How to Make Origami Pumpkins (Folding Instructions + Video)

A real pumpkin starts going soft on the porch before Halloween even gets here, but a folded paper one holds its shape on a shelf all through fall. This origami pumpkin comes together from one sheet of orange paper and a scrap of green paper for the stem instead.

This one leans intermediate rather than beginner, since the zigzag creases take some patience to fold evenly across four separate panels. Budget 30 to 45 minutes for your first pumpkin, and expect it to go faster once you’ve made a few. The whole thing costs under a dollar, since you only need one sheet of orange paper, a small scrap of green, and some craft glue.

Fold a few in different sizes for a garland, or keep one on your desk into November since paper doesn’t sag the way a real pumpkin does. It fits right in with the rest of our origami tutorials, especially the ones in our holiday origami collection.

Origami Pumpkin at a Glance

• Difficulty: Intermediate
• Time: 30 to 45 minutes for your first pumpkin
• Cost: Under $1
• Ages: 10+ with adult help on the creasing steps
• Best for: Halloween and fall decor, garlands, photo props

What You Need to Fold Origami Pumpkins

Materials

• Orange craft paper, one A4 sheet, cut into 4 equal squares for the pumpkin’s four folded panels
• Green craft paper, a small scrap, for the stem, stem base, and curled vine
• Craft glue, to hold the four panels together and secure the stem and vine

Tools

• Scissors, for squaring your paper and trimming the panels after folding
• Quilling tool (optional), makes curling the vine and shaping the stem easier if you’d rather not free-hand them

Watch How to Fold an Origami Pumpkin

This video walks through every fold in real time, which helps if the zigzag creases are tricky to picture from photos alone.

Step-by-Step Instructions to Fold Origami Pumpkins

Step 1: Fold Your Square Paper in Half Three Times

Start with a square sheet of paper, trimming the short edge off your A4 sheet first if you need to square it up. Fold it in half, then in half again, then once more. These three creases give you the fold lines you’ll use to make the accordion pleats in the next step.

Step 2: Accordion-Fold the Paper and Press a Center Crease

Unfold the half-folds from the last step completely, then use those same crease lines to accordion-fold (fan-fold) the square. Find the halfway point along the folded strip and press a fold there at just over 90 degrees, firmly enough that the crease holds its shape on its own.

Step 3: Unfold and Zigzag-Fold Along the Center Crease

Unfold the 90-degree fold, keeping the accordion pleats intact. Working along the center crease with the zigzag pointing up, fold one pleat down on one side of the crease and its neighbor up on the other side. Reverse that pattern at the next pleat, and keep alternating until every pleat along the strip has been refolded this way.

Step 4: Press and Fold the Second Zigzag Crease

Now start the second zigzag line. Measure one inch out from the center crease and press a fold there, in the same direction as before but just past 90 degrees, firmly enough to leave a clear crease. Unfold it, then fold up the pleats along this new crease the same way you did for the center one, working in the same direction as the first zigzag line.

Step 5: Mirror the Zigzag Crease on the Opposite Side

Repeat the same process for a third zigzag crease, this time on the opposite half of the strip from the second crease. Fold it the same way, in the same direction as the other two, so all three zigzag lines run consistently across the piece.

Step 6: Trim and Glue the First Folded Piece

Fold three more pieces the exact same way, using your first piece to measure them so all four end up the same size. Trim away the extra paper along the straight guide lines marked on the outer edges of each piece, then run glue along both edges of one piece to get it ready for assembly.

Step 7: Glue All Four Pieces Into a Ring

Press a second piece onto the glued edge of the first, then attach the third and fourth the same way until all four are joined in a row. Glue the last open edge to the first piece’s open edge to close the ring into a ball shape, and hold the seam for a few seconds so it sets.

Step 8: Add the Stem, Stem Base, and Vine

Cut out the green stem, stem base, and vine pieces. Glue the stem base to the top center of the pumpkin, then push the stem down through the hole in the base until it sits firmly in the center. Finish by attaching the curled vine next to the stem.

Tips for Folding Origami Pumpkins

• Scale the whole project up or down by starting from a larger or smaller square. A bigger square makes a statement centerpiece, and mini squares fold into pumpkins small enough to string into a garland.
• Reach for a quilling tool to curl the vine and shape the stem if free-handing those small green pieces feels fiddly.
• Swap the orange for other colors, like cream, deep red, or black, if you’re building a full harvest or Halloween garland and want more than one shade of pumpkin.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a 9- or 10-year-old make this origami pumpkin?

A confident 9- or 10-year-old can fold this with some help nearby, but it’s rated intermediate rather than beginner, so it’s not the easiest first solo project. The zigzag creasing in steps 2 through 5 is the part most kids need a hand with, since getting the crease direction right on each pleat takes some trial and error even for adults.

What can I use instead of craft paper?

Regular printer paper works fine for this project, and it’s often easier to crease sharply than heavier craft paper. Cardstock holds its shape well too, but stick to something on the lighter side, since anything much heavier gets hard to press into the tight zigzag folds.

Why won’t my four folded panels line up evenly?

This almost always comes down to the panels being slightly different sizes. Fold your first panel, then use it as a ruler for the other three, matching every crease against it rather than measuring each one from scratch. Even a few millimeters of difference between panels is enough to make the finished pumpkin lean or bulge on one side.

How is this different from your origami ghost tutorial?

This pumpkin uses zigzag pleating across four separate panels that get glued into a ball, while the origami ghost is a single-sheet fold with no assembly step. The pumpkin takes longer and rates intermediate, while the ghost is a faster beginner fold, so the ghost is the better pick if you want something quick to pair with this pumpkin for a Halloween display.

Will a paper origami pumpkin last through the whole fall season?

Yes, as long as you keep it out of direct sun and away from damp spots, a folded paper pumpkin holds its shape for months since there’s nothing organic in it to soften or rot. Store extras flat in a box between uses if you want to bring them back out again next Halloween.

More Origami Tutorials

• Our full list of Halloween origami projects
• Our origami bat tutorial
• 20 easy Halloween paper crafts for kids

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