Jack-O-Lantern Flowerpot Family Halloween Decorations

Put a spin on the original Jack-o-Lantern by adding bright fall flowers inside them. You can always remove the potted flowers on Halloween night and place candles or glow sticks inside.

Make a variety of jack-o-lanterns in different sizes and shapes. Use different colors of pumpkins if they are available. To make a family of jack-o-lanterns, make two large jack-o-lanterns for parents and a few smaller ones for the children.

Be sure to hollow out the insides well. Inside each jack-o-lantern place a potted chrysanthemum flower. Mums are a fall favorite for flower lovers and come in a variety of reds, purples, oranges and yellows. They are usually available in any size from one gallon up to three gallons. Choose the largest size which will fit in each pumpkin. You may need to cut a larger hole in the top of the jack-o-lantern than you normally would.

Try making a pumpkin for each member in your family. Let each of your kids make themselves as a pumpkin. Or put everyone's name on a slip of paper and let each member of the family draw a name. The name they draw is the pumpkin character they make. It can be fun to see how each of the pumpkin caricatures come out. You can also use a few extra props to jazz up your family's pumpkin versions. Stick a pipe in a pumpkin's mouth, add a colorful scarf around the bottom of another one or stick huge costume earrings in the sides of a third. If one of your kids has braces, consider carving a mouth with several jagged teeth stick down and up. Paint the teeth white and glue silver pipe cleaners over the mouth to look like braces. You can add glasses, sun shades, a pacifier or any other signature prop that would help complete each pumpkin character.

For a more colorful front porch of jack-o-lanterns, use large green gourds. Sit the gourds on their bottoms with the narrow heads and stems pointing up. Cut the top of the gourd off to place the chrysanthemums inside. You can also try the rounder type of gourds with different green stripes. The darker and lighter greens of the different gourds will add color pop your neighbors won't overlook.

To remember your pumpkin family, around the pumpkin versions of your family on your front porch steps and take a photograph. Make a similar photograph placing each member of the family in the exact location of their pumpkin character. Put the photos in a double picture frame for a Halloween keepsake your family will enjoy for years.