Harry Potter Book Character Pumpkins (Hermione too!)

Every fall, Harry Potter book character pumpkins are entries that book fans get excited to see. Between the round glasses, the lightning bolt scar, and Hermione’s signature bushy hair, the wizarding world gives you an almost endless list of instantly recognizable faces to paint. If you’re looking for easy Harry Potter pumpkin painting ideas for a school library contest (as an elementary school librarian, this is one of our most popular events of the year), a classroom party, or a family fall craft night, this guide walks through why Harry Potter book character pumpkins are such a popular pick, the supplies you’ll need, step-by-step instructions for a classic Harry pumpkin, and a full tutorial for painting Hermione Granger too. We’ll finish with a list of Harry Potter books to display right alongside your finished pumpkins.

Why Make a Harry Potter Book Character Pumpkin

It’s one of the most requested book character pumpkin themes. In library pumpkin decorating contests, Harry Potter book character pumpkins are consistently the most popular entries, especially with upper elementary readers who have grown up on the series.

The characters are instantly recognizable with minimal detail. Round glasses and a lightning bolt scar make a Harry pumpkin identifiable in seconds. There’s no need for elaborate carving or painting skill to get a great result.

There’s a character (or object) for every skill level. A simple painted head works fine, but you can also build out a full display with a robe, tie, and pedestal, or paint an entire scene like a Golden Snitch or the Hogwarts crest.

It naturally leads to a themed group display. Once you’ve made a Harry pumpkin, it’s an easy next step to add Hermione, Ron, or even a Golden Snitch pumpkin so the whole trio (or house) is represented.

No carving required. Because these are hand-painted with tempera paint and simple craft supplies, there’s no risk of a soggy, rotting jack-o’-lantern before the big reveal.

Materials Needed

A pumpkin (real, or a reusable artificial pumpkin if you want to keep your Harry Potter book character pumpkin as a permanent decoration)

Tempera paint in skin tone, black, brown or black for hair, and gold for accents (mixed 1:1 with school glue so it doesn’t flake off)

Paintbrushes in a couple of sizes

Black craft wire, pipe cleaners, or a Sharpie for the glasses frames

A red marker or paint for the lightning bolt scar

A yarn wig, or brown/black construction paper cut and crimped for hair

An empty coffee can (with the lid removed) if you want to build a pedestal for a full-figure display

A small rectangle of black fabric for a robe, and a striped or house-colored tie and scarf if you have one

Gold foam ball, gold paint, and two small feathers if you want to add a Golden Snitch to your display

Glue, tape, and scissors

Instructions

Paint the base. Coat the pumpkin in a light skin-tone tempera paint (mixed 1:1 with school glue) and let it dry completely.

Add the hair. Attach a yarn wig, or glue on cut and crimped construction paper, to give your pumpkin messy dark hair.

Paint the glasses. Bend black craft wire or a pipe cleaner into two connected circles to mimic Harry’s round glasses, and glue them in place, or simply paint the frames on with black paint or a Sharpie for an easier option. If you can find an old pair of glasses, you could use those, but sometimes it’s tough to get them to stay on the pumpkin.

Add the lightning bolt scar. Paint or draw a small red lightning bolt on the forehead. This one detail does most of the work of making the pumpkin instantly recognizable.

Build a pedestal (optional). For a full-figure display, set your painted pumpkin head on top of an empty coffee can with the lid removed. Drape a rectangle of black fabric around the can to look like a robe, and tie a house-colored scarf or tie around the neck.

Add a Golden Snitch (optional finishing touch). Paint a small foam ball gold and stick two feathers into it for a Golden Snitch to display next to your pumpkin scene.

How to Make a Hermione Pumpkin

Hermione is one of the easiest Harry Potter book character pumpkins to pair with your Harry pumpkin, and she comes together with many of the same supplies.

Paint the base. Just like the Harry pumpkin, start with a light skin-tone tempera paint base and let it dry.

Create the bushy hair. Cut strips of brown construction paper and crimp them (running the strips between scissor blades or crimping with your fingers) to create texture, then glue them around the top and sides of the pumpkin for Hermione’s signature bushy hair.

Paint a simple face. Add painted eyes, eyebrows, and a small smile. Keep the features simple; the hair is what sells the character.

Add a Gryffindor scarf. Drape a red and gold striped scarf artfully around the base of the pumpkin for an instant house-pride finishing touch.

Display together. Set your Hermione pumpkin right next to your Harry pumpkin for a two-character wizarding world display that’s easy to recognize at a glance.

Books to Display with the Harry Potter Pumpkin

Pair your finished Harry Potter book character pumpkins with a few series favorites for a complete storybook display:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book (for younger readers)

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Line the full series up behind your pumpkin display, or tuck a single copy next to the Harry and Hermione pumpkins for an instant, ready-made library or classroom vignette.

Running Your Own Book Character Pumpkin Contest

How do you win the pumpkin decorating contest? In the school libraries where I work, I had the students vote for their favorite. It helps if a lot of students are familiar with the book the character is from. If you decide to run your own book character pumpkin decorating contest, I’ve made things easy for you. Get a free book character pumpkin certificate and promotional flyer right here. These templates are customizable, downloadable, printable, and FREE!

More Book Character Pumpkin Ideas

Over the years, I have had many students create a variety of creative book character pumpkins. Others that are fun to create include Captain Underpants, Charlotte’s Web pumpkins, Dog Man pumpkins, Pigeon pumpkins, and many others. It’s great to find a book and think of a pumpkin book character to go along with it. Have a wonderful week, and may all of your Harry Potter book character pumpkin endeavors meet with great success!

Lisa Mitchell is a wife, mom, and school librarian who likes to grow fruit, vegetables, flowers on her family’s small Pacific Northwest farm and encourage kids to design creative pumpkin book characters. To learn more about what this website has to offer, click on over to the Welcome page.

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