draw a Pumpkin!
Pumpkins are everywhere in the fall. We took a walk with our grandkids this weekend and the porches in their Kansas City neighborhood were full of them!
How do you draw a pumpkin?
Grab a pencil, an eraser and your sketchbook, paper, or scratch paper to give drawing a pumpkin a try. It doesn’t take a lot of supplies, does it?
I do recommend keeping a sketchbook of these How to Draw exercises though. It is nice to have them in all one place to refer back to them for techniques and to see how you progress.
Drawing a pumpkin is a take on drawing a sphere and similar to drawing an orange like we did in a previous lesson.
It is helpful if you can have an actual pumpkin in front of you as you are learning this, even a picture will do.
Take a bit of time to study how the pumpkin looks.
This is how the pumpkins look that I drew on the Not So Scary Scarecrow Free Coloring Sheet. You will know how to draw like this soon!
How to draw a pumpkin step by step
A pumpkin isn’t actually a circle. It has a dip on the top and a dip on the bottom.
Draw a pumpkin shape, it is a rounded shape with that dip in the top and the bottom. You can draw yours in the same shape as I did as you learn. Later you can use the same technique to make it taller or wider or make a group of pumpkins of various shapes.
A pumpkin has a series of indentions that run from the stem area down to the center bottom of the pumpkin. These are called ribs. Did you know that? I didn’t. Until now when I looked it up online that is, ha!
If you tip the pumpkin over on its side, you will notice that these ribs look like smile lines.
Draw 2-3 vertical smile lines on the left side of the pumpkin and as you cross over the centerline of the pumpkin, the vertical smile lines will shift to the other direction. Do you notice that on your pumpkin?
How to draw a pumpkin leaf and stem
Next, we draw the stem on top of the pumpkin. A stem is a variation on a cylinder. We have drawn them before.
Draw two lines up from the center top of the pumpkin and an oval on the top to connect them.
A stem can have a bend in it and the two lines may not be parallel to one another. You can experiment with this later.
Draw a curlicue line (or two) to represent a tendril from the pumpkin vines.
A leaf is two dipping lines that connect on each end. I usually draw a line down the center of the leaf and maybe even a couple vein lines.
All of these shapes can be altered for variety. Every pumpkin is unique, and you can draw each of your pumpkins uniquely as well!
How to draw a jack o lantern
Now, if you would like to make your pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern, that is easy to do! If not, skip over the jack-o-lantern instructions down to the shading steps.
We will draw a traditional jack-o-lantern face, but you can experiment with this later and make any type of face you would like on your pumpkin.
Draw two triangle eyes and a triangle nose.
Then draw a toothy big grin underneath.
Tip: If it is easier for you, you can draw a large smile first and then add the teeth in afterwards.
Shade these facial features in so it looks dimensional.
Shading- how to draw a pumpkin easy
Now we will do a bit of shading on your pumpkin.
Remember that the shadow on an object is on the side that is opposite of the light source.
We will imagine that our light source is to the top right of the pumpkin. I draw a sun on my paper to illustrate this for our lesson, but you don’t have to draw a sun on your paper.
Draw some contour lines on the left side of the stem and pumpkin.
Do some shading on the left side of the pumpkin with the side of your pencil lead.
Use your finger to do a bit of blending in the shaded areas. You will remember this from our lesson on How to Draw a Sphere.
Looks good, doesn’t it? Way to go, you are done!
This How to Draw a Pumpkin tutorial is one that you can master quickly. It is also a great one to use with kids. They enjoy drawing pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns and this helps them to draw them more realistically.
There are so many things you can use this for- like decorating an invitation, letter or envelop that you send.
In fact, I made a separate post on how to color the pumpkin you draw! You'll find a tutorial on how you can make a card you can use as a pumpkin place card, birthday card or thank you card too.
I sure hope you take a picture of your drawing and load it up to your favorite social media page! I love seeing what you create.
More Easy Drawing Tutorials
Keep up the good work! Here are some more drawing ideas to get you sketching in no time. These are great for learning simple pencil drawing techniques, but you can also use any utensil you like to bring the ideas to life.
- How to Draw a Sphere
- How to Draw an Orange
- How to Draw a Cylinder
- How to Draw Christmas Ornaments
- How to Draw a Cake
Enjoy!
If you try this craft, let me know! Go ahead and leave a comment, rate it, and tag a photo with #WelcometoNanas wherever you post.
Come join the fun at https://welcometonanas.com
How to Draw a Pumpkin
Equipment
- none needed
Items Required
Instructions
- Draw a pumpkin shape, it is a rounded shape with that dip in the top and the bottom. You can draw yours in the same shape as I did as you learn.
- Draw 2-3 vertical smile lines on the left side of the pumpkin and as you cross over the centerline of the pumpkin, the vertical smile lines will shift to the other direction.
- Next, we draw the stem on top of the pumpkin. A stem is a variation on a cylinder. We have drawn them before. Draw two lines up from the center top of the pumpkin and an oval on the top to connect them.
- Draw a curlicue line (or two) to represent a tendril from the pumpkin vines.
- A leaf is two dipping lines that connect on each end. I usually draw a line down the center of the leaf and maybe even a couple vein lines.
- Now, if you would like to make your pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern, that is easy to do! If not, skip over the jack-o-lantern instructions down to the shading steps.
- Draw two triangle eyes and a triangle nose.Then draw a toothy big grin underneath.
- We will imagine that our light source is to the top right of the pumpkin.Draw some contour lines on the left side of the stem and pumpkin. Do some shading on the left side of the pumpkin with the side of your pencil lead. Use your finger to do a bit of blending in the shaded areas.
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