Printable Fall Decorations and Thanksgiving Place Cards




These easy-to-make printable fall table decorations also make terrific Thanksgiving place cards or even fall wedding decorations. The pumpkins are made of paisley circles in a deep persimmon color and a leaf template in shades of sage and mustard, the art for which is provided below. I've also written full instructions and given you a visual tutorial, even though I think you'll find these quite easy once you get the hang of it.

Scroll down to the bottom of the post for links to all the matching FREE Thanksgiving printables.

The images are in .jpg format and require no special software to view.



Instructions for Making Paper Pumpkins


You'll need:
  • 2" circle cutter (optional, but the preferred method)
  • burnisher (optional)
  • regular scissors
  • curved manicure scissors (optional)
  • glue stick
  • standard toothpicks
  • twine, raffia or ribbon (optional)
1. Download the pumpkin decoration (see large pink link above) and leaf templates below and save them to your hard drive, by either right-clicking (PC) or control-clicking (Mac). Print one pumpkin template for each pumpkin you want to make. Unless you are making a lot of pumpkins, you should only need to print one leaf template. Use a 47-50 lb card stock or similar, or the heaviest card stock your printer will allow.

Cut out the circles using a stand-alone circle punch (I personally use the Marvy Uchida circle cutter), or a Cricut or other type of cutting machine. You can also cut the circles with scissors, but they probably won't be quite as precise. Once the circles are ready, cut off the bottom white piece. This will allow your pumpkin to stand up and not roll around.

2. Fold the circle pieces in half, carefully matching the two corners at the bottom of the circles. If you have a burnisher or bone folder (I know that's a funny name, but that's what they're called), use it to press down the creases. You can also do this by pressing hard with your finger.

You'll need 12 circles (the contents of one template sheet) for each pumpkin. If you're making multiple pumpkins, be sure to keep the pieces for each in a separate pile. That will keep you from using the wrong number of circles.

3. When all the pieces are folded and sorted into groups of 12, place a small amount of glue stick adhesive on just one of the white folded sides. (The glue always goes on the white side, never on the printed side.) Then, carefully line up the bottom and sides of one folded side on the next piece and glue it to the first one, back to back. When all the pieces are glued together, all the folds should be facing the same direction, as shown in photo 3.

4. Glue the last two pieces together, to close the pumpkin structure.

5. If you want to write on the leaves, it's best to do it before cutting. (You also have the option of popping the .jpg pumpkin template into a graphics program and writing on them that way.) You can write each guest's name if you're going to be using them as Thanksgiving placecards, or write any other message you want. They also look great without any writing.

Cut out the leaves with curved manicure scissors (preferred), regular scissors or with a craft knife. Fold the stem in half, so it will fit over a toothpick. The bottoms of the stem should line up once folded. Then, open the folded piece up again and place glue along the stem. Refold the stem over the top of a toothpick and press hard for a few seconds until it holds in place. Photo 5 above shows both front and back of a finished leaf.

6. Insert the toothpick and leaf gently into the center of the pumpkin.

7. Add string, ribbon, twine, raffia or any other embellishment at the base of the stem. This is optional but it does a lot to make the pieces look finished.  

Credits: Thanks to Marisa Lerin of PixelScrapper.com for the pattern used in the background of these printable 3D pumpkins.

Terms: This art is for personal use only. Please see our easy-to-follow terms if you would like to link to this page. You may use the images in this post to link to us.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Amazon affiliate links are used in this post and in the sidebar, which means I will be paid a small commission if anything is purchased through them. This doesn't increase the amount you pay if you buy anything.




12 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for this! It's exactly what i need! Do you have a favorite Thanksgiving paper designer? Thanks again!

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  2. OH love these! thank you!

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    1. You're welcome. I hope you enjoy using them!

      Thanks for your comment.

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  3. This is so cute! My daughter is hosting Thanksgivukkah this year so I'm going to call her and see if she already has the placecards for her table! Thanks for a wonderful, creative, easy idea!

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    1. You're welcome, and happy Thanksgivukkah! :-)

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  4. Hi Carla, Just wanted to let you know that I'm featuring this post on my blog this morning! (These pumpkins are soo cute!!) http://www.raisingmemories.com/2014/10/the-ultimate-list-of-free-thanksgiving.html Have a great day!

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  5. These pumpkins are so adorable!! I want to make several of them for my entry way table.
    Also, sharing these on the blog today. Thank you!
    Printables4Mom!

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    1. Thanks, Billie! I'm always so happy to be featured on your very cool site. I'll share your post in social media to give it a boost.

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  6. Hi! I love the pumpkins they are adorable! Question for you when I'm cutting them out with the cricut do you know how to get them the right size? My cricut says they are too big for the print then cut function, and when I go to just cut them, it doesn't line up correctly. Any advice on how you cut them out would be appreciated! Thanks!

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    1. Unfortunately, these were designed to be made with a hand punch. And I don't have a Cricut, so I'm not sure how or if the art can be adjusted to work.

      I apologize that I can't be more help to you!

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    2. No Problem! Thanks so much for the response. I will try to play with the file.

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I welcome your comments!