I’ve been wanting to make a wooden Jack O Lantern for some time. This was a fun project and only requires a few tools. There are so many design possibilities. And it’s a wonderful scrap-wood project.

Use above wooden Jack O Lantern plans as a guide. These Jack O Lanterns can be all shapes and sizes. Use your imagination.

Template above is just one of many face possibilities. Do an internet search and you’ll find all kind of ideas!

Check out my wooden Jack O Lantern video above.

Obtain Scrap Boards

Just about any scrap boards will work for this project. I had some pine boards lying around and so I went with those.

Cut Out Side Boards

Cut out the 4 sides. I used a stop block to get the boards cut to identical widths.

Start Assembly

Beginning to assemble the wooden Jack O Lantern. Photos above show me assembling sides with glue and nail gun.

Draw On The Face

I used my imagination and freehanded the face on the Jack O Lantern. You can find plenty of ideas and templates on the internet. Feel free to use my design.

Cut Out the Face

Next, I will cut out the face with the jigsaw. A scroll saw will also work.

Shape and Sand the Face

After cutting out the face, I used a rasp and detail sander to clean up the cut edges. I think it looks better if the edges are rounded over.

Sizing Top and Bottom Boards

Measuring and sizing the top and bottom pieces. See plans for dimensions.

Attach Top and Bottom Boards

Cut the top and bottom board and attach with glue and nail gun.

Finish Sanding

I used the orbital sander to go over the whole wooden Jack O Lantern. I used 120 grit sandpaper.

Attach Stem

Every Jack O Lantern needs some kind of stem. I simply cut off a piece of oak dowel and glued it to the top.

Apply a Stain Finish

The Minwax stain worked great. It’s called Gunstock and happens to have an orange tint.

Antique the Jack O Lantern

After the stained dried, I took some sandpaper and sanded around the edges of the eyes, nose, and mouth. This gives the Jack O Lantern more of an antique look.

Apply Spar Urethane

Since the wooden Jack O Lantern will probably be spending a lot of time outdoors, I put 3 coats of spar urethane over the stain.

Add LED Candles

I got these LED candles from Hobby Lobby. Fortunately, I made the mouth wide enough to slip the battery-powered candles inside the Jack O Lantern.

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial. Feel free to reach out to me with questions or comments. If you like the content you see here, please consider subscribing to my blog through the sign up on the side bar. Also, check out my Four Oaks Crafts Youtube site.