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THANKSGIVING · MAKE SOMETHING WORTH REMEMBERING

Harvest paper-strip pumpkin centerpiece

Make a light, open-sided pumpkin from wide paper strips, with a rolled cardstock stem and a big green leaf for your harvest table.

30 min hands-on1–3 makers6+ with adult helpEasy with a helperHarvest table ↗4 illustrated steps ↓

An adult helps measure and cut long strips, steadies the stem, and assists with the tape joins. Allow glue-stick joins to set before shaping; no pins or hot glue are needed.

Open-sided orange paper-strip pumpkin with a brown rolled-paper stem and one large green leaf.
One way your finished project could look.

A LITTLE INSPIRATION

See it. Make it.
Make it yours.

Start with this finished example, then follow the four illustrated steps below. Choose the colors and details that feel like you.

Gather your supplies ↓Follow the steps ↓

Project and step images are AI-generated illustrations. About our images

Let’s make it.

  1. Six wide orange paper strips, an orange base circle, a brown rolled-cardstock stem, and a green paper leaf.

    Cut and roll

    Measure and cut six orange strips, each 12 × 1 inch, and a 2-inch orange base circle. Cut a 5 × 3-inch brown cardstock rectangle and a large green leaf. Roll the brown rectangle into a narrow tube 5 inches tall, overlapping the two 5-inch edges slightly, and tape the seam.

  2. Six orange paper strips crossed into a flat star with a brown paper stem taped upright at the center.

    Make the base

    Lay the orange strips across one another with all their midpoints together, rotating each strip a little to make an evenly spaced star. Glue the overlapping centers onto the base circle. Stand the brown tube on that center point and use four short tape tabs to anchor its bottom edge to the strips.

  3. Orange strip ends being taped near the top of the paper stem to form rounded pumpkin ribs.

    Curve the pumpkin ribs

    Lift both ends of one orange strip so they curve upward on opposite sides of the stem. Tape the ends to the stem about 1 inch below its top, overlapping the ends if needed. Repeat with the remaining strips, keeping their curved ribs evenly spaced. An adult can steady the stem while another maker attaches the ends.

  4. Completed paper pumpkin with evenly spaced curved orange ribs and a green leaf beside the visible brown stem.

    Add the leaf

    Gently adjust the loops into a rounded pumpkin shape without creasing them. Tape the green leaf beside the top of the orange ribs, leaving the brown stem visible. Press all tape joins firmly, check that the base stands flat, and place the pumpkin on the table.

A little help: Keep the tape joins at the same height on the stem so the loops stay balanced. Lift the finished pumpkin by its base, not by the paper ribs.

KEEP THE GOOD TIME GOING

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