DIY light up pumpkins are the easiest high impact Halloween decoration I make, and you only need two materials. You drill a grid of small holes in a hollow plastic pumpkin, push the bulbs of a string light strand out through the holes from the inside, and the whole thing glows like a constellation after dark. In daylight they just look like plain pumpkins sitting on the porch, which is the part I love.
This is a great beginner project. You need a drill and something to cut the bottom out, and that is about it. It is a bit tedious, I will not pretend otherwise, and it took me some trial and error to get the hole spacing right, but they look incredible at night and they are the thing people actually stop and comment on. If you want more ideas, I have a whole list of easy Halloween DIY crafts that anyone can do.
I will also show you how we made four of these pumpkins for under $60, which is a fraction of what they would have cost in September.
YouTube tutorial coming soon. Subscribe below so you do not miss it.
Watch the full video tutorial when it drops. This post gives you the details so you don’t make the same mistakes I made, and so your process goes faster. Keep it open on your phone while you work. I have listed all the materials, the hole counts, and the order of operations.
The short version: Drill a grid of holes in a hollow plastic pumpkin, cut an opening in the bottom, and push a string light bulb out through every hole from the inside. Run an extension cord to them and you are done. They work indoors, but they really pop outside, and during the day they just look like normal pumpkins.
- Time: 30 to 40 minutes per pumpkin
- Cost: about $25 to $40 per finished pumpkin at full price. We paid under $60 for four of them by buying on clearance.
- Skill level: beginner friendly
- Materials: hollow plastic pumpkin, string lights
- Tools: drill, 3/16″ drill bit, and a utility knife, drywall saw, or oscillating multi-tool
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What tools and materials do you need?
This is a three step, two material project. If you already own a drill, the only other thing you need is something to cut open the bottom of the pumpkin. Buy the pumpkins and the lights and you can knock this out in a weekend afternoon.
One tip before you shop. If you like the look of these and want to make a set, wait until late October when the materials go on sale, sometimes 50% off. Better yet, go the day after Halloween. On November 1st you can buy pumpkins and light strands for as much as 80% off. That is exactly how we got four of these for under $60.
Materials
- Hollow plastic pumpkins. Craft stores like Michaels are the easiest place to find them, and Lowe’s and Target carry them seasonally.
- A 50 or 100 count strand of orange or purple string lights. Get LEDs if you can, and see the mistakes section for why.
- Optional: a can of spray foam for the inside, which keeps the bulbs from getting pushed back in.
Tools
- A drill
- A 3/16″ drill bit, or whatever size matches your bulbs. Step 1 explains how to check.
- Something to cut the bottom out: a utility knife, a drywall saw, or an oscillating multi-tool. The multi-tool makes this go much faster.
That is the whole list. And if you are still building out a kit for bigger projects, here are my go-to beginner DIY tools.
Step 1: Drill the holes
Before you drill 90 holes, drill one. Put it near the bottom where it will not show, then push one of your bulbs into it and give it a gentle tug. If the hole grips the bulb tightly enough to pull it off the strand, that is the right size. If the bulb slides in loose, the hole is too big and every light will fall back inside later. String light bulbs vary a lot between brands, so match the bit to your lights instead of trusting my 3/16 inch drill bit size.
I used a small pumpkin with a 50 light strand and a bigger pumpkin with a 100 light strand. Drill a few fewer holes than you have bulbs, because you need some strand left over to reach an extension cord or to connect to the next pumpkin. For a 50 count strand, drill 42 to 45 holes. For a 100 count strand, drill 88 to 96.
Start at the top. Drill a ring of evenly spaced holes around the stem, then work down from each one in a straight line toward the bottom. Planning the ring count and the line count before you start is what keeps the spacing even. Here are the combinations that worked for me.
| Light strand | Holes around the top | Holes down each line | Total holes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 count | 5 | 9 | 45 |
| 50 count | 6 | 7 | 42 |
| 50 count | 7 | 6 | 42 |
| 100 count | 12 | 8 | 96 |
| 100 count | 10 | 9 | 90 |
| 100 count | 9 | 10 | 90 |
| 100 count | 8 | 12 | 96 |
| 100 count | 8 | 11 | 88 |
| 100 count | 7 | 13 | 91 |
Step 2: Cut the bottom out
Cut an opening in the bottom just big enough to fit your hand and the light strand through. There are a few ways to do this. We tried a utility knife first and it was slow going. What works better is drilling 6 to 8 holes in a rough circle on the bottom and then cutting between them. A drywall saw also works well. But if you already own an oscillating multi-tool, use it. It shortened this step dramatically.
Step 3: Push the lights into the holes
The single most important thing here: do not set the pumpkin down on a flat surface while you work. Every time you press it against something you push the bulbs back inside and you have to fish them out again. Sit down and hold the pumpkin in your lap instead.
Work in a pattern rather than filling holes at random. Either go around the top ring first and then work your way down each line, or fill one vertical line at a time from top to bottom. Whichever you pick, make sure you finish at the bottom of the pumpkin so the plug end comes out near the opening. That is what lets you reach an extension cord or chain the next pumpkin onto it.
Finally, tuck the leftover strand and the plug out through the hole in the bottom and set the pumpkin down. That is one done. If you are making a set, finish all of them before you start arranging.
Optional: spray foam the inside
I did not think of this at the time, and it is the fix I want to try next. The nuisance with these pumpkins is that any time you press one against something, the bulbs get pushed back inside, and sometimes they go all the way in and you have to reach through the bottom to pop them back out. Filling the inside with spray foam once the lights are seated should lock every bulb in place.
One caution if you try it. Use LED strands, not incandescent. LEDs stay cool. I would not want to seal warm incandescent bulbs inside a block of foam.
Step 4: Put them out
These look great on a front porch, next to a front door, along the edge of a Halloween display outside, or in a spooky entryway indoors. The only real constraint is getting an extension cord to them. If you left a tail on each pumpkin like I said in Step 3, you can plug them into each other in a series and run one cord to the whole group.
Mistakes I made so you do not have to
- Test one hole before you drill all of them. Bulb sizes vary by brand, and holes that are slightly too big will ruin the whole pumpkin.
- Drill fewer holes than you have bulbs. If you use every single one you will have no strand left to reach the plug.
- Leave a tail at the plug end so you have some play when you go to plug it in.
- Do not push the bulbs in while the pumpkin is sitting on a flat surface. They will get shoved right back inside.
- Buy LEDs if you can. A few of our incandescent bulbs blew and we had to replace them. That does not really happen with LEDs.
How much do light up pumpkins cost and how long do they take?
At full price, expect about $25 to $40 per finished pumpkin. That breaks down to roughly $15 to $25 for a hollow plastic pumpkin and $10 to $15 for a 50 to 100 count light strand.
This is a great late season craft though, because craft stores almost always have leftover plastic pumpkins and light strands toward the end of October. And if you plan a year ahead, November 1st is the day to shop. That is what we did, and we spent under $60 on four pumpkins and four light strands.
Time wise, drilling the holes takes about 5 to 10 minutes. Cutting out the bottom is another 5 to 10 minutes. The real time suck is pushing in the bulbs, which is a solid 20 minutes per pumpkin, and longer if you are being fussy about the spacing. Call it 30 to 40 minutes for one pumpkin start to finish.
Frequently asked questions
Do drilled light up pumpkins hold up outdoors?
Yes. We have had ours for three years and reused them every Halloween. They live outside from September through October and then get stored in the attic. In three seasons we have only had to replace one or two bulbs.
Do the lights get hot? Will the pumpkin melt?
We used incandescent lights and the pumpkins got warm to the touch but never hot, so melting was never a concern. If that worries you, use LED strands instead. They stay cool and they last longer.
How many holes should I drill in the pumpkin?
Drill slightly fewer holes than you have bulbs so you have strand left over for the plug. For a 50 count strand, 42 to 45 holes. For a 100 count strand, 88 to 96. Work out your ring count and line count first so the spacing comes out even.
Can I use light up pumpkins indoors?
Yes. They look great in an entryway or on a mantel, and indoors you do not have to think about weather at all. The only thing to plan for is the cord, since these run on a plug in strand rather than batteries. Keep them near an outlet.
Will the pumpkins survive rain?
Yes. We lived in Florida and these survived torrential downpours. The pumpkins are plastic and outdoor rated string lights are built for it. Just use an extension cord rated for outdoor use and keep the connections up off wet ground.
Where do I buy the string lights?
Look for 50 or 100 count strands. The search terms that worked best for me were “orange string lights” or “orange Christmas lights.” You can find them online, at Lowe’s, at Target, or at craft stores. Expect $10 to $25 a strand, and check whether they are incandescent or LED before you buy.
Where do I buy the plastic pumpkins?
Craft stores like Michaels are the easiest place to find hollow plastic pumpkins, and Lowe’s and Target carry them seasonally. You can buy them online, but the real deals are in store at the end of October, or on November 1st for next year.
More easy Halloween projects
If you want to build out the rest of the yard, these are the ones I come back to every year:
- How to build a DIY pallet coffin from free pallets in about 2 hours
- Easy DIY ghost candles for the porch and the mantel
- Vampire candles and a bubbling witches cauldron
- Spooky painted vases and black roses with eyeballs
- 10 easy Halloween DIY crafts you can make this weekend
That is the whole project. If you make one or a whole set, tag me so I can see them, and tell me in the comments if you tried the spray foam. I am definitely doing it next time.
Mua – Ha – Ha – Ha,
Happy DIY-ing and happy Halloween!
🎃
xoxo,
Selene + Devin
